The polling collapse of the Joe Biden presidency has reached the stage where the networks are no longer able to spin or hide the increasingly terrible numbers engulfing the Democrat. On Monday morning, ABC, CBS and NBC all covered the “devastating” ABC News/Washington Post survey finding Biden at just 38 percent approval among registered voters.
This is quite a shift from even last week where all three networks skipped a USA Today poll also showing the President at 38 percent. Yet on Sunday’s Good Morning America, ABC Political Director Rick Klein didn’t bother with happy talk: “This is a devastating poll for Joe Biden and the Democratic Party and it paints a portrait of a party that appears disconnected from people's lives.”
He added, “Broad perception, more than 62 percent, say that Democrats are not standing for people like them.” Regarding the congressional ballot, he predicted doom: “The Republican candidate has a 51-41 edge among registered voters. We have never seen Republicans with this wide a margin in that so-called generic ballot question.”
On Monday, GMA followed up with another story. Chief White House correspondent Cecilia Vega alerted that the President is “even losing support among Democrats and independents with approval for his handling of the economy plummeting to 39 percent.” She described it all as “a warning shot for Democrats ahead of next year's midterms.”
But beyond ABC journalists covering their own poll, it’s shocking that so did CBS and NBC. On CBS Mornings, co-host Gayle King explained, “A new poll shows the President's approval rating is at an all-time low, just 41 percent of those surveyed said they approve of the President's job performance. Fifty three percent said they do not approve.” (Note: Biden is at 41 percent with all adults and 38 percent with registered voters.)
On NBC’s Monday Today, co-host Savannah Guthrie actually opened the show by blasting, “But [Biden’s] approval rating taking another nose dive and his Build Back Better agenda in major doubt.” Reporter Kristen Welker repeated the bad news: “A Washington Post/ABC News poll shows president Biden's approval rating ticking down to 41 percent, fueled by concerns over inflation.”
A week ago, when USA Today found Biden at 38 percent, the networks ignored it. On Thursday, when he dropped to an even lower 36 percent, they ignored that as well. In late October, NewsBusters published a study on how the networks covered Donald Trump’s low polling almost twice as much as the current President.
On November 15, 2017, Trump’s Real Clear Politics average was 38.1. On November 15, 2021, Biden’s is 42.0. If Biden falls below Trump's historically low average, will the networks continue to cover? Will they delight in the low numbers like they did with Trump?
Partial transcripts are below. Click “expand” to read more.
Good Morning America
11/14/2021
8:13 a.m. EasternRICK KLEIN: This is a devastating poll for Joe Biden and the Democratic Party and it paints a portrait of a party that appears disconnected from people's lives. Broad perception, more than 62 percent, say that Democrats are not standing for people like them. And it's an interesting week to set this up, whit, because a year out from the midterms and we're also just a day away from president Biden signing that infrastructure bill. You’ll have one of the rarest sights in Washington, a bipartisan signing ceremony, Democrats and Republicans together. But in this poll, Whit, we asked people “would you rather see the Republican or Democrat win in your district.” The Republican candidate has a 51-41 edge among registered voters. We have never seen Republicans with this wide a margin in that so-called generic ballot question.
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ABC's GMA
11/15/2021
7:04 a.m. EasternCECILIA VEGA: A new ABC News/Washington Post poll shows the President's approval rating at a new low, just 41 percent, even losing support among Democrats and independents with approval for his handling of the economy plummeting to 39%. Those numbers, a warning shot for Democrats ahead of next year's midterms.
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CBS Mornings
11/15/2021
7:08 a.m. EasternGAYLE KING: This afternoon, President Biden will sign a more than $1 trillion infrastructure bill into law as his popularity is sinking. A new poll shows the President's approval rating is at an all-time low, just 41 percent of those surveyed said they approve of the President's job performance. Fifty three percent said they do not approve.
ED O’KEFE: Good morning, Gayle. Happy Monday. Good to see you. The White House describes this infrastructure bill as once in a generation legislation, but that new poll shows that most Americans now upset about the economy and the state of inflation. Aides are hoping he can turn around those numbers. One way he might be able to do that is convince fellow members of his party to pass part two of his ambitious economic agenda.
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NBC's Today
11/15/2021
7:10 a.m. EasternKRISTEN WELKER: A Washington Post/ABC News poll shows president Biden's approval rating ticking down to 41 percent fueled by concerns over inflation.
