President Joe Biden’s overall approval ratings continue a downward slide as he approaches his one-year anniversary in office, and a plurality of respondents believe he has not handled the coronavirus pandemic as well as his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, according to a new Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey.
According to the survey, conducted Jan. 8-9, 44% of Americans disapprove of Biden’s overall performance, while 39% approve, giving him a net -5% approval rating. That is down two points from the same survey a month earlier when 44% disapproved and 41% approved.
It also mirrors other national polls that show Biden on a precipitous slide in public approval.
The survey found most people think Biden has handled most areas worse than Trump, including giving Trump a slight edge on handling the coronavirus pandemic.
Forty percent of respondents say Biden has done a worse job handling the pandemic than Trump, while 39% say he has done a better job.
But Biden was the clear loser to Trump on the issues of the economy (46% favored Trump); immigration (44%); national security and defense (41%); and foreign policy (41%.) Forty percent said Biden handled the economy better than Trump.
Trump was in office as the pandemic hit, and has touted his Operation Warp Speed for getting vaccines in arms quickly. Biden has given credit to Trump for that as well, but has been beset by new strains of the virus, delta and omicron, and has also seen mixed messaging from health agencies take its toll on the public’s thust, many of whom are weary of mandates and threats of more lockdowns.
Story cited here.
