‘Looks Like Jimmy Carter’: ABC Panel Torches Biden Over Inflation, Economy

As economic conditions continue to deteriorate under President Joe Biden’s watch, his cheerleaders on ABC have started to turn on him (at least temporarily). This was definitely the case on Sunday morning’s This Week. 

During the “Powerhouse Roundtable” while previewing Biden’s upcoming state of the union address, fill-in host Jon Karl began by reading from former Obama advisor David Axelrod’s recent op-ed in the New York TimesI urge Biden not to act arrogantly and convince Americans that all is well. 

“Let me read a portion of what he said” Karl began. “The state of the union is stressed, he said. To claim otherwise to highlight the progress we’ve made without fully acknowledging the hard road we have traveled and the distance we need to go, would seem off key and out of touch. You simply cannot jaw bone Americans into believing things are better than they feel.”

Karl then turned to panelist and pollster Frank Luntz asking him “Is that really the way to go?” Luntz then tore into Biden and the malaise that has spread throughout the country: “He’s got to tell the truth. This means that you must acknowledge the reality of where you are at this moment. It’s not possible to say that you have happy times again, but it’s difficult for someone in a deep depression to do so. You can’t tell people that things are good.” 

Luntz is a pollster who has an excellent sense of what Americans feel. He expressed concern. “there’s a level of anxiety that I haven’t seen since the 1970s”, Luntz exclaimed “Joe Biden ran as Harry Truman. He thought he was gonna govern as Franklin Roosevelt, but this, to me, looks just like Jimmy Carter in every possible way.”

Rick Klein, political director of the Democratic Party, felt that Biden had received too much criticism in the segment. Therefore, he decided to give some encouragement for Democrats at home and dial down the harshness. “There’s a lot of Democrats, who I’ve heard from in the last couple of days, who say we’ve got a lot to run on” Klein said, acting as the Democrat Party’s stenographer. “Democrats still think they’ve got a lot of things to brag about. About the progress that’s being made and think they need to show people that they continue to deliver. That’s hard to wedge into a malaise-type speech.” 

Rachel Bade (Polito Playbook) lashed out against Biden’s insistence on telling Americans for months that the current inflation is “just”. “transitory.”Bade warns that Democrats are at risk “have been frustrated with President Biden going out there and saying inflation is ‘transitory’.”She advised that “it’s been months now”And inflation has “only gotten worse” under Biden’s watch.

Bade also remembered how Biden was in interview “attacked Lester Holt”He called him “a”. “wise guy”for questioning why Biden continued to assert that inflation was temporary. These are the questions all American voters should be asking. “whether they be Democrats, Independents or Republicans, are asking.”

To read the relevant transcript of this segment click “expand”: 

ABC’s This Week
2/20/2022
9:00 AM EST

JON KARL: Now we have David Axelrod who is President Obama’s top adviser and has some suggestions for Biden regarding how to tackle this. Here’s a small excerpt of his speech. The current state of the Union is under stress, he stated. To claim otherwise to highlight the progress we’ve made without fully acknowledging the hard road we have traveled and the distance we need to go, would seem off key and out of touch. It is impossible to convince Americans that things are more wonderful than they actually feel. So, basically, from Axelrod, Frank, we’re hearing the advice that Biden should offer a dose of humility. This is not what you hear often in state-of-the-union addresses. Does that sound like the best way? 

FRANK LUNTZ This means that you must acknowledge the reality of where you are. It’s not possible to say that you have happy times again, but are currently in a state of depression. It’s impossible to tell people things are going well. It’s not inflation, by the way. So here’s an example of language. Wow! is not something that anyone actually uses. Take a look at the inflation they experience when they shop in a supermarket. Think of inflation as when you fill up your gas tank. American citizens are spending more on everything and wondering if that will ever change. The Americans look at the situation in Ukraine, and wonder if we have lost our respect. It’s hard to believe that the shortages they experienced will not affect their ability to purchase the house or car they dream of. It’s real. There’s a level of anxiety that I haven’t seen since the 1970s and I’d be curious to your reaction. Joe Biden was Harry Truman’s running mate. Biden thought that he would govern like Franklin Roosevelt. But this looks exactly like Jimmy Carter to me. And those in the chamber at the 1st March will be asking the President: Will he do to them the same thing Jimmy Carter did to us, which was give Ronald Reagan. Is he gonna do to them is what Bill Clinton did which is…

[crosstalk] 

KARL:  Well to take the Carter analogy one step further on.. If you look at Axelrod’s advice, lean into the anxiety, humility. I mean he’s basically advising him to give a malaise speech. 

DONNA BRAZILLE :

RICK KLEIN – Axelrod struck a chord with many Democrats. The idea of Axelrod coming in with humility but not saying that things are difficult isn’t the tone people expect from a president. And there’s a lot of Democrats, who I’ve heard from in the last couple of days who say we’ve got a lot to run on. We’ve come a long way, we’re getting better. We’ve got a lot to run against still in terms of what Republicans would offer. To say that times are difficult is to be honest. This may be a good idea, and Frank is right about being honest. You can only spin so much when it comes to things like inflation, but Democrats still think they’ve got a lot of things to brag about. About the progress that’s being made and think they need to show people that they continue to deliver. It’s difficult to fit this into a speech of malaise. 

RACHEL BADE: It is difficult to strike a balance because Democrats have expressed frustration with President Biden’s statement that inflation was “transitory”. Like it’s just temporary it’s going to go away and it’s been months now and it’s only gotten worse. There was even an interview where Lester Holt called Lester Holt a fool for asking stupid questions about American voters. And so he does have to do things for frontliners who are up in 2022, and who are saying we need to tout our accomplishments like infrastructure, what we’ve done so far with the pandemic. But he’s really gotta be careful not to sound tone deaf like he has for the past couple of months when it comes to this inflation issue.