Tipsheet

So Much for Biden Being More Trusted to Defend Democracy

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  June 29, 2024 6:30 AM

For a time, it looked like Joe Biden was besting Donald Trump on one issue in the 2024 race. It wasn’t on the economy, inflation, or immigration—Trump has Biden handily beaten on which candidate voters prefer in handling those matters. It was the candidate who voters trusted more with defending our democracy or something along those lines.

CNN’s analysis of the polling ahead of Thursday night’s debate showed Biden holding a slight advantage. That’s no longer the case. In another blow to Democrats, and one that will surely drive liberals insane, voters now consider Donald J. Trump to be the true defender of democracy (via The Hill):

Voters in key states who will likely decide the election trust former President Trump more than President Biden to handle threats to democracy, according to a survey released Wednesday. 

The poll, conducted by The Washington Post/Schar School, surveyed voters across six swing states and identified a subgroup of respondents labeled as “deciders.” It found that 38 percent of “deciders” said Trump would do a better job of handling threats of democracy to the U.S., while 29 percent said Biden and 23 percent said neither. 

Roughly 60 percent of the group also said they are not satisfied at all with how democracy is working in the U.S. 

Those labeled as “deciders” include respondents who voted in the 2016 or 2020 election, are under the age of 25, have been registered to vote since 2022, are undecided and may not vote or someone who changed the party they support between 2016 and 2020. 

Among all swing state voters, 44 percent said they trust the presumptive GOP nominee more to protect democracy, while 33 percent said the incumbent. About 16 percent said they trusted neither, and 7 percent said they trusted both equally, per the poll. 

Biden is struggling, retreading, and losing ground on all fronts. Yet, this question about protecting democracy is also new. I also am betting it won’t be part of the cluster of topics that will decide this election. The economy, inflation, and immigration are going to determine if Joe keeps his job or not. 

What’s noticeably absent is abortion theatrics. During the 2022 midterms, Democrats thought they could weaponize the House January 6 hearings against the GOP. Then, the economy started to fall apart. In 2024, the Democrats thought they could scare the electorate about abortion. The economy continued to fail; chaos erupted abroad, and illegal immigrants who Biden allowed to waltz on in started raping and murdering our citizens. There are too many fractures in the Democratic Party base for the single, college-educated, and abortion-loving white female to overcome. Black voters under 50 have fled Biden, from an 80-point advantage in 2020 to just 37 in 2024. Trump is on pace for a historic performance with black voters.

Up until this point, all Biden could hang his hat on is this ‘defender of democracy’ crosstab. Now, that’s gone.

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Last Note: It caused Joy Behar to have a meltdown over it: