Gordon L. Weil
President Biden is unhappy.
He has berated his staff for not getting him the credit he believes is his due for what he calls “Bidenomics.”
While it’s true that unemployment and inflation are down nationally and business seems to be doing well, many people are unhappy with the economy and give Biden little credit for the positive developments. Their pay may be up, but so are their costs.
Biden looks at the national economy, but individuals look at their own personal economy. The two different views yield two different results.
The reason is possibly that increases in national wealth may not be distributed in a way that gives many people the sense of an improving economy. If a large share of the growth is going to the wealthiest ten percent, the rest of the people may miss most of the virtues of Bidenomics.
Whatever the gains under Biden, the country still operates under a tax system created by Donald Trump and a Republican Congress. That system is designed to reward the wealthy and large corporations. Billionaire Warren Buffett, who favors higher taxes on the rich, can still point out that he pays a lower tax rate than his secretary.
Despite the tax deal favoring the rich, the GOP does well with average voters by effectively targeting its message at them. Using wedge issues like abortion and gun control to gain support, it may even succeed in inducing them to believe that taxes are too high, which benefits the wealthy far more than them.
Many of these people have become the Trump Republican “core.” They are fed a steady diet of Trump’s version of political and economic reality by the skilled use of social media and cable television.
Surprisingly, the GOP learned about personally targeted politics from a hard-hitting Democrat, then a member of Congress from Illinois. Rahm Emanuel used this approach to flip the House of Representatives from Republican to Democratic in 2006. The GOP watched and learned and by 2010, they flipped it right back. GOP social media and Fox News were flying high.
The success of social media is its focus on responding to the sentiments of its followers rather than recruiting new supporters. It’s likely that few liberal Democrats follow right-wing social media outlets or watch Fox and other conservative channels. But loyal Trump backers are continually fed stories that confirm their views, and they remain enthusiastic and become a cult.
Trump’s own social media site, called “Truth Social,” is estimated to have more than two million followers. They could be many of the same people who follow conservative cable programs, and they belong to him.
The result is that they can come to believe, inaccurately, that Biden is a socialist and dangerous to the country. They can be left untouched about claims of a booming Gross Domestic Product, if that’s even understood. With Trump at the head of the ticket, they are drawn to the ballot box. If they show up, they may give him wins in primaries and swing states.
Social media may succeed in gaining the attention of conservative voters who are not loyal Trump backers. They make their case in readily understandable terms that appeal to the conservative leanings of their recipients.
The Democrats have no answer, as Biden is learning. Bidenomics in 2024, like Obamacare in 2010, is an abstract idea that fires up few voters. Fact-checkers may prove that the GOP errs, but that, too, is an abstraction to many voters. Like the GOP, the Democrats want to appeal to their backers. But they act like they’re in a student debate, not a political war.
One key feature of Trump-inspired social media is always being on the attack. It labels its opponents as dangerous. Its policy proposals are almost all negatives, like quitting NATO or reducing environmental protection. That’s a sharp contrast with the almost academic arguments of the Democrats.
The professional media tends to give each side equal weight and coverage. While Biden’s actions are duly reported, mistruths may get the same often unquestioned attention. Its coverage may lack critical news judgment. Objectivity should remain the goal, but its mindless pursuit can promote misinformation.
The Democrats should become more aggressive in the social media. They often sound more like professors than politicians. Their message should be simple and bold. They can direct their message to individual voters, and not only focus on broad national policies, however successful. And Biden should be more visible in the nightly news.
Aside from being too old to run and consequently out of touch with younger generations, Biden plays by dated political rules, no longer suited to the politics of the times. The Democrats will continue to lag in the polls if they don’t toughen up.
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