The widely-expected losses that the Democratic Party will face in the November midterm elections, as voters register their frustration and anger over record inflation, surging mortgage rates and house prices, a bearish stock market performing markedly worse than during the previous administration, and concern about the course of the Ukraine crisis, leave the party with no clear way forward as the 2024 presidential contest looms, according to observers.
While it is quite common for the incumbent party to lose seats in midterm races, disappointment with President Joe Biden’s performance, low approval ratings, and growing concern even among his own base about his age, cognitive state, and suitability to seek a second term conspire to make the coming months a chaotic time for a party with no consensus around a succession plan or strategy for defeating Donald Trump in a potential rematch, political strategists say.
With inflation having hit 8.6 percent in May 2022, a four-decade high, and gas prices at $5 per gallon for the first time, the president’s ratings have taken a massive hit. According to a USA Today poll released on June 17, Biden’s current approval rating stands at just 39 percent, with 47 percent of respondents saying they strongly disapprove of the job he is doing as president.
Biden’s approval ratings have been in the doldrums for some time now, with an April CNBC poll having found that 53 percent of respondents disapproved of Biden’s performance and only 38 percent approved.
The president still has many supporters who say there is no cause for concern from the standpoint of cognitive ability.
“He has no cognitive issues. I’ve known him for more than 40 years,” Alan Dershowitz, a noted legal expert, author, and commentator, said in an email to The Epoch Times.
But the most recent poll results come amid increasingly vocal calls even within the mainstream media for the president not to seek a second term.
By Michael Washburn
