The mainstream media has truly turned on President Joe Biden in recent days. The Wednesday morning edition of POLITICO Playbook read that "Dems wonder if Biden can rise to moment."
As Playbook laid out:
The gist of their complaints: Biden (and Democrats) need a vibe shift — fast. They want the president to reflect their anger and angst. They want him to project strength and that he has a plan for meaningful action. They want him to pick fights at the right time with the right opponents, messaging on themes that get reinforced time and again.
And they feel all of this is missing from the White House right now.
One such report came from POLITICO itself, with Christopher Cadelago and Jonathan Lemire and writing on Wednesday morning "‘Be absolutely furious’: Dems want more from Biden after Highland Park."
The piece not only lambasts Biden's reaction to the shooting that occurred at a July 4 parade in Highland Park, but also boosts Gov. JB Pritzker's response. Playbook also pointed to a report from Shia Kapos, who wrote on Tuesday that the Democratic governor of Illinois' name has been popping up for 2024. This is even as Biden still claims he plans to run again, which is another cause of Democrats in disarray, as the president is "irked" his own party members are questioning whether that's a good idea or not.
As is the point of this edition of Playbook, Democrats are increasingly expressing their disappointment in Biden, and doing so publicly.
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Playbook highlighted about Cadelago and Lemire's piece:
— What worries Dems: “Biden’s response … seemed flat to many Democrats. And there is fear the piecemeal [gun safety] bill didn’t just sap momentum to continue addressing gun violence but was already giving cover to Republicans. Following the shooting, they worried that it was another lost opportunity to define the stakes of the upcoming midterms. … [Some Democrats] fear that Biden remains trapped in a prior age of political decorum and unquestioning fealty to institutions and has been slow to recognize both the existential threat felt by some of his supporters.”
CAMILLE RIVERA, a Democratic strategist at New Deal Strategies: “He’s missing the boat here. This is our time to dig in and be absolutely furious because these one-half measures are not working. He’s got a real excitability problem.”
Another piece Playbook highlighted included Tuesday night's piece by Ashley Parker and Matt Viser, published by The Washington Post, "As some Democrats grow impatient with Biden, alternative voices emerge." That piece similarly compared Biden and Pritzker's response to the shooting.
Again, the complaints are coming from fellow Democrats:
In the view of many distraught Democrats, the country is facing a full-blown crisis on a range of fronts, and Biden seems unable or unwilling to respond with appropriate force. Democracy is under direct attack, they say, as Republicans change election rules and the Supreme Court rapidly rewrites American law. Shootings are routine, a constitutional right to abortion has ended and Democrats could suffer big losses in the next election.
Biden’s response is often a mix of scolding Republicans, urging Americans to vote Democratic and voicing broad optimism about the country. For some Democrats, that risks a dangerous failure to meet the moment.
“There is a leadership vacuum right now, and he’s not filling it,” said Adam Jentleson, a Democratic consultant and former top adviser to then-Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid of Nevada. “I sympathize with the argument that there’s very little they can do legislatively. But in moments of crisis, the president is called upon to be a leader. And when people are feeling scared and angry and outraged, they look to him for that, and they’re not getting much.”
This includes those who are worried about the future of the Democratic Party:
Beyond that, some local and state-level Democratic leaders worry that Biden’s tone does not reflect the deep alarm that many Americans are feeling over inflation and rising gas prices.
“We need more done from the top of the Democratic leadership — which is the president — in terms of promoting the Democratic issues,” said Sam Baydoun, a county commissioner in Wayne County, Mich., adding, “He has to be more forceful in defending the Democratic Party and what the Democratic Party stands for.”
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) said she is worried that the party is not ready for some of the attacks coming its way. Even before the Republican primary in her state, a GOP candidate has sent out mailers attacking Dingell as a “Pelosi robot” who embraces a laundry list of liberal priorities.
“I don’t have a primary, and I’m considered the ‘safe’ Democrat in Michigan,” Dingell said. “I don’t think anybody is safe. And the mailer is misleading and lies, but as Democrats we have to figure out how we’re going to forcefully push back on these mistruths and be strong about it.”
Playbook also highlighted a Tuesday report from CNN by Edward-Isaac Dovere, which, as I covered, focused on Democrats in disarray over Biden's perceived inaction on abortion, which Parker and Viser's piece also touched upon.
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