From fireworks to fizzle…that is about the difference that a year can create when discussing the last year of the presidency of Joe Biden.
The Fourth of July was the last time Biden hosted hundreds of people on the White House grounds. They believed there was the end of the pandemic, and they enjoyed hamburgers and watched fireworks on the National Mall.
Biden declared “We're closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus.” All across the country, indoor mask requirements were being removed and infections were decreasing and deaths were nearly not even a thing.
The experts have since begun to say that Biden's claim was not true.
Then the delta variant began infecting people who had been vaccinated. The masks were reintroduced and more polarizing mask mandates came about. Then, the omicron variant reared its head and became more contagious causing havoc during the Christmas season.
The number of patients who died from COVID-19 has doubled, and surpassed a million people over the last year.
In the end, the speech that was a rosy shade on the Fourth of July marked a turning point for Biden. Biden spoke as if the pandemic was drawing to an end and the economy was flourishing as was inflation, and his approval ratings were high.
The fireworks then began to roar. The celebration this year of the Fourth of July was different. The pandemic returned with a vengeance. The White House administration botched the removal of soldiers from Afghanistan and the Taliban came in at rapid speed, and Biden's domestic agenda fell apart from within.
Then, Russia boldly flexed its muscles by waging war in Ukraine as gas prices shot beyond the realm of possibility and inflation hit an all-time high of 40 years and then the Supreme Court struck down an iconic liberal image by ruling in Roe v. Wade.
Biden is left holding the bag and has no resources to do anything in response to the negative news.
According to the most recent poll from the Associated Press-NORC Centre of Public Affairs Research President Obama's approval rating has remained at 39%. This is the lowest it has been since the time he was inaugurated.
It's a significant improvement from last year, when he was given 59% of the vote. The number shows only 14 percent of Americans who believe that the country is headed in the correct direction.
Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian, stated “He tried to spread some good news, but it did not work out for Biden. Then, Biden lost a lot of his goodwill.”
Chris Meagher, a spokesperson for Biden, is working to make sense of the mess. He stated, “Fighting inflation and lowering prices is Biden's top economic priority and he's focused on doing all he can to ensure that the economy is in good shape to benefit people like the American people. We're also in a good place to make the transition from our historic job growth to steady and steady growth. Thanks to our efforts to bring the epidemic under control, COVID has not become as disruptive as it has been for the past several years.”
Plop, plop, fizz…It doesn't seem like anyone is paying attention to the reactions coming from at the White House.
Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, was an advisor to Biden and was of the opinion that Biden's extravagant behavior was too early. He's now hesitant to reveal how the world will unfold because of the epidemic.
“I also want to know the answers. However, I'm not sure what these variants will be able to bring to us. I'm not sure what human immunity is likely to be at,” Osterholm said.
The next big negative news cycle for Biden will likely come in November. The resources Biden has to address issues now will be ineffective when Democrats quit the House during the midterm elections.
