Nearly two-thirds disapprove of Biden’s handling of economy: poll

Nearly two-thirds of Americans disapprove of President Biden‘s handling of the economy, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. 

And respondents were more likely than not to say that they think Biden’s policies have hurt the economy more than they have helped it.

Overall, 65 percent of those surveyed said they disapprove of Biden’s handling of the economy, which includes 96 percent of Republican respondents and 36 percent of Democratic ones.

Despite the numbers on Biden’s handling of the economy, less than half of respondents said they blamed the president for high gas prices. 

Fifty-five percent of those polled said they think that gas prices are rising due to factors outside of Biden’s control, while 44 percent blamed the president for the spikes.

There was a large split along party lines, as 79 percent of respondents who identified as Republicans specifically blamed Biden for high gas prices while 88 percent of Democrats said that the surge was beyond the White House’s control.

Overall, 68 percent of Americans polled say they are worried about gas prices.

The disparity in the blame for the overall economy and for spiking gas prices shows that respondents have an eye on the Russian invasion of Ukraine as a driver of energy prices, the AP noted.

A majority of those surveyed also say they think that the president’s focus should be on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with 55 percent saying that is a higher priority than Biden attempting to mitigate damage to the U.S. economy.