Politics
Opinion: Economists see a 'spectacular' economy. Most voters don't. Can Biden turn that around?
If President Biden’s reelection hinged on the state of the economy, he’d be a good bet, or at least a better one. Instead, it’s voters’ perception of the economy that matters. Which is a big reason the president is struggling as his campaign against presumptive rival Donald Trump gets underway.
Rarely if ever in the modern history of polling has there been such a disconnect between how the economy is faring and how many Americans think it’s doing. That’s partly because of our political polarization. Media coverage of the economy, and of the Republicans who falsely blather about it unchallenged, isn’t helping. We journalists have to do better: Stop letting South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, for instance, get away unchecked with saying Biden “has destroyed our economy,” as happened on a recent Sunday talk show.
Opinion Columnist
Jackie Calmes
Jackie Calmes brings a critical eye to the national political scene. She has decades of experience covering the White House and Congress.
But the real onus is on Biden. He must persuade the persuadables among skeptical voters. He’s trying, but he needs help from the Democratic bench, and fast.
Separate news late last week — about two government reports, a stock market record and a national poll — underscored how divorced economic reality and perception have become.
On Thursday came the report that the economy had grown 3.1% in 2023 — faster than the gross domestic product’s average growth in the three pre-pandemic years under Trump. Word followed on Friday that inflation continued to cool in December, to levels last seen before the pandemic. The inflation report stoked investors’ confidence that the Federal Reserve would indeed cut interest rates; the S&P 500 surged for yet another record trading day.
Economic growth. Back-to-normal inflation. Lower interest rates. A bull market. It all confirms a trend that’s been apparent for months, along with low unemployment, more job creation than under Trump and real wage increases outpacing inflation. Meanwhile, talk of an imminent recession is so 2022.
The superlatives from giddy economists read like the promo blurbs on movie ads: “Just a perfect report” — Mark Zandi, Moody’s Analytics. “Stunning and spectacular” — Diane Swonk, KPMG. “Hard to imagine how things could look better” — UBS’ Brian Rose. “This year has been like Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots” — Dan North, Allianz Trade Americas.
Responding to Biden’s celebratory statement — “Wages, wealth, and employment are higher now than they were before the pandemic” (read: when Trump was president) — even Trump’s former economic advisor, Larry Kudlow, conceded on his Fox Business show, “I would be bragging about it, too.”
From most Americans, however, all you get is a Bronx cheer.
Amid the good economic reports came poll results from the Pew Research Center and the headline said it all: “Americans More Upbeat on the Economy; Biden’s Job Rating Remains Low.” And “upbeat”? That’s relative. Yes, Pew found a 9-point increase since last April in the percentage of adults who rate the economy as excellent or good — up to a whopping 28%. The increase came among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. Still, less than half of Democrats, 44%, had positive views of the economy. And just 13% of Republicans said it was excellent or good.
Many Americans’ views of the economy have long tended to be colored by whether the White House occupant is someone of their favored party. But that bias is more evident than ever in these more polarized times.
It’s become so pronounced among Republicans, two Stanford University economists found in November, that traditional models to gauge consumers’ sentiment using fundamental economic data (inflation, stocks, unemployment, consumption) “have broken down” since 2020. Consumer sentiment should be about 13 points higher on the feel-good scale, economics professor Neale Mahoney and doctoral candidate Ryan Cummings concluded.
With the oft-lying Trump calling the economy “so fragile,” and wishing for “a crash,” many in his party will never be convinced the economy is actually in good shape, no matter their own financial comfort. (“Things were better with [Trump] in office,” a Republican caucus-goer in Iowa told the New York Times, adding, “I have been pretty lucky, though.”)
But demoralized Democrats and the swing voters who decide elections in battleground states can be swayed. Granted, you can’t convince voters that the economy is good if they aren’t feeling it, but to some degree most Americans are, polls and data show. The early signs of rosier — and more realistic — consumer sentiment, are reflected in this month’s double-digit rise tracked by the much-followed University of Michigan index. And the effect of Bidenomics’ long-term public investments, like the bridge-replacement project the president visited on the Wisconsin-Minnesota border Thursday, has yet to be realized.
The president has to hope the gains stick, as many economists predict, and that voters give him props.
President Obama, facing reelection in 2012, told people privately that he was determined to win because “I’ll be damned” if someone else was going to take credit for the growth his administration had set in motion after the Great Recession. Surely Obama’s vice president remembers such talk. Maybe that helps explain why Biden is similarly driven to run again, even when many Democrats wish he’d retire: He’ll be damned if he’s going to let Trump, or anyone else, reap the rewards at all the ribbon-cuttings ahead.
But first Biden and his fellow Democrats have to convince more voters that his policies actually are working — that the U.S. economy really is as good as the data show.
Habitual marijuana users cannot be barred from owning guns, Supreme Court rules
Fox News host Sean Hannity reports the Supreme Court unanimously limits a federal gun law, ruling habitual marijuana users cannot be banned from owning guns. Legal Analyst Gregg Jarrett explains the 9-0 decision, distinguishing between recreational use and serious addiction, contrasting it with Hunter Biden’s crack cocaine and gun charges.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
FIRST ON FOX: A powerful House committee is escalating its probe into the Biden administration for alleged collusion with gun control activists.
House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., is demanding that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the federal agency responsible for enforcing gun laws, hand over documents detailing Biden aides’ communications with Everytown for Gun Safety, an influential gun control group founded by billionaire Michael Bloomberg.
Comer’s panel has argued that a now-defunct Biden office may have collaborated with Everytown to help facilitate its lawsuit with the city of Chicago against the gunmaker Glock Inc.
“These records will inform the Committee as to whether the Biden Administration and Everytown colluded to attack private gun manufacturing companies through lawfare to circumvent Second Amendment rights,” Comer wrote in a letter Wednesday to the ATF that was reviewed by Fox News Digital.
Rep. James Comer arrives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on June 10, 2026. (Tom Brenner/Getty Images)
CITY OF CHICAGO SUES GLOCK INC. OVER ‘FACILITATING’ ILLEGAL GUN CONVERSIONS
Chicago’s lawsuit, listing Everytown’s legal arm as the plaintiff’s counsel, was filed in March 2024 and alleges Glock sold pistols that the firearms manufacturer knew could be easily modified to fire like machine guns.
“Glock knows that it takes little effort to convert its pistols into illegal machine guns and that criminals frequently do so,” the lawsuit alleged. “Glock also knows it could fix the problem, but has chosen not to, putting profits over public safety and violating the law.”
In the letter, Comer cited a 2023 meeting between the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention (WHOGVP) and representatives from Glock, during which Biden officials pressed the gun manufacturer to modify its pistol designs.
When Chicago sued Glock three months later, John Feinblatt, president of Everytown, wrote on X, “Federal officials recently contacted Glock to discuss implementing new ways to modify Glock pistols to make it harder for Glock switches to be installed. Rather than help, Glock has falsely insisted there is nothing they can do.”
Comer argues Feinblatt “appears to have had insider information regarding the WHOGVP’s private meeting with Glock, which raises questions about whether the Biden Administration colluded with Everytown to initiate their lawsuit against Glock,” according to the letter.
The lawsuit is still moving through the court system, with a Cook County judge denying Glock’s motion to dismiss the case in September 2025.
Members of Everytown for Gun Safety rally outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on May 26, 2022. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
STATES’ TOP COPS GANG UP ON LETITIA JAMES IN CRUSADE WITH POTENTIAL NATIONWIDE CONSEQUENCES
The Kentucky lawmaker has also highlighted close ties between the Biden White House and Everytown. The letter notes that Biden aide Rob Wilcox worked at Everytown for eight years prior to his employment with the WHOGVP.
Biden also headlined Everytown action fund’s annual training conference, known as Gun Sense University, in June 2024, during which he reiterated his support for a nationwide ban on so-called assault weapons.
Wednesday’s letter comes after the GOP-led panel asked the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in April for communications between the Biden White House and Everytown.
House Oversight Republicans previously subpoenaed the Biden ATF and Everytown for all communications related to their “potential collaboration efforts,” but neither party complied with the request.
President Joe Biden speaks about gun safety at Everytown’s Gun Sense University at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C., on June 11, 2024. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Comer has also argued that the committee’s probe will help lawmakers evaluate whether new legislation is needed to combat officials violating recordkeeping requirements or using their roles to leak private information to politically aligned third parties.
A spokesperson for the ATF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The June 16 appearance by Vance gave the program its most-watched episode since November 2024.
The first appearance by Vice President JD Vance on ABC’s “The View” delivered the most-watched edition of the talk show since November 2024.
The June 16 program averaged 3.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen data. The figure was well above the average of 2.6 million viewers for “The View” in the 2025-26 season.
Vance appeared on the liberal-leaning program to promote his new book on his decision to become a Catholic. While the co-hosts mostly questioned him on the Trump administration’s policies on immigration and race, the discussion was cordial.
The panel of co-hosts — Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Ana Navarro, Sunny Hostin and Alyssa Farah Griffin — did not ask Vance to address the program’s ongoing tension with the Federal Communications Commission.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has questioned whether “The View” should have the status of news programs, which are exempt from giving equal time to the opponents of political candidates who appear as guests.
ABC has asked the FCC to rule on the status of “The View,” which received an exemption from the rarely enforced equal time provision in 2002. ABC has maintained that “The View” books politicians based on newsworthiness and not partisanship.
The FCC is currently taking comments from the public on the matter. ABC is running on-air spots urging viewers to support the program.
“‘The View’ has welcomed your favorite guests and covered the issues you care about for nearly 30 years,” the spot says. “Now the FCC wants to control who is allowed to appear on the show.”
The National Republican Senatorial Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee submitted comments Monday, asserting that “The View” takes advantage of its exemption and favors Democratic candidates and permits “only rare appearances by Republican-aligned figures.”
ABC has told the FCC that “The View” has invited politicians from both sides of the aisle to appear on “The View,” including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of State Marco Rubio and entrepreneur Elon Musk. They have declined the invitation as did Vance before his appearance last week.
The letter from the GOP committees also cited the ideological leanings of the co-hosts, saying they are “not selected for their journalistic talent or excellence in commentary, but for their partisan tilt.”
Over the last two decades, “The View” has used five liberal hosts and filled one seat designated for a conservative voice. The right-leaning co-host role has had the most turnover.
“The View” has been the most-watched daytime program for the last nine years. As a live, topical program, it has remained an important media platform while the rest of the talk show genre has largely faded due to diminishing audiences.
Carr’s targeting of “The View” is part of his ongoing criticism of broadcast platforms that annoy President Trump, who has urged that TV station licenses be pulled when he’s been unhappy with coverage.
Politics
Trump to kick off Great American State Fair as 250th anniversary celebrations take over National Mall
Washington DC to host Great American State Fair for America250
Ambassador Monica Crowley discusses the Great American State Fair, set to transform the National Mall in Washington D.C. from June 25 to July 10. Celebrating America’s 250th anniversary, the 16-day event will feature pavilions from all 50 states and six territories, a 110-foot Ferris wheel, traditional games, and rodeo competitions, aiming to unite the country.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
President Donald Trump will kick off the Great American State Fair Wednesday evening as part of celebrations surrounding the nation’s 250th anniversary.
“President Trump promised the greatest 250th birthday celebration in American history, and Freedom 250 is proud to help deliver it for the American people,” Freedom 250 CEO Keith Kranch told Fox News Digital.
“This celebration is about what makes America exceptional—our freedom, our faith, our optimism, and our people. We are honored to welcome President Trump as he helps kick off these historic festivities tomorrow and begin a nationwide celebration of our Nation’s 250th birthday,” Krach added.
The fair brings together all 50 states and six U.S. territories for a national celebration stretching from the Capitol to the Washington Monument featuring military flyovers, musical performances and civic programming. Trump announced he will deliver remarks after a handful of musical artists pulled out of their musical performances, turning the bash into a “Make America Great Again Rally.”
TRUMP FLOATS REPLACING 250TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT WITH MASSIVE MAGA RALLY AFTER ARTISTS PULL OUT
Organizers describe the Great American State Fair as a modern-day World’s Fair celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. (Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The event is scheduled to run from June 25 through July 10, 2026, celebrating patriotism to bring together the nation for a celebration of unity.
TRUMP’S DC BEAUTIFICATION PUSH WINS RARE DEM PRAISE AS PRESIDENT SNAPS LANDMARKS BACK TO LIFE
U.S. President Donald J. Trump watches the UFC lightweight championship fight during the UFC Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn at the White House on June 14, 2026 in Washington, DC (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Trump’s anticipated remarks follow his signature last week on a Memorandum of Understanding with Iran, launching a 60-day negotiating period aimed at preventing Tehran from ever obtaining nuclear weapons capability.
The world’s fair-scale event will have pavilions touching on five national themes: Made in America, American Heartland, American Innovates, The American Canvas, and Faith & Family.
There will also be a 110-foot Ferris wheel and the refurbished Smithsonian carousel for families to enjoy.
Rending of 110-foot ferris wheel coming to National Mall for “Great American State Fair.” (Freedom250)
The U.S. has hosted over two dozen variations of the world’s fair since first hosted in Philadelphia in 1876, according to the State Department.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Freedom250, the nonpartisan group helping coordinate the broader America250 effort, said the fair will feature food, games, exhibits and themed attractions designed to showcase the country’s culture, history and innovation.
-
Los Angeles, Ca49 minutes agoHospital needs help identifying man found unconscious in downtown Los Angeles
-
Detroit, MI1 hour agoLarge police presence for an investigation on Detroit’s west side
-
San Francisco, CA1 hour agoNo tolerance for hate or crime at SF Pride this weekend, officials say
-
Dallas, TX1 hour agoAlanna Smith injury update: Dallas Wings player in concussion protocol
-
Boston, MA2 hours agoBoy, 13, hospitalized after being found unresponsive in swimming pool at Beverly home
-
Denver, CO2 hours agoDenver Nuggets draft Trevon Brazile in the second round of the NBA Draft – Denver Stiffs
-
Seattle, WA2 hours agoCouncil eyes street barricades in fight against violence, sex trafficking in north Seattle
-
San Diego, CA2 hours agoWhat Travon Garrison brings to San Diego State’s 2027 recruiting class
