Published August 18, 2021
The media is hammering President Biden over the chaotic fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban. That can only amplify what was already a slow but steady decline in his job approval numbers.
Biden started his presidency in good standing with a healthy 55.5 percent approval rating in the RealClearPolitics polling average. His net favorability began to decline in the late spring as previously undecided respondents said they disapproved of his performance, but his favorability ratings remained stable and high. His job approval rating was 54.9 percent on May 25, a statistically insignificant drop from his early standing.
That standing has been in steady decline ever since. His job approval dropped to 53 percent by June 25 and 52.2 percent by July 25. As of Wednesday, it stands at 49.6 percent. Disapprovals are also at a record high of 47.2 percent. That 2.4 percentage point net favorability is the lowest of his presidency.
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Henry Olsen is a Washington Post columnist and a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center
Henry Olsen, a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, studies and provides commentary on American politics. His work focuses on how America’s political order is being upended by populist challenges, from the left and the right. He also studies populism’s impact in other democracies in the developed world.
