WASHINGTON — For much of his presidency, Joe Biden has struggled to convince Americans that their financial situation is better than they think. Now, Vice President Kamala Harris will try to shake those negative perceptions as voters continue to worry about the economy’s trajectory.
Harris will provide more details on his economic policy agenda during a speech in North Carolina on Friday, where he is expected to focus on lowering prices, including a plan to curb price gouging by major food manufacturers and grocers. Harris will also propose cracking down on takeovers between food companies if those deals could drive up grocery prices.
Concerns about the economy and rising costs have been top issues for voters, who have consistently given Biden low marks. Biden tried to emphasize the positives, such as relatively low unemployment and strong economic growth, but failed to improve voter sentiment amid decades of high inflation. Former President Donald Trump tried to associate Harris with Biden, often claiming that he was responsible for all the policies of the current administration.
Harris will have an opportunity to focus his message on reducing costs for consumers and focus voters on the future when he speaks at the Democratic National Convention on Friday and next week.
“Biden has always focused on jobs and unemployment, and that’s not what voters are worried about. “For three years now, they have been worried about how much they pay for food and gas and housing prices.” said Hart Research’s Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt. “It’s more about understanding where people are and what you’re doing to make a difference than trying to tell people something they don’t believe.”
There are some early signs that Harris has an economic edge with voters over Biden in the weeks since accepting the nomination. at NPR/Marist request In a poll released earlier this month, 51% of Americans said Trump would do a better job handling the economy, compared with 48% who said the same as Harris — a slight drop in support for Trump from June and an increase in support for Harris over Biden.
In a separate place request In a poll released this month by the Financial Times and the University of Michigan, 42% of respondents said they trusted Harris to handle the economy, compared with 35% who said the same in July when Biden was the Democratic nominee. About 41% said they trusted Trump in both the July and August polls.
But other polls show Trump still has a strong lead. on CNBC request In a poll released this month, 40% of respondents said they would be better off financially if Trump won, compared with 20% who said the same about Harris. But voters said they knew more about what Trump would do for the economy than Harris, leaving room for him to build support.
“It’s been a good, encouraging move for him, but the question is how much momentum he can have. “Right now, it’s too early, people don’t know much about Harris in general,” Horwitt said. “I think the real explanation will be two weeks after the convention.”
Overall, 78% of respondents in the CNBC poll rated the economy as fair or poor, virtually unchanged from a year ago.
Among undecided voters, who make up about 3% to 5% of the electorate, inflation is a major concern. Among these undecided voters, including third-party voters, 72% said they believe inflation is getting worse, compared to 57% of the general electorate. vote From Cook’s Political Report.
Americans have seen a number of mixed signals about the economy in recent weeks. Stocks fell earlier this month after the U.S. unemployment rate rose to 4.3% in July and the pace of hiring fell short of economists’ expectations. This rise in unemployment has fueled recession fears, with JP Morgan raising its odds of a recession this year from 25% to 35%.
Meanwhile, corporate America is warning of easing consumer spending. Amazon said it saw customers trade up for cheaper items, Starbucks saw store traffic decline and Home Depot warned it expected weaker-than-expected sales in the second half of the year amid high interest rates and consumer uncertainty.
But other indicators this week showed that consumers continued to spend, with retail sales rising more than expected in July and Walmart reporting solid sales growth. Despite fears about the job market, the number of people filing for unemployment benefits fell last week for the second week in a row.
At the same time, consumers are somewhat relieved from the price increase. Consumer price inflation has consistently shown signs of slowing increasing at the slowest pace since the pandemic began in July. In July, compared to the previous year, prices for used cars fell by 11%, and for gasoline by 2.2%.
Still, prices are up 20% overall since Biden took office. according to to the consumer price index. While wages are rising, adjusted for inflation, consumers have slightly less purchasing power than they did in early 2021. according to To data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Food prices have seen some of the biggest increases over the past three years. Harris’ proposal would create a federal ban on corporate price gouging in the grocery and food processing industries. During his speeches, he is expected to accuse meat processors of raising prices while enjoying record profits since the start of the pandemic.
Harris has previously called for raising the minimum wage and expanding the child tax credit, two measures that would benefit low-income families. He also called for exempting employee tips from federal taxes, which Trump has expressed support for.
“Voters are looking to the future, they care about the future, and he’s making new policies that have some populist appeal,” said Tim Hogan, a Democratic strategist who served as a spokesman for Amy Klobuchar’s 2020 presidential campaign and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign. . “There’s something new about what it’s on the ticket and what it represents.”
Consumers could get more financial relief in September, when economists expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates during its last meeting before the November election.
This can translate into lower interest rates on home mortgages, along with lower interest rates on credit cards and car loans, providing some relief to potential home buyers. Lower interest rates will also help reduce borrowing costs for employers looking to expand their businesses.
“We are confident that you will see the Fed begin to cut interest rates in September. I think it’s more about how much they cut than whether they cut,” said Bharat Ramamurthy, who served as deputy director of the White House Council of Economic Advisers during the Biden administration. “This will be an important moment politically because it shows the public that the Fed is confident that it is beating inflation.” I think this will be an important turning of the page.”
Trump made his remarks on the economy in North Carolina on Wednesday, where he said he would at least halve energy and electricity prices in the first 18 months of his second administration, but added a warning: “If it doesn’t work, you walk out and say, ‘Oh, I voted for him. I’m still too low’.
He said he would lower energy prices by speeding up approvals for new energy infrastructure, allowing drilling on new land and reducing regulations. Trump has said he opposes spending on wind and solar energy. According to the report, the United States currently produces more crude oil than at any other point in history US Energy Information Administration.
Trump has said before that he will 60% rate Blaming it on goods from China and reducing the number of immigrants coming to the country “Black work”.