“This is not an accident, this is my economic plan,” Biden told a crowd of mostly union workers on the latest stop of his nationwide record-burning tour on Thursday. “Together, we are changing the country.”
But many voters are not liking it. They say they haven’t felt the impact of the legislation that is a centerpiece of Biden’s campaign, and they point to what may be his main flaw – inflation. The high prices have exacerbated economic issues that could hinder his re-election.
“Inflation is terrible. “Everything is more expensive than ever,” said independent voter James Watson, 31, who manages a convenience store at a Philadelphia gas station.
Watson said she resented former President Donald Trump, who is leading the polls for the Republican presidential nomination, over his inflammatory comments on race and sexual assault allegations. But she is likely to vote for a third-party candidate next year, as she did in 2020, because she is concerned about Biden’s age and doesn’t feel things have improved significantly in the country since the 80-year-old took office.
This hesitation about Biden’s age and record explains why most polls have the incumbent essentially tied with Trump, who remains unpopular and faces multiple criminal indictments, and why some Democrats are concerned that a third-party ticket could attract enough swing votes to carry the GOP to the polls.
Recent polls also show a gap between the booming labor market, which added 1.67 million jobs till June this year, and how voters feel about the economy. Strong consumer spending, inflation declining from a peak of 9.1% in June 2022 to 3% a year later and a stagnant housing market have done little to change public perception on the issue that often ranks as a top priority for Americans at the ballot box.
A Monmouth University poll released Wednesday showed only three in 10 Americans think the country is doing better economically than the rest of the world since the COVID-19 pandemic. Respondents were divided on Biden’s handling of jobs and unemployment, with 47% approving of his performance and 48% disapproving.
Several other polls also found voters giving Biden low marks on the economy. A Wall Street Journal poll in April found that three points more people disapproved of the infrastructure operation than they approved. Of those who were undecided in a hypothetical match between Biden and Trump, only 10% approved of Biden’s job performance on infrastructure, while 70% disapproved.
Christopher Brown, who works on warehouse-management systems at the Philly shipyard where Biden spoke Thursday, is a registered Republican, but he voted for Biden in 2020 and Hillary Clinton in 2016. This time, the 34-year-old hasn’t committed to endorsing Biden again, partly because he believes the president’s economic record is mixed.
“I feel like I’m actually in worse shape today than I was two years ago, because of inflation, because of excess demand,” said Brown, who lives in Willow Grove, PA.
While Brown does not blame Biden entirely for inflation, he believes that some of the president’s policies have caused prices to rise and that he feels burdened by the cost of his home, groceries and gasoline, even though inflation has been lower in the past year. Brown applauds Biden’s investments in green energy, including offshore wind farms, which the president advocated on Thursday.
In recent months, Biden has traveled to Ohio to promote a $1 billion project to restore the Great Lakes and fund a rehabilitation bridge for passengers and freight between the state and Kentucky. He has highlighted federal investment in the direction of airport expansion in Boston, the Metro Subway in Los Angeles, and a rail tunnel under the Hudson River. And Biden has repeatedly traveled to Pennsylvania, a state that was key to his 2020 victory over Trump, to discuss repairing water and fixing damaged Interstate 95.
Biden campaign spokesman TJ Ducklo said, “President Biden and Vice President Harris are proud to run on a record that has lowered prescription drug costs for seniors, brought hundreds of thousands of manufacturing jobs back to the United States, and paid the wealthy their fair share.” As he did in 2020, President Biden is eager to earn every vote he can for his economic agenda.
Aides to Biden, who often privately express frustration that the president doesn’t get much credit for the economic gains under his watch, say they are aware of voters’ skepticism. The White House has resorted to the phrase “Bidenomics” in an effort to show how the president’s policies have benefited the middle class, and officials insist that his legislative achievements are well received by the public.
Biden supporters say they expect more voters to pay more attention as the race progresses. He said his support will grow as the president speeds up his campaign tour and fills the airwaves with commercials highlighting the implementation of his policies.
Michael Gilmour, 35, is a registered Republican who voted for Biden over Trump in 2020 and is leaning toward voting for Biden again. Gilmour, a portfolio manager in the financial-services industry, said the Republican Party has gone too far on social issues and credited Biden’s policies for creating jobs in North Carolina, where Gilmour is based.
Biden traveled to the state in March to visit Wolfspeed, a Durham-based company that announced a $5 billion investment in semiconductor manufacturing that would create an estimated 1,800 jobs. It plans to receive federal funding from the Chips and Science Act, which Biden signed to help defray the costs of its expansion.
Despite the project, Gilmour said many undecided voters in his community do not believe that Biden is responsible for such achievements.
Gilmour said, “I think he should get credit, but he doesn’t.” At the same time, he said that younger Democratic politicians like Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg could have more influence down the road.
Gilmour said, “I think the way he can achieve the greatest impact is to preach to people who are not his.”
According to the White House, nearly 35,000 projects have been awarded funding under Biden’s infrastructure law. But while the money has been quickly disbursed, many projects could take years to complete and potentially move to future administrations.
“It’s very intangible when you think about it based on the magnitude of the federal government,” said Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D., Pa.), who said people in her district were starting to see orange cones for projects funded by the infrastructure law. “It will take a certain amount of time to unfold, but I think it will happen in the next, six or seven months.”
Anastasia Stefek, a 31-year-old Russian immigrant who will vote in Georgia for her first presidential election, wants Biden to do more to protect the environment. He is not pleased that oil production is expanding under the Biden administration and was unclear about specific ways the president has invested in clean-energy technologies. For that, specifications matter.
“So far there’s been a lot of talk on this, a lot of stuff that hasn’t been passed,” said Stefek, who plans to vote for a more progressive third-party candidate. They’re not sure there’s anything Biden can do to win them over.
Biden’s supporters say core Democratic voters would be more motivated to vote for him if he faces Trump again.
“I don’t believe my mental health can stand up to a second Trump term,” said Alvin Collins, a 48-year-old accountant in Chester Springs, PA.
Collins, a Democrat who voted for Biden in 2020, said he supports the president’s policies, although he has yet to see them directly benefit him, and that he would prefer a candidate who is “a little more energetic.” But he believes Trump and Republicans are more focused on fueling division and that the country is in more stable hands with Biden.
He added, “There’s more leadership. There’s just a lack of chaos.”
Write to Sabrina Siddiqui at [email protected] and Christian Robles at [email protected].