Joe Biden is the president of the United States, but CNN seems to think that it’s “not quite fair” to hold him accountable for the economic failures of his administration. Two-thirds of Americans disapprove of Biden’s handling of inflation, and on Tuesday’s Inside PoliticsJohn King (host) and panel discuss other individuals and organizations they believe are responsible for the pathetic numbers.
“While there are limits to what a president can accomplish, it is important that they show you care.,” began King, suggesting that “The President fights psychology just as hard as he fights math when people shop at the supermarket or go to gas stations..”
King, along with congressional correspondent Lauren Fox, furthered the implication that people just don’t understand that while their grocery bill goes “up and up and up” the economy is good, actually:
However, when you consider that 5.6 millions jobs have been created since Joe Biden’s election, the unemployment rate now stands at 4.6 per cent. Two percent more disposable income. There are positive economic indicators out there, but it’s very hard for a president or his party to sound ‘hey you’re fine’ when people are feeling pain.
FOX: Well, and that’s the delicate balance of going out and selling something like the infrastructure bill or going out and selling this big social safety net bill because you might be able to argue, “look at all these projects coming into your community,” but people might think to themselves, but what about my family? How about the price of milk at the grocery store?
“Those are the sort of challenges that the president has and the Democrats really have in messaging their agenda right now, because it is a push and pull,” Fox lamented. “It is a balance to go out and say things are going to get better or things are fine when that may not be the perception of many Americans.”
According to CNN, it’s not an economics problem or a Biden problem: it’s just a messaging problem, caused by people who aren’t smart enough to know how everyday prices work.
King blamed the pandemic recovery, and he, together with panelists Tia Mitchel and Olivier Knox promoted the false theory that greedy corporations are driving inflation and high prices.
Mitchell claimed that “it’s hard for the president to do anything because he can try to help people at home but the business community won’t like that,” despite the evidence showing that inflation is rising due to a variety of factors under President Biden’s control.
To conclude, King complained that voters “tend to blame the politicians” for their economic struggles. This show of smoke and mirrors is part of a consistent effort from CNN’s liberal hosts and contributors to defend Biden tooth and nail from any criticisms of his policies, especially when it comes to economic issues that could lessen support for his exorbitant Build Back Better spending bill.
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CNN’s Inside Politics
11/23/21
12.04:48 PMJOHN KING: Let’s bring it in studio now with me to share that reporting and their insights, CNN’s Lauren Fox, Olivier Knox at the Washington Post, and Tia Mitchell at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Here is the what the president’s dealing with right now. Number one, just the personal pain Americans feel as you’re paying the price, and it’s unfair in some ways to the president but gas was a lot lower one year ago because of the pandemic. The demand wasn’t as high so the prices were lower. The demand is now up and so is the price. This is a comparison to last Thanksgiving. It is an all-adult poll. 67% disapprove, 33% approve. The president doesn’t do enough, two-thirds say. There’s no limit to what a president can accomplish, but it’s important that you show your willingness to try.
OLIVIER KNOX (Sure). As one mentor used to tell me, it’s all about emotions as well as movement. He is trying to make Americans feel better. The price of gasoline at the pump is a topic that we often discuss. It’s an issue millions and even hundreds of million of Americans feel. Winter heating oil is expensive, however. We are facing a much bigger energy crisis than just the pump. You know what? Having this information released just a few weeks before Thanksgiving is obviously an important driving holiday. That’s probably not going to have an impact on the price at the pump, but going to the next several months there’s a chance that it’ll have an impact on other areas of high American energy demand.
KING Are you trying to do something, trying to show you’ll do something. These are the current feelings in the country. Let me show you how people view inflation. What do Americans think of the economy today? In the middle summer, only 45% believed the economy was in good shape. That number now stands at 30% who believe the economy is doing well. This is because the president fights psychology just as much as the math people do when they shop at the supermarket or go to gas stations.
TITA MITCHELL They’re making great profits. The president can help those in need at home, but it won’t be appreciated by the business community. They’re seeing increased demand.
KING: Those are the numbers that you can remember as you fill up your car with gas and don’t see a dial but are watching the numbers move by. Or when you stand in line at the supermarket and watch the number go up. It’s hard for the president not to be optimistic when people feel a punch. But if you take a look at the following numbers: 5.6 million new jobs since Joe Biden was elected president; the unemployment rate stands at 4.6%. There has been a 2% increase in disposable income. There are positive economic indicators out there, but it’s very hard for a president or his party to sound ‘hey you’re fine’ when people are feeling pain.
LAUREN FOX (English): That’s the tricky balance between selling infrastructure bills or the big social safety net bills. People might argue that these are great projects for your area, but they might ask themselves, “What about my family?” How about the fact that milk now costs me more than two weeks ago when I visit the grocery store? These are some of the issues that both the Democrats and President Obama face in trying to communicate their agenda. You can’t just say that things will get better, or they are okay when many Americans may disagree.
You wrote about it. Joe Biden is not known as a fiery populist by any means, it’s just not his DNA but there’s a lot of evidence that, yes, a lot of this is the pandemic economy, a lot of this is the economy trying to fight its way out of the pandemic, but there’s also a lot of corporations that are saying, hey, prices are up so no one is going to notice if we jack ours up a little bit more, too, and make some profits.
KNOX: That’s right. And that refers to the mentality or the way you spoke of before. On earnings calls CEOs, and other top executives of major corporations, are bragging that it is an excellent time to raise prices in this climate. They are telling investors this because this time is great for them. You can transfer costs onto the consumer, but then there are the consumers that feel the effects.
KING: And then tend to blame the politicians –
KNOX: Yes.
KING: Or at least they get a chance, they get a chance to blame the politicians when they go vote so we’ll see. This is fascinating. We’ll keep on top of that.
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