American voters have seemingly not bought into the White House's story of the "Bidenomics" success, even though the US is seeing relatively low unemployment, steady economic growth and slower inflation, according to the Hill.
"All good. Take a look. Start reporting it the right way," the US president responded last Saturday when asked about his economic prognosis for 2024.
Indeed, while a July survey of US economic forecasters conducted on behalf of Bloomberg showed a 60% chance of the nation falling into recession in the next 12 months, the US has seemingly avoided this worst-case scenario. Still, the US president's approval rating has slid to a new low, nonetheless.
A recent Monmouth University survey has shown that just 34% of American respondents approve of Biden's presidency. Nearly 70% are dissatisfied with his handling of inflation even though it has recently fallen to 3.14%. Over half of American voters disapprove of Biden's record on jobs, despite the November unemployment rate of 3.7 percent marking a five-decade-low in joblessness.
Moreover, Biden currently trails former President Donald Trump by two percentage points in a hypothetical 2024 rematch, according to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ poll tracker.
A previous survey conducted by Fox News reflects a similar trend with three-quarters of Americans rating the US economy negatively. Likewise, 67% - including 84% of Republicans and 77% of independents – say the situation won't improve in the near future.
Democrats seem to be equally disenchanted, with 59% saying the US economy is in bad shape and 46% saying it is unlikely to get better. Inflation remains a top concern across party lines.
A Wall Street Journal study has recently indicated that Americans feel "hurt" by Biden's economic policies, citing high food and gas prices. People aren't feeling the benefits of "Bidenomics" and "soft landing" because rising prices are creating a cost-of-living crisis.
"People can understand over time that houses go up in value, cars go up in value," Gordon Gray, vice president for economic policy at the American Action Forum told the Hill. "But at the end of the day, with eggs and gasoline, people kind of want to pay what they have always paid — or at least close to it."
When it comes to Biden's 2024 election odds, there is growing skepticism about the US president's ability to turn the apparent economic recovery into "a selling point" even if the US can bring inflation down without falling into a recession, according to the media outlet. The spike in inflation has seriously marred Biden's first time and it seems that disenchantment is here to stay.