WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As President Joe Biden prepares to leave office, Americans offer a largely negative assessment of the progress the U.S. has made during his presidency on 18 economic, national and international issues.
Majorities of Americans think the U.S. has lost ground in six areas over the past four years, including the federal debt (67%), immigration (64%), the gap between the wealthy and less well-off (60%), the economy (59%), the United States’ position in the world (58%) and crime (51%). Pluralities also say the nation has fallen behind in six other areas: education, terrorism, trade relations with other countries, race relations, the nation’s infrastructure and energy.
Meanwhile, U.S. adults are more likely to see progress (39%) than regression (23%) or steadiness (31%) on just one of the issues -- the situation for gay, lesbian and transgender people.
More Americans believe the country has stood still on two issues -- climate change and the situation for Black people -- than think it has made progress or lost ground. U.S. adults are about evenly divided on whether the U.S. has lost ground or stood still on healthcare, national defense and the military, and taxes, with relatively few seeing progress in these areas.
These findings are from a Gallup poll conducted Dec. 2-18, a month into the presidential transition after Biden’s vice president, Kamala Harris, lost the election to Donald Trump.
Democrats Offer Much More Positive Evaluation Than Republicans in All Areas
Democrats, including independents who lean toward the Democratic Party, have net-positive views of the changes that have occurred over the past four years on 14 of the 18 issues. However, these partisans’ positive evaluations are wide-ranging, from +51 for energy to +13 for the situation with Black people. The other issues on which Democrats have seen improvement during Biden’s presidency are the nation’s infrastructure, trade relations with other countries, the economy, the situation for LGBTQ+ people, national defense and the military, the United States’ position in the world, terrorism, crime, climate change, healthcare, education, and race relations.
Under Biden, Democrats think the nation has lost more ground than it has gained on the federal debt and the gap between the wealthy and less well-off. On taxes, Democrats are divided over whether the nation has made progress or lost ground, with a majority (63%) believing it has stood still on the issue. Democrats are also split on whether the U.S. has seen progress (30%) or lost ground (33%) on immigration.
Republicans and Republican-leaning independents perceive the country has lost ground in 17 of the 18 areas over the past four years, with their most negative views on immigration, the federal debt and the economy. The situation for gay, lesbian and transgender people is the only issue on which Republicans think there has been progress under Biden’s stewardship.
Biden Viewed Less Positively Than Predecessors on Many Issues
Gallup also measured Americans’ views of the nation’s progress at the end of Trump’s first presidential term in 2021, as well as Barack Obama’s and George W. Bush’s second terms in 2017 and 2009, respectively. Twelve of the issues measured in the December poll were likewise tracked at the end of these three presidents’ terms in office, another five were asked after Obama’s and Trump’s presidencies, and one (the nation’s infrastructure) was only measured in the latest poll. In general, Americans’ assessments of presidents’ progress on issues at the end of their term have been more negative than positive.
- Biden’s net progress lags his three immediate predecessors’ significantly on national defense and the military, immigration, and taxes, and is also worse than Obama’s and Trump’s on the federal debt, the gap between the wealthy and less well-off, and trade relations with other countries.
- Net progress is better for Biden than for Bush on energy, healthcare, the United States’ position in the world and the economy, but both Obama and Trump were credited with achieving more than Biden has on each of these issues.
- Of the four presidents, Obama was viewed most favorably on climate change, and Trump was viewed least favorably.
- Bush outperformed his three successors on net progress for race relations.
- Americans were more likely to say the two Republican presidents, Bush and Trump, made progress on crime and terrorism in the U.S. compared with Biden and Obama.
- Obama received much more credit than his two successors for advancing the situation for LGBTQ+ people, but Biden is viewed as making more progress than Trump in this domain.
- Biden’s net progress rating for education is similar to Trump’s, but both are lower than those for Bush and Obama.
- Net progress for improving the situation for Black people is similar for Biden, Trump and Obama.
Democrats’ views of the progress Biden has made are generally muted compared with Republicans’ views of Trump four years ago and Democrats’ perceptions of Obama in 2017 but somewhat similar to Republicans’ perceptions of Bush in 2009.
Bottom Line
Given Biden’s relatively low job approval rating and the expectation that history will judge his presidency negatively, it follows that Americans do not think the U.S. has improved during his time in office. However, Americans’ end-of-term assessments for prior presidents have also been largely negative -- even for Obama, who left office with relatively high job approval ratings. Democrats’ generally subdued endorsement of Biden’s handling of a wide range of economic, national and international areas contribute to his unusually low net-positive ratings.
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