Joe Biden’s poll numbers remain in the gutter following his much-ballyhooed State of the Union address, according to two new polls. Many pundits expected Biden to see at least a modest bump in the polls as he managed to get through the speech without any major gaffes, but a HarrisX State of the Union poll released Monday and a USA Today/Suffolk survey published Wednesday show otherwise.
Only 37 percent of voters approved of Biden’s handling of the country in the aftermath of his address, according to the HarrisX poll, while a mere 33 percent of voters said the speech positively impacted their view of Biden in the USA Today/Suffolk survey, the New York Post reported.
Following the address, Democrats heaped praise on Biden for his “feisty” effort to rally the base.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi called it “a masterclass, vigorously presenting his bold vision of progress and possibilities for all of America’s families.” Meanwhile, MSNBC “Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough gushed that Joe Biden’s speech was a “tour de force” that exposed the Republicans as being on “the wrong side of history, the wrong side of polls, the wrong side of politics,” and “the wrong side of decency.”
Joe: This was a tour de force by Joe Biden https://t.co/Erk4hR8yzP
— Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) March 8, 2024
CBS News said Biden used his “campaign-style” State of the Union speech to deliver a “scathing attack” on his political opponent, former President Donald Trump.
Republicans acknowledged that Biden kept his gaffes at a minimum, but argued that he lied, spoke too fast, often slurred his words, and was unnecessarily dismissive, demeaning and divisive.
Among those surveyed in the HarrisX poll, “a majority (64 percent) said Biden should not seek another term, while 61 percent said he did not adequately address immigration and 59 percent said his speech only served to further divide the country.”
A majority of respondents (57 percent) also said the speech raised concerns about Biden’s age and 54 percent said it raised questions about his fitness for office.
The USA Today/Suffolk poll also showed Biden having an approval rating of just 41 percent and a disapproval rating of 55 percent — a slight uptick from the last survey taken by the outlet in December, which showed a 39 percent approval rating and a 58 percent disapproval rating.
Both polls showed former Trump leading Biden in what is shaping up to be a tight race.
In the USA Today Poll, Trump had 40 percent of the prospective vote to Biden’s 38 percent.
The HarrisX poll showed that if the election were held today, 46 percent of voters would support Trump and 41 percent would back Biden. Counting “leaners,” Trump led Biden 52 percent to 48 percent.