The White House hasn’t seen a Bidenomics payoff yet
New polling shows Americans aren’t crediting Joe Biden for the economy’s recent progress. But the administration is rolling full-steam ahead and congressional Dems are standing behind the president.
AMERICANS COOL ON BIDENOMICS SO FAR
It’s been about three weeks since the White House officially announced “Bidenomics,” and the response to President Joe Biden’s vision for an economy that works for families and communities of families and communities that have long been left behind has been lukewarm at best.
The administration is rolling full-steam ahead though: Biden will be in Philadelphia later today to speak about how the impact of his economic agenda on the American transition to clean energy in its latest attempt to break through the chronic nationwide malaise toward his legislative record.
The numbers: The latest Monmouth University Poll found that Americans still rate Biden poorly in three key economic policy areas, despite him signing into law bills that directly addressed these issues:
Jobs and unemployment: 47 percent approve, 48 percent disapprove
Transportation and energy infrastructure: 43 percent approve and 51 percent disapprove
Inflation: 34 percent approve, 62 percent disapprove
Monmouth reports the recent results are similar to Biden’s ratings in a Monmouth poll taken last September.
Not the “whole story”: White House Press Secretary told reporters on Wednesday that the polls don’t tell the whole Bidnenomics story.
She pointed to data that shows the combination of unemployment and inflation are at historic lows with consumer confidence and wages on the rise.
The administration says Biden is focused on taking actions that provide immediate relief to Americans who feel the pinch from high housing costs, which accounted for 70 percent of inflation in June.
During a meeting with his Competition Council on Wednesday, the president announced a crackdown on hidden junk fees in the rental housing industry — including application fees and so-called “January fees,” charges at the beginning of the calendar year for no clear reason.
“So those are the facts,” Jean-Pierre said. “We’re going to continue to have those conversations with the American public.”
Bidenomics, explained: Fundamentally, the president’s economic message is a contrast against the trickle-down policies of aggressive corporate deregulation and tax cuts that former President Ronald Reagan popularized in the 1980s and that the Republican establishment has sustained in the decades since.
Instead, the White House says Bidenomics is focused on reconstructing a system that invests in American workers, promotes competition, and lowers costs for families.
Dems back Biden: House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-CA) told reporters on Tuesday that members have been privileged to work with the president and Vice President Kamala Harris as they implement major pieces of legislation, including the infrastructure bill and CHIPS and Science Act.
“These are real proposals, real accomplishments, that are making a considerable difference in the lives of Americans,” he said.
And as your Supercreator Daily author reported on Wednesday, the New Democrat Coalition, which consists of almost 100 consensus-minded, center-left House Democrats, released an economic blueprint filled with proposals that build on the policies advanced in these landmark bills.
But the GOP rails against his clean-energy agenda: Senate Republicans characterized the clean-energy priorities Biden will advance in Philadelphia later as an obsession that undermines US national security to China’s advantage.
“He wants all of these Americans to be forced to buy expensive electric cars and to use only energy that has no carbon attached to it,” Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) said on Wednesday. “Their path, of the Democrats, in terms of energy and national security, is total surrender.”
Biden’s Philly itinerary: Before his remarks today, a White House official said the president will visit the Philly Shipyard for a steel-cutting ceremony for the Acadia — a vessel that will be used to help build offshore wind farms. Biden will also announce the first-ever offshore wind sale in the Gulf of Mexico. Reps. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) and Philadephia Mayor Jim Kenney will join him for the event.
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IN THE KNOW
Jones touts early poll numbers: The campaign for Mondaire Jones released internal polling results that show the former New York congressman with a lead over Liz Whitmer Gereghty, his closest primary opponent, in his bid to reclaim the seat in his old district from Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY).
A former Obama administration official, Jones declined to run in the 17th congressional district last year after it was redrawn in the same one as another Democrat. Instead, Jones ran in New York’s 10th, where he lost in the primary to the eventual winner Dan Goldman.
The district is one of several New York seats that President Biden won in 2020 that are held by Republicans, making it a prime target among House Democrats as they look to retake the majority in 2024.
The margin between Jones and Gereghty in the initial head-to-head was 43 to eight percent, according to the results. The numbers were even better for Jones when voters learned about the biographies of each candidate: 51 percent to 11 percent.
Jones, who became one of the first two openly gay Black members of Congress, has also raised $500,000 in the first two weeks of the campaign.
Unanimous committee support for PRESS Act: The House Judiciary Committee unanimously voted to pass the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying (PRESS) Act, the first federal press shield of its kind.
The PRESS Act would establish a federal statute to protect journalists from being forced to reveal their sources and prevent law enforcement from abusing subpoena power.
“The Constitution promises that no law shall abridge the freedom of the press and instructs us to protect journalists from government overreach and abuse of power, and today this committee has made good on that promise,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), one of two lead sponsors of the legislation, said in a statement. Kevin Kiley (R-CA) is the other lead sponsor.
Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Dick Durbin introduced the bill’s companion legislation in the Senate.
Bipartisan lawmakers intro anti-pet-food-waste bill: Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Young Kim (R-CA), Lucy McBath (D-GA), and David Joyce (R-OH) introduced a bill to provide liability protections for pet suppliers that donate food supplies and animal shelters.
The lawmakers say the Bring Animals Relief and Kibble — BARK 🐶 — Act would reduce waste by making it possible to recover millions of pounds of pet food for animals in need.
Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) are introducing companion legislation in the Senate.
Crockett, Fitzpatrick look to establish nutrition task force: Reps. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) introduced a bill that would establish a special working group to reduce hunger and malnutrition among older adults and adults with disabilities.
“The United States is the richest country in the history of the world,” Crockett said in a statement. “And tonight, somewhere in America, somebody’s grandma is going to bed hungry. There’s no excuse for it, and we need to get to the root causes of this problem now — not later.”
28 percent of US households that included an adult out of the labor force because of a disability were food insecure in 2021, according to the Agriculture Department. The advocacy group Feeding America found that 5.5 million older adults were insecure during the same year.
Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Bob Casey (D-PA) introduced a companion bill in the Senate.
FTC, DOJ seek comment on merger guidelines: The Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department released a draft update of the policies the agencies will apply when determining whether mergers and acquisitions comply with federal antitrust laws.
The 13 guidelines focus on increasing competition and protecting consumers, workers, and businesses and will be open to public comment until September 18, after which the agencies will finalize the guidelines.
USAID announces $230M for UKR construction: Samantha Power, the US Agency for International Development administrator, announced that the agency would work with Congress to provide an additional $230 million to support Ukraine’s economy and reconstruction.
The funding would go towards bolstering private sector productivity, job creation, and exports to reduce the country’s need for outside assistance.
USAID has provided more than $23 billion in humanitarian, economic, and development assistance to Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in February 2022. Ukraine’s military is currently engaged in a sluggish counteroffensive to reclaim some of its territory.
TODAY IN POLITICS
All times Eastern
9 a.m. President Biden will receive his daily intelligence briefing. The House will meet with first votes expected at 9:45 a.m. and last votes expected at 10:30 a.m.
10 a.m. The Senate will meet and take two votes at 12 p.m. The first vote will be to confirm the nomination of David Uhlmann to be Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. The second vote will be on an amendment to the annual defense bill to ban the export or sale of petroleum products from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
10:20 a.m. The president will travel from the White House to Philadelphia, arriving at 11:35 a.m. Vice President Harris will leave Washington, DC to travel to Indianapolis, arriving at 11:55 a.m.
12:05 p.m. President Biden will participate in a tour of Philly Shipyard.
1 p.m. The president will discuss Bidenomics at the Shipyard.
1:45 p.m. The vice president will deliver the keynote speech at the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. national convention.
2:15 p.m. President Biden will leave Philadelphia, arriving back at the White House at 3:30 p.m.
3:35 p.m. Vice President Harris will leave Indianapolis to return to Washington, DC, arriving at 5 p.m.
6:30 p.m. Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff and members of the presidential delegation to New Zealand will meet with the US Women’s National Soccer Team.
8:30 p.m. The second gentleman and members of the delegation will participate in a pōwhiri, a traditional Maori welcome ceremony.
10 p.m. Second Gentleman Emhoff will speak to a panel on gender equity in sports at a grammar school for girls ages nine to 13 in New Zealand.
2:30 a.m. The second gentleman and members of the delegation will join New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins at the opening ceremony of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and attend the New Zealand v. Norway match.
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