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As Biden's approval dips, Democrats bank on his plans' popularity in 2022
Biden's approval rating is down, but Democrats are counting on the popularity of his plans.
Politics
WASHINGTON — With President Joe Biden's approval sliding in recent months, Democrats are rallying around the sustained popularity of his signature economic plans to save them in the midterm elections, increasing the pressure on slim majorities in Congress to deliver after a stinging electoral defeat in blue Virginia.
The $550 billion bipartisan infrastructure bill is set for a White House signing ceremony Monday, the beginning of a victory lap after months of stalemate. And Democratic leaders hope to pass his safety net and climate bill through the House this week before it faces some hurdles in the Senate.
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll illustrates the dichotomy: Just 41 percent of Americans approve of Biden's job performance, while 63 percent support his bipartisan infrastructure bill and 58 percent support his nearly $2 trillion social spending and climate package.
Other polls similarly show that the popularity of the Build Back Better bill is higher than Biden's, including among independent voters. Much of Biden's recent slide has come from core groups in his winning 2020 coalition, including Black voters and women.
Democratic strategists say that's evidence that voters want Congress to pass the economic programs. They argue that Biden and the party's sagging approval will recover once they deliver.
"Voters are deeply cynical about what politicians say they will do, so Democrats need to actually get it done," said Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist who has worked on House and presidential campaigns. "This gap won't close by telling people what we will do. It will close by showing people what we are doing."
But to reap political gain, Democrats emphasize, they'll need Biden's megaphone to sell what they're doing.
"We're about to deliver universal pre-k and extend a game-changing middle-class tax cut. The job now is to go out and sell it. So I'm encouraged to see that Joe Biden's begun to tour the country connecting with Americans like only he can," said Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-N.Y., the chairman of House Democrats' campaign arm. "It will take dozens of events by the president to spread the message."
Republicans are skeptical.
Josh Holmes, a longtime political adviser to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., suggested that the safety net bill is likelier to sink to Biden's level than it is to lift him and his party up.
"Signature legislative accomplishments are never any more popular than the president who signs it," he said.
The Post-ABC News poll carried a major warning for Democrats: They trailed Republicans by 10 points when voters were asked which party's candidate they'd prefer in the midterms.