Biden’s approval rating lowest over handling inflation, Covid, gun violence

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Washington: US President Joe Biden’s approval rating has fallen to the lowest level over his handling of the economy, Covid-19 pandemic and gun violence, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll.

The survey revealed that Americans have named surging inflation as their top concern, Xinhua news agency.

According to the poll, 28 per cent of Americans approved of Biden’s handling of inflation, while a majority at 69 per cent, disapproved.

The President has witnessed a drop in approval rates in his handling of the economic recovery, with 41 per cent of Americans approving his handling in December, compared to 47 per cent back in October.

Disapproval rates of Biden’s handling of the economy also jumped. Fifty-seven per cent of Americans surveyed disapproved of his handling of the economy, compared to the 53 per cent in October.

As the new Omicron Covid variant is spreading across the country, resulting in renewed mask mandates, travel restrictions and booster shots, the President took a significant hit in Americans’ faith in his handling of the pandemic.

While a majority of Americans (53 per cent) still approve of Biden’s response, 45 per cent disapprove, marking a nearly 20-percentage point drop from March, when 72 per cent backed his response.

His approval rating slid in his handling of gun violence and crime, as the US has experienced a surge in gun-related violence and deaths this year.

Biden faced a 7-percentage point drop in his handling of both issues since October.

Two-thirds of Americans disapprove of Biden’s handling of gun violence, while 32 per cent approve, the ABC News/Ipsos poll found.

Only 36 per cent of Americans approve of his handling of crime while 61 per cent disapprove.

Both approval numbers are the lowest since Biden took office this January.

The poll was conducted from December 10 to 11, among a random sample of 524 Americans, with a margin of error of 5 per cent.IANS