Poll after poll shows that Americans are overwhelmingly pessimistic about the state of the economy and distrust the elites responsible for steering the economy; He told investigators that his personal financial situation was fine.
President Biden is perhaps most affected by the turbulent economic situation. President Biden’s chances of re-election depend in part on whether he can remind voters that jobs remain plentiful and inflation has slowed from its historic peak in 2022. Financial analysts are also taking a cautious stance. Although he is optimistic that the so-called “soft landing” will continue, many voters do not seem interested in hearing this message.
“If he pulls [the soft landing] “That’s a pretty commendable accomplishment, but voters aren’t in the mood to give him much credit,” said Molly Ball, senior political correspondent for the Wall Street Journal. Ball spoke to a crowd of several hundred people on Saturday, May 4, as part of the Cascade PBS Ideas Festival, taping a live episode of the paper’s daily podcast, “The Journal.”
Co-hosts Ryan Knutson and Kate Linebaugh told Ball that Biden’s strength stands in contrast to President Trump’s enduring ability to portray himself as a successful businessman who led the pre-coronavirus economy. I asked why he was having such a hard time claiming credit for the economic recovery, at least on paper. At least for some, by easy money and big profits. Mr. Trump has also succeeded in positioning himself as a political outsider, reflecting the public’s dissatisfaction with and cynicism toward the political system.
“I think anger has always been a big part of his brand and a big part of why he appeals to people who are uncomfortable with things,” Ball said. “A lot of candidates go to the polls and say to voters, ‘I understand that you’re angry, I understand, and I sympathize.'” Trump doesn’t do that. He says, “I’m angry too.” ”
Ball said one of the ironies often lost in the partisan scrum is that Trump and Biden made similar economic choices during their terms. Biden has largely continued President Trump’s tariffs and continues to employ protectionist economic policies to shore up U.S. manufacturing of products such as microchips and solar panels. Ball said the bipartisan shift toward industrial policy, with both parties opposed to free trade agreements, is a sign that Republicans and Democrats alike were firmly in favor of things like the North American Free Trade Agreement and China’s accession to the pact. ~He said that this would have been unthinkable 20 years ago. World Trade Organization.
But how important is the economy to voters? Ball points out that while perceptions of the economy typically factor into the election, both the Trump and Biden campaigns have focused voters on other issues such as immigration and abortion rights. He pointed out that it is attracting a lot of attention. The Biden campaign has also sought to frame the election as a referendum on democracy, emphasizing President Trump’s authoritarian ambitions and attempts to consolidate executive power and overturn the 2020 election.
Ultimately, the 2024 election will be about which reality Americans believe in: Biden’s optimism about a “resurgent America steadily moving toward a future of shared prosperity” Or it could be Trump’s version of a “dystopian backwater on a path to destruction.”
Ball said voters are now used to seeing the country through swamp-colored glasses.
“The mood of the electorate is much more like a dystopian backwater than it is in the morning in America,” she says. “I think they’re looking at things as broadly as President Trump would like.”