Biden ‘Leans Into’ New Message
When President Joe Biden first introduced his new slogan, “Bidenomics,” last June in Chicago, it was intended to be a turning point in his administration. The phrase was plastered everywhere, from the walls of the historic post office where Biden spoke, to the base of his lectern. With historically low unemployment and a strong jobs market, the White House believed that “Bidenomics” would become synonymous with an economic revival.
But nearly a year later, the term has all but disappeared from Biden’s vocabulary. During a recent campaign swing in Pennsylvania, he didn’t mention it once. The President’s reluctance to use the term has been reflected in Vice President Kamala Harris’ speeches as well as those of other White House spokespeople. Congressional Democratic candidates and party activists have also shied away from using the label as they work to overcome Biden’s low approval ratings and win back control of the House.
According to Celinda Lake, a former Biden campaign pollster for the 2020 election, the term “Bidenomics” became confusing for voters because they didn’t understand what it meant. Lake said, “Bidenomics ended up being confusing to voters because they thought it was Biden’s economy rather than Biden’s economic policies.”
The term, which was originally coined by conservative critics, was meant to encompass an economic platform focused on growing the economy “from the middle out and the bottom up.” This included investments in health care, forcing billionaires to pay their fair share in taxes, and leveraging the federal government for historic investments in infrastructure, clean energy, and innovation. However, to many Americans, “Bidenomics” sparked thoughts of high inflation rather than economic growth.
The word was first introduced by President Biden in Chicago on June 28th, 2020. He said “Bidenomics” 15 times in this speech and continued to mention it in his public remarks through October. However, the term has slowly disappeared from his speeches since then, with only three mentions this year.
A New York Times/Sienna College survey this month revealed that only 21% of voters described the economy as being “excellent/good,” compared to 79% who called it “fair/poor.” This suggests that the term “Bidenomics” has become synonymous with an economy that many Americans see as headed in the wrong direction.
Drew Westen, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University, who consults for Democrats on messaging, believes that coining any policy or bill after a president’s name turns off nearly half the country automatically. Westen said, “It was a bad call to use that term. At that time, people were seeing the Biden economy as the inflation economy. That appears to be changing, but I still wouldn’t go back to ‘Bidenomics.'”
The White House has downplayed Biden’s shift away from the term by stating that he is still regularly discussing the policies that makeup “Bidenomics.” However, the press is focusing on semantics, and consumer confidence is higher under President Biden than it was at this point under Presidents Obama, Bush, Clinton, and Reagan.
The President has also continued to talk about his agenda to grow the economy from the middle out and bottom-up, which he calls a sharp contrast to the policies of the Republican party. However, Democrats have been advised not to use a term that is coined by their opposition, as it is intended to create negative associations.
According to Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, House Democrats’ focus is on their victories for working families, not a slogan. The party may need to find a new way to communicate its economic policies to the public as they look towards the November elections. But for now, “Bidenomics” remains in the past, and the focus is on the tangible impact of Biden’s policies on American families.