Axelrod: Biden’s Emphasis on Economic Message Could Jeopardize White House Bid

David Axelrod, a longtime strategist and senior adviser to former President Barack Obama, criticized President Joe Biden for his economic messaging, asserting he should be leading “with empathy” for those who are not experiencing this great economy he continues to tout.

In an interview Wednesday, Biden belittled the polls that show the economy is anything but the strongest in the world.

“The polling data has been wrong all along,” Biden said. “You guys do a poll at CNN, how many folks do you have to call to get one response?”

Axelrod said it’s a “terrible mistake” for Biden to not see what’s in front of him.

“That’s not the way people are experiencing the economy,” Axelrod said on CNN from Milwaukee on Wednesday. “They are experiencing it through the lens of the cost of living. He is a man who’s built his career on empathy, why not lead with the empathy?”

Only 38% of U.S. adults said they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of confidence in Biden to lead the economy, according to the latest Gallup poll released Monday. That is 8 percentage points below the 46% who said they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of confidence in former President Donald Trump.

“I think he’s making a terrible mistake,” Axelrod continued. “If he doesn’t win this race, it may not be Donald Trump that beats him, it may be his own pride.”