Biden pressures GOP post-July 4th hiatus.
The White House Returns from Summer Break with a New Strategy
The White House has returned from the Fourth of July summer break, appearing tanned, rested, and ready to take on Republicans. However, it remains to be seen if this more assertive communications strategy will improve President Joe Biden’s approval ratings before next year’s election. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump continues to dominate the news cycle with the possibility of a second federal indictment.
Biden’s Focus on Defining Republicans
All campaigns need a focal point to crystallize their message, and Biden aims to define Republicans by their most extreme elements. According to the Brookings Institution’s Darrell West, “His goal is to convince the public that the GOP as a whole is out of the mainstream and too extreme to govern effectively.” West believes that Republicans like Senator Tommy Tuberville and Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene are inadvertently helping Biden by making extreme statements and engaging in extreme behavior.
“Sometimes the best way to define oneself is in opposition to the other party,” West added.
New Strategy Coincides with Key Events
The White House’s new communications strategy aligns with two significant events this week. The highly anticipated House Oversight Committee hearing featured the testimony of IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, who claimed political interference in Hunter Biden’s criminal tax investigation. On the other hand, the White House also hosted a bipartisan congressional picnic. Hunter Biden is expected to plead guilty to tax and gun crimes, potentially avoiding prison time if he remains clean for two years.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre emphasized the president’s respect for the rule of law and the independence of the Department of Justice. She criticized Republicans for focusing on political stunts instead of addressing the needs of the American people.
Biden’s Approval Ratings and Economic Policies
Simultaneously, Biden’s average approval-disapproval rating stands at 41%-55%, according to FiveThirtyEight. In a hypothetical 2020 general election redo, Biden leads Trump by less than a percentage point. He also holds a 1.5-point advantage over Governor Ron DeSantis, Trump’s most competitive primary opponent for the 2024 election. Trump confirmed receiving a target letter from special counsel Jack Smith regarding the federal Jan. 6 investigation.
Despite Biden’s criticism of Republicans, a recent Monmouth University poll revealed that the president’s attempts to emphasize his economic policies have not convinced the public that they are better off under his leadership. The survey showed that Biden has net negative approval ratings regarding his handling of jobs and unemployment, transportation and energy infrastructure, and inflation.
“Americans are just not giving him a lot of credit when it comes to the economy,” said Patrick Murray, the director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.
Increased Scrutiny of Republicans
Even during Biden’s recent trip to the United Kingdom and Europe, he and his aides have shown a readiness to scrutinize Republicans. Karine Jean-Pierre called out Senator Tuberville for blocking military promotions as a protest against the Pentagon’s support for servicemembers and their families traveling for an abortion. She also highlighted Greene’s comparisons of Biden’s policies to those of past presidents, criticizing what she referred to as ”Bidenomics” for allegedly reducing poverty in rural areas.
The White House compiled a video of Greene’s comments and shared it on social media, garnering 40 million views in less than a day.
As the White House adopts a more aggressive approach, it remains to be seen how effective this strategy will be in shaping public opinion and improving Biden’s approval ratings.
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