Buyer’s remorse: More Biden voters regretting their choice

NEWS AND OPINION:

Two significant polls now reveal that a considerable number of voters regret voting for President Biden back on Election Day 2020.

A new Zogby Poll finds that a fifth of likely U.S. voters who voted for Mr. Biden are now sorry that they chose him to lead the country.

“Why does this matter? If you take into consideration the size of the electorate, and how the last two presidential elections (2016 and 2020) were decided by tens of thousands of votes in a handful of battleground states, this could really hurt President Biden’s chances in 2024,” the poll analysis noted.

While noting that “he still has time to recover,” the analysis said that “what’s interesting is our poll was taken before the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan.”

Indeed, the poll of 2,173 registered U.S. voters who chose Mr. Biden was conducted Aug. 5-13.

A new Rasmussen Reports survey also uncovered some regret.

It found that if the “next presidential election” were held today, 37% of likely U.S. voters would choose Mr. Biden, 43% would pick former President Donald Trump, and 14% say they would vote for some other candidate.

The survey of 1,000 likely U.S. voters was conducted Aug. 16-17.

“The Biden administration, and Joe Biden’s presidency, was supposed to be the return of the ‘adults’ in charge, yet it has turned into one mismanaged crisis after another. From the ’mission accomplished’ victory speech in July over COVID-19, to the botched Afghanistan withdrawal that continues to result in death and destruction, Biden has not offered voters much in the way of confidence,” writes Nate Ashworth, founder of ElectionCentral.com, who examined both polls.

“Much of this perception could be changed in the coming months, as some of these headlines fade. Already the Biden administration is trying to pivot away from Afghanistan and back toward friendlier territory, such as arguing with the FDA and CDC over booster shots,” he says.

SALEM MEDIA EXPANDS

Salem Media Group — the nation’s leading multimedia company specializing in Christian and conservative content — just got bigger. On Tuesday, the organization launches the “Daybreak Insider Daily Podcast,” an overview of the biggest stories of the day.

“It’s clear that podcast listeners are looking for informed reporting on what’s really happening in their world,” says Phil Boyce, Salem senior vice president of the spoken word, who notes that the ultimate aim of the new project is to “provide in-depth coverage from a conservative worldview.”

The Salem Podcast Network was launched in January and currently features the conversations of Hugh Hewitt, Mike Gallagher, Dennis Prager, Sebastian Gorka, Larry Elder, Eric Metaxas, Dan Proft and Charlie Kirk among others — and it draws more than 12 million downloads per month. Find them at SalemPodcastNetwork.com.

Salem Media, incidentally, owns and operates 99 radio stations, a wide-ranging satellite radio network, Regnery Publishing and such websites as Townhall.com, HotAir, RedState and PJMedia.

MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

Much to the dismay of Republicans, the hashtag #GOPTaliban continues to circulate in social media, associated with a variety of issues. There are local variants about this controversial designation, however — and here’s one of them.

Republican state lawmakers in New Hampshire were vexed after Rep. David Meuse, Portsmouth Democrat, included the hashtag #NHGOPTaliban in a recent tweet centered on redistricting.

“There was a time when both major parties worked together for the good of the people of New Hampshire. Some House Democrats seem determined to destroy that forever with vicious attacks,” said House Deputy Speaker Steven Smith, Charlestown Republican, calling the reference “reckless disregard for civil discourse,” according to the NH Journal.

New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley countered by saying, according to the NH Journal, that “we would all be better off if the NHGOP got this worked up about convincing New Hampshire Republicans to get their COVID vaccination and wear a mask.”

While Mr. Meuse deleted his tweet, other New Hampshire Democrats picked up the cause and tweeted out the same reference. There could be consequences.

“I have received several complaints related to this unfortunate incident. The legislators involved will be referred to the Speaker’s Advisory Group to determine any further action,” New Hampshire House Speaker Sherman Packard, a Republican, told the Journal.

RETURNING TO THE FAMILIAR

Both Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden have not gotten a lot of press in the past few days. One news organization, however, found a substitute subject though — a very familiar one.

“Looks like Joe Biden can exhale now. After spending a couple of weeks going pretty hard at POTUS over Afghanistan, CNN has apparently come to their senses and returned to focusing like lasers on stories of national and global importance. Like where Melania Trump is,” reports Twitchy.com — which cites a new in-depth report from the cable network.

Indeed, the lengthy CNN story is titled “As Donald Trump makes noise about 2024, Melania Trump tries to stay out of the public eye.”

The report only cites unnamed sources.

“We feel like a former First Lady keeping a low profile is a lot less newsworthy than our current leaders keeping a low profile,” Twitchy advised.

POLL DU JOUR

• 56% of U.S. adults think students in K-12 schools should be required to wear masks in school; 26% of Republicans, 50% of independents and 87% of Democrats agree.

• 60% of women and 52% of men also agree.

• 30% overall say students should not be required to wear masks; 59% of Republicans, 33% of independents and 7% of Democrats agree.

• 24% of women and 35% of men also agree.

• 14% overall are not sure; 14% of Republicans, 18% of independents and 6% of Democrats agree.

• 15% of women and 13% of men also agree.

SOURCE: An Economist/YouGov poll of 1,500 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 28-31.

• Follow Jennifer Harper on Twitter @HarperBulletin.