An Impressive First 100 Days - Horowitz

An Impressive First 100 Days - Horowitz

As Joe Biden prepares to punctuate his first 100 days in office with a Joint Address to Congress on Wednesday evening, he can take satisfaction in the fact that his presidency is off to an impressive start—one that has earned him relatively high marks from the American public. Fifty-five percent of American adults approve of the job Biden is doing, while only 41% disapprove, according to FiveThirtyEight’s weighted average of national polls, rounded to whole numbers. This is a 10-percentage point higher approval rating than Donald Trump received at the 100-day mark.

Biden is benefiting greatly from a stark contrast in style and tone from his predecessor.  So far, Americans find his more measured and dignified approach to the office a refreshing and welcome change. Forty-six percent of Americans like the way Biden “conducts himself as president” compared with only 15% who liked how Trump conducted himself, reports Pew Research Group.  

Along the same lines, a plurality of Americans (44%) “say Biden has “changed the tone of the political debate for the better, while 29% say he has made the tone worse,” according to Pew.

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On the other hand, a solid majority of Americans (55%) as documented in polls in 2020 and 2019 “said Trump has changed political debate in the US for the worse.”

Also, contributing to Biden’s high approval ratings are major early accomplishments, including the acceleration of vaccine distribution and the adoption of the $1.9 trillion economic rescue plan. With more than half of all US adults now having received at least 1 COVID shot, it is not surprising that more than 7-in-10 Americans “say the Biden Administration has done a good or excellent job managing the manufacture and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines,” according to Pew Research.  Similarly, nearly 7-in-10 Americans approve of the American Rescue Plan, which the Biden Administration expeditiously shepherded through Congress.

Especially given that the economy is projected to robustly recover, President Biden’s impressive first 100 days establishes a strong foundation for a successful first term. There are some cautionary notes, however.  Fifty-three percent of Americans say they disapprove of how Biden has handled the situation at the US-Mexico border, according to a recent Washington Post/ABC News Poll.  While the danger of influxes at the border is an issue that tends only to work to solidify and motivate the hard-core Republican base, if the Biden Administration doesn’t manage the problem better, it could over time put a dent in voters’ perceptions of over-all competence.

Perhaps more concerning, a far narrower majority currently supports the next major item on President Biden’s agenda--the $2 trillion infrastructure plan—than supports the COVID

economic rescue package.  Fifty-two percent of Americans indicate support for the plan, while 32% are opposed, documents the Washington Post/ABC News Poll. In a related finding, in the same poll, a majority of Americans (53%), “say they are very or somewhat concerned that Biden will do too much to increase the size of government.”

Underscoring the political imperative of continuing to very publicly reach out to and meet with Republican lawmakers in what is admittedly a difficult effort to reach some common ground, “by 2 to 1, Americans say that Biden should be willing to make “major changes” to his proposals to win Republican support, rather than trying to enact proposals without making major changes and getting no backing from congressional Republicans,” according to the Washington Post/ABC News Poll.

All-in-all, however, after 4 disastrous years of Donald Trump, Joe Biden has set a tone and a direction that the majority of Americans are embracing and already delivering some consequential results.  At the 100-day mark, there is restored, sound American leadership at home and abroad—leadership that points the way to solving the big challenges ahead. 

 

Rob Horowitz is a strategic and communications consultant who provides general consulting, public relations, direct mail services and polling for national and state issue organizations, various non-profits, businesses, and elected officials and candidates. He is an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of Rhode Island.