This week’s White House Report Card is another bad one for President Joe Biden, who appears helpless to take charge of his sinking ship.
While he did see movement on his $3.5 trillion spend-and-tax bill, it was only because he talked of cutting the price. Meanwhile, his polling continues to sink, down to 36% approval, as people worry about the coronavirus vaccines and boosters and inflation.
A sign of panic swept through Virginia, where Biden’s low polling threatens the once-sure election of Terry McAuliffe back as governor. First lady Jill Biden joined the Democrat — but not the president himself.
Our graders were unanimous on it being a rotten week. Democratic pollster John Zogby graded a “D” and noted Biden’s struggles with his own agenda. Conservative analyst Jed Babbin graded “D-” and pointed to several problems overseas.
John Zogby
GRADE: D
Finally, there are some signs of progress on COVID-19. The numbers of deaths and new cases are on the decline. Signs point to the efficacy of vaccines, new rounds of boosters will be available shortly, and most of those who self-identify as “hesitant” do eventually receive vaccinations when their employers mandate them to.
Biden and the Democrats are focusing attention on the two infrastructure bills, but this issue has become lost in the Bermuda Triangle known as the Beltway — and thus remote from the kitchen tables and family rooms where it needs to be discussed. The Democrats, instead of laying out the benefits of the bills to families and workers, have allowed themselves to be mired in both an ideological battle and the weird battles between one senator and unforgiving progressives.
If Biden is going to get control of the situation, he will first have to persuade the public that real progress is being made on containing the spread of COVID-19 and how the next phase is to get real families back on their feet. He needs to do a national tour to political swing states and explain the stakes involved in real and personal terms. Drop the talk about “trillions” in spending and return the conversation to hundreds and thousands of dollars. Right now, he is not in control.
Applications for unemployment benefits were down, but good economic news has gotten lost.
Jed Babbin
GRADE: D-
It was another not-so-good week for Biden, beginning with Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Columbus Day to the rest of us) and continuing on through no release of U.S. civilians by the Taliban, more Bidenflation, and enlivened only by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s scolding of the media.
Hundreds of U.S. civilians are stuck in Afghanistan, and there’s no effort to rescue them. The State Department wants to resume evacuation flights, but that’s up to the Taliban, not Foggy Bottom.
Bidenflation is raging across the nation, exacerbated by supply chain blockages and malfunctions. The cost of food is soaring: ground beef up 10.6%, chicken up 17%, pork roasts and ribs up almost 20%, and eggs up 12%. Bidenflation functions as a tax on the middle class and the poor. So much for Biden’s promise not to tax anyone who doesn’t make $400,000 a year.
After a meeting with the Taliban in Qatar, the Taliban said the United States was going to provide “humanitarian” aid to Afghanistan. It may be the State Department’s effort to pay ransom for U.S. citizens trapped there. The European Union will be paying a lot to the Taliban in a way that would supposedly help the Afghan people. Whether any of their money will be spent to benefit Afghans is problematic and quite unlikely.
Meanwhile, Biden lifted Trump-era sanctions on two Iranian companies involved in Iran’s ballistic missile program, but that wasn’t enough to entice Iran back to the bargaining table. Biden also wants to revive the extremely dangerous 2015 Obama nuclear weapons deal with Iran. It’s his worst idea, which is saying a lot.
Biden’s son, Hunter, is reportedly trying to get rid of his 10% stock holding in a Chinese investment company that the U.S. has sanctioned. How hard can it be to dump some stock? The FBI is reportedly looking into a flow of money from Hunter to Joe.
Pelosi scolded the press for not doing a better job of selling Biden’s $3.5 trillion socialist spending bill. That’s no surprise because the Democrats see the media as their public relations firm, a fact the media confirm every day. The pressies tugged their forelocks and promised to do better.
John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Poll and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His weekly podcast with son and partner Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Follow him on Twitter @ZogbyStrategies
Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of former President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on Twitter @jedbabbin
