It’s less than a year from the 2024 election, and President Joe Biden’s polling has reached a new low. Recently, Biden’s poll numbers hit a record-low approval rating of 40 percent for President Biden, and former President Donald Trump is reportedly edging ahead of the incumbent by 2 percent.
Especially alarming to the Biden campaign was a New York Times poll that revealed Trump is leading against Biden in five of the six crucial battleground states for the 2024 election.
It seems that the time for the Biden/Harris campaign to hit the panic button is now, although Democrats have been sounding the alarm continuously for the past year.
Biden continues to dismiss the polling, echoing Harris’ sentiments in late July when a reporter questioned her low approval ratings. At the time, Harris responded, “Well, there are polls that say I have great approval ratings.” Biden has taken a lesson in denial from his vice president, pointing out that he doesn’t have bad numbers despite abysmal approval ratings and repeated indications that Trump is trouncing him.
“There are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, ten other polls, and everyone we are winning – except the two we are tied,” the President responded. He also noted that “Democrats are winning” because “the Biden-Harris agenda has taken hold.”
Whatever that means.
Meanwhile, there is a parallel sense of denial among those endorsing Biden. During Harris’ visit to South Carolina, she was joined by Representative Jim Clyburn, who played a crucial role in securing Biden’s victory in the state in 2020, particularly among the Black community. Clyburn noted previous concerns about the negative implications of having Harris on the ticket, but he claims that the negative perception has shifted to a more positive one.
Harris currently stands at just over 7% approval rating in the polls.
Earlier this month, Harris traveled to South Carolina to officially file the Biden campaign’s slot for the Democratic primary ballot. She took a moment in a phone interview aboard Air Force Two to observe to CNN, ‘We’re going to have to earn our reelect, there’s no doubt about it.”
Harris emphasized the importance of candidates to make their case effectively. In an interview with CNN, she highlighted the necessity of communicating accomplishments and values in a way that resonates and ensures the public receives the message.
Harris further claims a strong sense of duty and responsibility to engage with the public, emphasizing the importance of being present where people are. She explained the need to communicate with them, actively listen, and share the administration’s achievements while ensuring the people’s concerns are heard and understood.
But even CNN is not confident in Harris’ ability to advance the Biden message. The network noted that Vice President Harris has faced challenges in communication and messaging despite her plans to connect with TikTok influencers and increase her presence on the campaign trail. One instance involved a last-minute replacement of a scheduled speech at the Democratic National Committee meeting with a ‘fireside chat’ moderated by her adviser, Donna Brazile, suggesting concerns about her effectiveness in delivering the intended message.
Harris’ suggestion that she and Biden must “earn their reelection” is coming a bit late in the campaign and is further hindered by the administration’s refusal to acknowledge that so far, they have done nothing to “earn the vote” of demographic blocs Democrats frequently take for granted.
To make matters worse, her messaging is damaging to the campaign. She recently suggested that the “list of Biden accomplishments” is just “too long” for Black voters. Meanwhile, the youth vote is firmly divided on the Biden administration’s response to the Hamas/Israeli conflict, and some polls show that younger Americans feel that Biden is out of touch with their concerns.
In Harris’ eyes, however, the Biden administration has already been “earning reelection.” She continues to tout Biden’s “accomplishments” on the economy, immigration, and climate change. If Biden and Harris haven’t finished “earning reelection” yet, an entire nation is waving a flag of surrender and begging them to stop “earning it.”
Biden has proven he is much better at buying or manufacturing votes than earning them.
