Somehow it’s not a surprise.
Joe’s Biden’s approval rating is making it a rough week for the White House when it comes to popular opinion.
The rating is now at 50.3 percent, according to a combination of polls calculated by the political analysis website FiveThirtyEight.
The rating hasn’t hit 51 percent since Aug. 2, since then fluctuating somewhere between point of 50.9 percent Aug. 3 to 50.2 on Saturday and Monday. On Tuesday, it was 50.4 percent. Collectively, the week marks the lowest point since Biden took office.
That’s down from a high of 55 percent tabulated Jan. 25.
More telling is the disapproval rate, growing overall from its lowest point of 34 percent on Feb. 1 to 42.9 percent today, FiveThirtyEight calculated.
Meanwhile, a poll released last week by Quinnipiac University showed Biden’s job approval dropping to 46 percent, compared to 49 percent in May, with his disapproval rating rising from 41 percent to 43 percent.
It’s not difficult to see why some Americans are lukewarm to or critical of the Biden administration: squelching of energy independence immediately upon taking office; inconsistencies regarding COVID with scoldings over masks and vaccinations coupled with rumblings of vaccination passports; a porous southern border, rising violent crime rates, and being linked to outlandish Democratic policies like police defunding, guaranteed incomes and critical race theory.
On a personal basis are Biden’s cognitive capabilities which continue to appear to be diminishing. And, 25th Amendment fans, waiting in the wings is a vice president of questionable character and ability.
The Biden administration’s recent handling of the pandemic may be a driver in eroding support, according to the Quinnipiac poll. Compared to 65 percent approval in May, the administration now has only 46 percent on board with its handling of the pandemic.
The administration also dropped in the public perception of its handling of the economy, from a 48 percent approval rating in May down to 43 percent reported last week. The Quinnipac poll also showed a slight increase in Biden foreign policy approval from 39 to 44 percent since May, but disapproval remains the same, 44 percent (14 percent in the most recent poll didn’t know or didn’t respond to the foreign policy question).
Quinnipac showed 55 percent of women surveyed approve Biden’s job performance, compared to 36 percent of men.
Significantly, the university researchers reported that a majority of those polled — 54 percent — don’t think Biden will run again in 2024; and 48 percent believed a second term would be bad for the country, compared to 37 percent who did not.
FiveThirtyEight’s poll compilation showed the highest presidential rating at roughly the 200-day mark was that of George H.W. Bush in 1989 with 67.1 percent. Following were Ronald Reagan at 59.3 percent, Barack Obama and George W. Bush each at 54 percent, Bill Clinton at 44.1 percent, and Donald Trump at 37.6 percent.