The polls continue to worsen for President Biden.
His approval rating has hit a new low of 37% in NBC’s latest poll, giving Donald Trump a 5-point lead in a hypothetical showdown. To make matters worse, Trump beats him by 20 points when it comes to handling the economy.
While the media is replete with stories about rising consumer confidence and a record stock market, President Trump also manages to claim credit for the same, which suggests that the public still has a lot of economic worries. It shows that you are holding on to something.
You can’t use statistics to tell people how they should feel. That won’t work.
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The report released last Friday showing that payrolls rose by 353,000 in January was an absolute shocker. Economists from all walks of life agreed on this. Larry Kudlow, President Trump’s chief economic adviser and current host on Fox Business, said if he were Biden, he would boast about the wage increases, among other things.
Here’s what the president didn’t do:
He did not go in front of the cameras to take credit for the unexpected surge in employment and tout the success of his economic plan.
No, he made a statement.
Republican presidential candidate and former President Trump speaks with reporters at the International Teamsters headquarters in Washington, DC, January 31, 2024. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Biden is particular about what he says, but television and the web thrive on video. The statement is read by the anchor and host for perhaps half a day and then disappears.
So why would Biden ignore the video victory lap?
Now let’s get to the main topic of this column.
We all know that as president, Trump spoke to reporters far more frequently than his successor and conducted many times more sit-down interviews. I’ve complained many times about the lack of access to the press, and clearly that’s not going to change. Even as a former president, Trump makes far more news than his likely opponents.
Mr. Biden’s team concluded that Mr. Biden needed to be protected from the press because he could stumble, stumble, or make mistakes — I would say so, but so what? Everyone already knows that about the 81-year-old president.
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Consider:
Late Friday, the Biden administration announced airstrikes on 85 targets in Iraq and Syria, after five days of mostly conservative criticism of inaction after an Iranian drone killed three U.S. soldiers. More than 40 people died. And it is said that attacks will continue in the future.
This is the commander-in-chief’s card to give a short and perfectly legitimate televised speech about why he ordered the attack and how those who seek to harm the American people will face similar retaliation. You might think this is the perfect time to cut it.
Hmm. He released his statement. I haven’t given that speech yet. I don’t know either.
We also learned in recent days that Biden has declined requests for a Super Bowl interview for the second year in a row.
Let’s talk about major league fumbles. Large audience. It’s usually light in tone, probably includes some tough questions, and maybe some Taylor Swift chit-chat. Barack Obama also took questions about the Super Bowl from Bill O’Reilly.
President Biden speaks at St. John Baptist Church in Columbia, South Carolina, on January 28, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/AFP via Getty Images)
Why don’t the weak take advantage of such a golden opportunity? You could say Biden didn’t want anything to do with the network last year when FOX had a big game, but this time it’s CBS. Can’t he handle Norah O’Donnell or Scott Pelley?
And one more thing. Although Biden ran against a nominal opponent, no one was surprised when he won 96% of the vote in Saturday’s South Carolina primary. That, of course, is the state that rescued his candidacy four years ago.
But Biden wasn’t even in South Carolina. He went to California to raise money and then to Nevada, where the next contest will be held.
If the president had stayed overnight, he might have given a rousing victory speech, and the networks would have played the footage for days afterward.
So what if he was the opponent between Marianne Williamson and an unknown congressman?
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There are no speeches.
Now, some may argue that Mr. Biden should step up to the plate to support the Senate’s bipartisan budget bill, which both President Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson are trying to block. . Ronald Reagan was adept at rallying his support in this way.
But this is completely an internal game. Appealing to the masses won’t be a problem. Moreover, this indicator is almost certainly decreasing.
Under normal circumstances, yesterday’s approval of the Border Patrol’s compromise proposal would have a major impact. It’s not this bipartisan atmosphere.
President Biden gestures to the audience after speaking at a campaign event in North Las Vegas on Sunday. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarborough)
Biden spoke briefly to pool reporters yesterday while meeting with culinary union workers in Las Vegas.
What about the border bill?
“We don’t have enough people. We don’t have enough judges. We don’t have enough people here. I need help. Why can’t they help me?”
Why is this so? I couldn’t hear his answer.
A reporter asked about King Charles’ cancer diagnosis.
“I’m worried about him. I just heard about his diagnosis,” she said, adding that she hopes to talk to him “God willing.”
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This is how modern presidents communicate with the press with short, clipped answers.
At least the helicopter’s engine didn’t drown him.
