Democratic Party officials across the country are worried about their prospects at this year’s Congress midterm elections, although they hope to be on President Biden’s agenda. They are also trying to take advantage of warmer views on their handling of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and negative views of former President Trump. praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Attendees at the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting in Washington, DC, acknowledged the combination of factors ahead, namely the usual historic headwinds for the ruling party and the rising cost of living caused. by inflation and gas prices.
“It’s not so much that we’re scared, it’s that we’re anxious. We want to move because things are changing so fast. Gas prices are going up. Something good is happening. Going back and forth. We have so many unpredictable things that make it go away.” said Janet Bewley, the top Democrat in the Wisconsin Senate. “Everyone wants to work so that their voters identify and are ready to motivate themselves.”
When DNC members met at their first in-person meeting since the pandemic began, they agreed that the party should do more to amplify the direct impact of Mr Biden’s agenda and how can help alleviate the rising cost of living.
In Observations On Thursday in the party, Mr Biden argued that Democrats could tackle inflation and high petrol prices through parts of his Better Reconstruct plan, after the wider bill collapsed in the Senate amid intra-party divisions. .
“At a time when food and gas prices are rising, if you can reduce other significant costs for households, you can help their standard of living,” he said, referring to the push to reduce food prices. prescription drugs and the cost of caring for children.
He called rising petrol prices “Putin’s price rises at the bomb” and said that “no matter how painful the price is today, the costs will be higher if we do not act now to deal with this.” pull “.
DNC President Jamie Harrison also blamed Putin’s invasion of Ukraine for rising gas prices and believes voters have made the same connection, blaming him instead of Mr Biden.
He also accused Republicans of being “soft on Russia,” citing former President Trump’s praise of Putin and defamation of Congressman Madison Cawthorn to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“We have the Republican Party, the former president of the United States, the last Republican president, talking about how this former KGB officer is a ‘genius’ and an’ expert. We have Madison Cawthorn denigrating the president. of Ukraine, “he said in an interview Thursday, referring to a video of first-year Republican Congressman calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a” bully. “
In terms of money, the DNC has kept pace with Republicans, raising more than $ 161 million by January 2022, with $ 63 million in cash in hand, while the Republican National Committee has contributed $ 171.6. million dollars and has $ 51 million in the bank.
But that of Mr. Biden approval rating it has been declining over the last year, especially with independent voters. A CBS News poll published last Sunday showed a 43% approval score, largely consistent with its figures from November 2021.
The poll showed a 46% approval rating for Biden’s handling of Russia and Ukraine, slightly higher than the 41% obtained at the start of the conflict. The president is still immersed in the economy (62% disapproval) and inflation (69% disapproval).
“If I was worrying every time someone’s approval numbers went up or down, I don’t know if I would ever get out of bed,” said Susan Swecker, a Democratic Party of Virginia president. “Biden has done an amazing job. The previous occupant gave him a bit of a mess, so it’s like, let’s give him a chance.”
But beyond the declining Biden approval rating and rising costs, some Democrats are concerned about how the party’s national brand plays in rural and more competitive areas.
Anthony Flaccavento of Virginia’s Rural Urban Bridge Initiative said the party has an “image problem because of our own way of projecting who we are.”
“Our way of speaking: we just say too much. We use too many damn words, they’re too complex,” he said.
Ken Martin, vice president of the Minnesota DNC, referred to his father-in-law who voted Trump twice as an example of voters who need more “hope” from the Democratic Party.
“He needs a champion, he needs the feeling that someone cares,” Martin said. “If they don’t see us doing this, they won’t vote for us … we won’t be a national party if we’re just a party of density and education.”
In a Democratic House withdrawal from the House in Philadelphia, New York Congressman and chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Sean Patrick Maloney, echoed the sentiment.
“We have to talk like real people and pass what I call the Maloney brothers test,” Maloney said.
“If you go home for Thanksgiving and your siblings think you sound like an idiot … [say] what your average grade was, they don’t care. You have to run, be a human being and have a relationship with your voters, “said Maloney, who has the daunting task of trying to keep the House. Republicans only need a net gain of five seats to give it. the vault.
Republicans ridiculed – and welcomed – a Democratic campaign strategy based on Mr. Biden’s agenda and record.
“As long as Democrats push Biden’s failed agenda, they can expect to continue to lose. Democrats up and down the ballot are on par with Biden and will be held accountable for their failures in November,” RNC spokeswoman Emma Vaughn said .
Vice President Kamala Harris argued that 2020 voters “got what they asked for,” everything from the infrastructure bill to the nomination of Kentaji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court, and urged them to to remember while campaigning.
“They took time to work. It was difficult. And a lot of what they demanded, they got it. And so let’s go there, as we do, and remember that,” he said in the final statements of the conference on Saturday. .
Ellis Kim and Robert Costa contributed to the report.
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