With increasing numbers of polls showing that the Republicans have a chance to do well when it comes to the midterms, certain Democrat politicians and strategists are separating themselves from President Joe Biden, who's run the economy to the ground and supervised the highest U.S. inflation in 40 years. Biden's approval ratings have climbed up a bit since summer, but it stands at a mere 39 percent, as per the results of a YouGov survey.
Who will bear the burden If the Dems do poorly in House or Senate elections on the 8th of November? One Democrat source said to The Hill that Joe will be the “fall guy,” while another strategist agreed:
It’s all about the economy, and at the end of the day, everything is more expensive than it was a year ago, retirement accounts are plummeting, and gas prices are lower but they’re inching up again. And President Biden is in charge, so of course people are going to point to him, unfairly or not.
It is fair to blame him. If you're the leader, you're accountable for what happens. Biden is a big part of the blame as he created this mess in the beginning of his disastrous presidency, when he shut down the Keystone Pipeline.
The Dems have a right to be concerned, with polls showing increased optimism for Republicans. A New York Times/Siena College poll released on Monday finds a strong backing for GOP, with 49 percent of respondents saying they'd prefer a Republican in Congress and just 45 percent inclined to vote Democrat.
In the meantime, a lot of Democrat hopefuls are working hard to avoid the president. Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan stated bluntly:
“I won’t be asking the president to come in — or very, very few, if any, national people to come in and actually campaign with us,” he told CBS News, “because I want to be the main face, the main messenger of that of this campaign.”
Ryan is currently in a close Senate race with Republican JD Vance. Ryan likely doesn't need Joe stumbling across the stage to ruin his chances. I'm sure that if there were a popular president, like Barack Obama, Ryan would be asking for him to come help. But he's not the only one. Democrat Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock sounded less than enthusiastic when he talked about Biden during a debate with GOP candidate Herschel Walker last week. When asked, “Would you support Pres. Biden running for a second term in 2024?” Warnock said, “I have not spent a minute thinking about what politician should run for what in 2024.”
Well-known election denier and Georgia governor candidate Stacey Abrams skipped a Biden event in Atlanta earlier in the year because of a “scheduling” issue. However, Abrams is scheduled to attend an upcoming event with Oprah.
The president will be meeting on Wednesday with Pennsylvania Senate candidate John Fetterman. This could be extremely intriguing because both men suffer from difficulty making complete sentences. It is shocking that either of the men wants to be seen with the other, considering both of their apparent deficiencies.
Certain Democrats are insisting Biden’s low approval ratings will not hurt their cause. Democratic strategist and pollster Paul Maslin:
Biden’s numbers, while not great, have picked up a bit recently. And turnout matters a lot. So I would not term him either harm or help.
Don't be fooled by it. The majority of these contests will be a referendum on Biden's numerous failings. If the polls hold to the norm, you can expect more Democrats to distance themselves from Biden and for his possible second-term plans to suffer a major blow.
