The political Zeitgeist: Where Biden and Democrats stand heading into 2022

Why Biden and the Dems are in a bit of a slump, and what they need to do about it.

I was in the mood this morning to write a paid-subscriber-only post about what my gut tells me about where things stand with Biden and the Democrats, as we head into the 2022 elections. This is NOT an analysis of what’s fair, or where things SHOULD stand — but rather, a look at where things ARE, fair or not; why the perceptions are what they are; and how we turn things around.

The state of of our union is meh. Covid has people freaked out again. It “feels” as if things are getting worse, and in a micro sense they are. Covid infections are spiking, as Omicron, and even Delta, keep spreading — and we’re talking yet again about just how safe it is to get together for the holidays, and travel. In a macro sense, however, Biden has done a good job tackling a disaster he inherited from Trump. We have free vaccines readily available for all who want them. Our vaccination rates are increasing, though still behind many of our European allies — and any lag in vaccinations is mostly because of Republican disinformation about the virus and the vaccine. And we now have a number of reputable treatments that can help lessen the impact of a Covid infection, from monoclonal antibodies to the new anti-viral pill.

But it doesn’t FEEL like things are going well, and there’s the rub. Politics is about perception as much as reality (again, fair or not). People FEEL like prices are soaring. People FEEL like Covid is spinning out of control again. And just as importantly, people FEEL like Biden is missing in action, weak, and not a fighter when some fighting is needed. All of these perceptions are, to some degree, Biden’s own doing (well, the GOP is to blame for much of it, but Dems haven’t helped — nor has the media (at the end of this piece I provide some links to further analysis of the media’s role in this mess)). Biden’s just not that good at public relations and marketing. (Having said that, Biden did win the primary and the election, so he clearly can message when he needs to.)

So why is this happening? A few reasons…