Poll: Americans Say Trump Is Handling Coronavirus Better Than Biden Would

A new opinion poll released Wednesday showed that while most Americans disapprove of the way President Donald Trump is handling the coronavirus pandemic, they believe he is doing a better job than former Vice President Joe Biden would.

The survey, conducted by Politico / Morning Consult, found that just 36% said they believed Democratic presidential hopeful Biden would have organized a better response to the current crisis than Trump. By comparison, 44% said that they thought the president is doing a better job than Biden would in his place.

Curiously, the poll also found that 52% of Americans believe former President Barack Obama would be a better leader than Trump during the coronavirus pandemic.

Overall, just 44% approved of Trump’s general performance as president.

As the Democratic Party appears poised to pick Biden as their candidate to run against Trump this fall, these numbers may be telling – and could indicate major problems for the Biden campaign in the near future.

Since the coronavirus outbreak emerged as a major crisis in the United States last month, the president and his administration have faced severe criticism over its response. And while these recent survey numbers show that most Americans don’t believe Trump is doing a good job with the crisis, they believe Biden would be doing worse – but why?

Last month, after claiming multiple victories in the second biggest primary day of the year, Biden strangely appeared to shrink from the public stage as the crisis accelerated. For most of the week that followed, the presidential hopeful didn’t speak publicly, leading #WhereIsJoe to trend on Twitter for a time.

Biden's campaign took time to adapt to the digital messaging needs required by social distancing, allowing the candidate to begin making regular addresses from his home. These addresses, however, continue to remain overshadowed by Trump’s daily White House press briefings.

As Democrats began to worry that Biden lacked the ability to lead in a crisis, an increasing amount of buzz has emerged around New York Gov. Anthony Cuomo, who has had his regular coronavirus press conferences broadcast nationally. For some, Cuomo has displayed a type of strong, assertive leadership Biden currently appears to be lacking, fueling discussion about Cuomo usurping the Democratic presidential nomination.

Since throwing his hat in the ring, Biden hasn’t shied away from touting his eight years as Obama’s vice president, clearly done in an effort to link himself to a presidency still held in high regard by many Americans. But this poll’s findings that show Obama would be considered a better leader during the coronavirus crisis than Trump – and Trump better than Biden – shows that this messaging might not be succeeding.