President Biden’s polling results are plummeting as Labor Day signals the customary end of summer. The administration’s approval numbers have been going down after weeks of bipartisan critique of his dealing with the tumultuous US pullout and rescue from Afghanistan.
Biden’s approval ratings are as well falling amid a sharp rise in new COVID infections, due to the prevalence of the Delta strain spreading across the nation this season.
A Steady Decline Since the Afghan Crisis
Since assuming office in late January, Biden’s approval numbers remained in the low to mid-50s. However, his numbers began to decline last month as the Afghan crisis grabbed public attention; meanwhile, mask requirements began to resurface in several areas around the country as coronavirus infections increased.
There is zero chatter in the White House about getting American citizens out of Afghanistan. "They're acting like they aren't even there," per WH official
— Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) September 5, 2021
In a median of recent surveys gathered by RealClearPolitics, the president receives 45 percent to 49 percent approval/disapproval, and 46 percent to 48 percent in a collection by the research and analytical website FiveThirtyEight.
In an ABC headlines poll released this week, 44% of voters indicated they approved of Biden’s ability to do the job, down six percent from June. Just over half of those surveyed (51%) disapprove of the government’s performance of its responsibilities, up nine points from June.
Biden Joins the Other Worst Ever Rated Administrations
Only two presidents had a lower rating at this juncture in their presidency, according to Gary Langer, the long-time head of polling at ABC News. In information dating all the way back to the Harry Truman presidency, only two leaders had a lower rating at this point.
Donald Trump at 37 percent in August 2017, as well as Gerald Ford, also 37 percent, in March 1975.
The ABCÂ poll was published between Aug. 29 and Sept. 1. It is also one of the most recent national polls to suggest that the government’s electoral standing is being harmed by the bumpy exit from Kabul; this exit ends a two-decade US military involvement in war-torn Afghanistan.
The poll was released the same day as a nationwide NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll that showed Biden with 43 percent approval to 51 percent disapproval; this marks his lowest rating in Marist polls since assuming office.
Biden approval slips to 44% in the latest @ABC/@WashingtonPost #poll, with 60% disapproving of his handling of Afghanistan situation in particularhttps://t.co/oJhRJmoRAe
— Langer Research (@LangerResearch) September 3, 2021
In a national Ipsos poll conducted Sept. 1-2, the president received 46 percent support to 48 percent opposition. The conclusion of this era of American operations in Afghanistan has placed a severe toll on Biden’s reputation among voters, explained Marist Poll director Lee Miringoff.
The dip in Biden’s total favorability rating in the ABCÂ Post poll was fueled by a 14-point reduction in favor among centrists in late June; it was also fueled by a large drop in Democrat support from 94 percent to 86 percent, comparable to the Marist poll.
Republican displeasure of Biden remained unchanged from June, at 89 percent. Biden has indeed been chastised for his management of Afghanistan’s hurriedly arranged departure attempts.
While the head of state also repetitively proclaimed the withdrawal and rescue a success, the US relocated roughly 120,000 people, along with more than 5,500 citizens, from Kabul during the end of August.
Meanwhile, Democrats and Republicans have accused Biden of underplaying the Taliban and overstating the power of the now-collapsed, US-backed Afghan government and military.
