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President Joe Biden has struggled to make the success of his infrastructure resonate with voters.
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Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer told the Times that many voters are simply not connected to DC.
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“I think the pandemic has taken its toll. People are stressed,” she told the newspaper.
When Gretchen Whitmer first ran for governor of Michigan in 2018, she promised to “fix the damn roads.”
The slogan stuck and was a big part of Whitmer’s winning campaign that year. So she knows a lot about effective political messages.
In a recent interview with The New York Times, Whitmer was asked why President Joe Biden has so far struggled to earn widespread recognition for the bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill among voters.
Her response? Voters are exhausted by the pandemic and many are simply not attuned to what is happening in Washington.
“I think the pandemic has taken its toll. People are stressed,” Whitmer told the Times. “They’re just trying to pay the grocery bill, get the kids to school, show up to work and maybe get some sleep at night. They’re not consuming it all.”
Whitmer, co-chair of Biden’s reelection campaign and a figure often touted as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, noted that Democrats need to go out and speak effectively to voters about the merits of the infrastructure overhaul and laws like the CHIPS Act – which is set to produce turbocharged semiconductors in the United States.
“We need to do a better job of telling that story,” the governor added.
Biden considers the infrastructure bill passed by Congress in 2021 as one of his most important political achievements.
But voters in recent surveys have given him only a narrow lead on the issue compared to Trump — who floated infrastructure reforms numerous times during his presidency but failed to create a concrete framework for lawmakers.
In a Politico-Morning Consult poll conducted in April, 40% of registered voters said Biden had done more on infrastructure upgrades and job creationwhile 37% of respondents chose Trump.
Read the original article on Business Insider
