Mounting concern over incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden’s 2024 election bid is happening on both sides of the political fence.
Moreover, many left-wing voters have soured on Biden due to the country’s ongoing economic challenges, a visible decline in cognitive abilities, and an “inconsequential” first term.
Subsequently, a growing number of Democrat voters feel stuck and are dreading the 2024 election. And while Republican and Democrat voters differ considerably on most topics, many agree on one thing: They don’t want Biden to run for a second term.
Supporters of the current administration argue this is due to Biden’s arrival to office during the height of COVID-19 and the economic fallout that followed both the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
But Biden’s age remains a front-and-center issue for voters on both ends of the spectrum. At 80 years old, both Republicans and Democrats assert the president isn’t up to the domestic and geopolitical challenges facing the United States.
Advocates of the current administration often cling to the expression Biden is “still more popular than Trump,” but data doesn’t support this.
Nothing But A Number
Addressing widespread concern over Biden’s advanced age and mental faculties, White House physician Kevin O'Connor released a presidential health summary in February that declared the current head of state “fit for duty.”But only a minority is buying it.
Polling data paints a stark picture of how Americans feel about the current administration.
Further, just 35 percent believe Vice President Kamala Harris is qualified to step into Biden’s shoes if the occasion calls for it.
By comparison, only 42 percent expressed the same age concerns over Trump’s 2024 election bid, despite the two leaders being only three years apart.
Throwing a can of gas onto the “age” controversy, the former White House physician to Trump and Barack Obama—Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas)—told Sky News reporters in May that Biden’s cognitive decline is “terrifying to watch.”
Jackson followed that statement with comments in June declaring Biden wasn’t physically or mentally fit to be president.
Regular Americans share Jackson’s angst over what some say is a noticeable decline in Biden’s cognitive abilities.
“It’s not just his age. He’s clearly showing signs of dementia,” Sharon Smith told The Epoch Times.
Like so many Americans with left-leaning political views, Smith voted for Biden because her preferred candidate didn’t have enough support to gain the Democratic Party nomination.
“He wasn’t Trump. That’s the only reason most people I know voted for him. It was never because we wanted Biden,” Smith said.
Long-time Twin Cities resident Smith also said she didn’t consider voting independent an option in 2020. At the time, she considered it a “throw-away” vote, but now Smith is reconsidering as the 2024 election approaches.
“Here’s the thing, you vote independent, and you throw your vote away. But you don’t really have any other good options,” Smith said, adding, ”It depends on who runs on the independent this time.”
She also said age isn’t her only concern having Biden in office for a second term. “He just isn’t effective. People walk all over him.”
Underscoring this, a top Moscow official openly accused Biden of having impaired mental faculties in May when asked about the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
Deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, told reporters: “The only thing that matters is that a guy with dementia is not elected.”
Regarding Biden’s bid for a second term, a Chicago area resident who preferred to be identified by his first name, Gavin, told The Epoch Times, “He’s not inspiring. He’s super inconsequential.”
Gavin is normally a Democrat voter but, like Smith, fears the 2024 election will come down to what he called the “best worst option” of candidates.
Dollars And Cents
For some on the political Left, soaring inflation under Biden has been the final straw.“Obviously age is the No. 1 factor. Second to that, Biden inherited a covid economy. The inflation has been really high,” Lisa Carley Hotaling told The Epoch Times.
As a former California resident and educator, Hotaling has endured some of the worst of the nation’s inflation. She said where she lived near San Francisco, the price of eggs climbed as high as $9 per dozen last year.
Combined with the existing high cost of living and the pandemic, inflation expedited the ongoing exodus away from expensive states like California.
And despite Biden’s ambitious Inflation Reduction Act, Hotaling believes the results have been “very slow” to manifest for Americans who feel the pinch of inflation in their wallets daily.
She added a lack of direct impact from his policies has contributed to this. “We’ve been hovering on the edge of recession for quite a while. I think the biggest issue people are having is the economy.”
Gavin and Smith both agree that Biden’s policies are a problem, especially when it comes to the rapidly expanding global influence of China.
“His policies are weak because if you’re busy trying to get the extreme ‘woke’ vote, you aren’t creating effective policies,” Smith said.
Like Hotaling, Smith lamented higher prices for everyday necessities. At the end of the day, for Smith, Biden simply hasn’t put his money where his mouth is.
Business As Usual
Hotaling also pointed to Biden’s immigration policy as a major sticking point for the Left.“I know that because immigration became such a huge issue under Trump, so that was overturned. But some people feel he’s being too harsh, still,” she said.
But Hotaling admits the U.S. immigration system is “completely overrun” and lacks clear, definable solutions.
“So he’s [Biden] letting people into the country, but they don’t get any official status before they go before a judge, which can be years at this point,” Hotaling said with a sigh, then added, “The whole system is just broken.”
For many Democrat voters, Biden’s presidency paints the same shades of beige promises made by other presidents. But without what Gavin calls the “shiny newness” some former heads of state, like Barack Obama, brought to the table.
And according to Gavin, that’s Biden’s biggest problem. There’s no “newness.”
Meanwhile, Democrats are beginning to eye other 2024 candidates more seriously.
“That may be the biggest problem with Biden. He’s just back to ‘business as usual.’ That’s why Trump got elected in the first place. People were sick of ‘business as usual,” Gavin said.
