On the heels of last Tuesday’s stinging election results, Democrats got even more unwelcome news early this week. A postelection USA Today poll showed that President Joe Biden’s approval rating had sunk to 38 percent, thanks to his cratering standing among crucial independent voters. Buried deep within the crosstabs was an especially significant fact: the issue that has dominated politics for the past 18 months and unquestionably helped Biden win the presidency—fighting the pandemic—is rapidly fading as a priority among voters, especially Republicans and independents.
Those voters have shifted their focus to matters that Biden and the Democrats in general fare poorly on right now: the economy, unemployment, and taxes. Short of yet another surge in serious cases and deaths, the 2022 midterms—with Congress and dozens of governorships across America up for grabs—will take place in a different political landscape.
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