NEWS AND OPINION:
Well, surprise. Almost two-thirds of likely U.S. voters — 63% — now agree that the mainstream media is “protecting President Biden” by not asking him to weigh in on tough policy questions about serious issues, such as the national debt or the southern U.S. border crisis.
In addition, 59% say the president’s staff is “preventing him from talking to the media.”
So says a new Zogby Analytics poll of 868 likely U.S. voters conducted May 26-27 and released Monday.
“While President Biden may seem to be on top of the world, and his numbers prove this, he might be suddenly in for more drama. The mainstream media is on his side, but how much longer will voters be on his side? If Biden does not deliver on infrastructure and Democrats lose their majority in the House of Representatives to Republicans, Biden’s popularity could take a hit and he could come tumbling off his pedestal,” veteran pollster Jonathan Zogby wrote in his analysis of the findings.
But wait, there’s more.
Almost half (49%) of the respondents believe Mr. Biden is taking credit for some of former President Donald Trump‘s accomplishments, such as the rollout and distribution of the coronavirus vaccine and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Another 37% of voters thought Mr. Biden accomplished those herculean tasks on his own.
Things could get challenging for the White House as the months go by.
“Once this rush of summer fun is over, voters might be in store for a rude awakening, as will President Biden, if he does not deliver on all his promises, which is a pretty tall order. Not only does he have to please the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, but he also has to be a president for all Americans, and please them too. That is an even taller order,” Mr. Zogby predicted in his analysis of the findings.
BRING BACK THOSE FOUNDING PRINCIPLES
There’s a “civics education crisis” in U.S. schools, say parents and teachers alike, who remain concerned that the authentic understanding of America’s understanding is in a “dire state” according to a new report and well-focused survey from The Heritage Foundation.
“The survey, which examined responses of 1,003 teachers and 1,012 parents, comes as the radical left is forcing the discriminatory principles of critical race theory into students’ lesson plans under the guise of civics education,” the conservative think tank said.
“Two-thirds of parents and nearly three-quarters of teachers share a strong desire to see greater emphasis on civics education. High school had the largest interest with 63% of parents and almost 74% of teachers saying civics education should be more emphasized,” the research noted.
Only one-third of each group are satisfied with civics education in their schools, however. The survey also found that 79% of parents and 74% of teachers said that they would be open to spending more time with their children or students to ensure that they receive a decent civics education.
There’s also been a change in culture. One-third of the parents said the classroom atmosphere itself had become less civil; 4-out-of-10 teachers agreed.
“Both parents and teachers agree that the most important function of civics in modern-day America is practical information and guidance on how to carry out the duties of a citizen. Both groups also agree that civics curricula should focus primarily on ‘the rights and duties of citizenship’ rather than on critical race theory — the ideology that teaches that people are either oppressed or oppressors, depending on the color of their skin,” said Angela Sailor, co-author and vice-president of the Feulner Institute, an initiative within the Heritage Foundation to restore confidence in America’s founding values and principles.
Find the complete study at Heritage.org/education; the report is titled “Civics Studies: What Parents and Teachers Think, and How They Can Reclaim Truth.”
ON THE RADAR
Coming soon: The Republican National Committee’s “Summer Retreat,” scheduled at a splendid spot in California near the end of the month.
Former Vice President Mike Pence is the main guest in question. The Republican Party, meanwhile, is not likely to be in the mood to retreat from anything.
MANY HAPPY RETURNS
Former President Donald Trump was suspended from Twitter earlier this year, but the social media platform still reverberated throughout Monday with congratulatory wishes for the former president’s 75th birthday. Mr. Trump was born on June 14, 1946, in Queens, New York.
The social media hashtags #BestPresident, #BestPresidentEver and #HappyBirthdayPresidentTrump were trending on Twitter by midmorning, drawing thousands of well wishes for Mr. Trump from a cross section of senders.
“Happy birthday, President Donald Trump! Serving alongside you to put America First was an honor. Here’s to never giving up on Making America Great,” tweeted former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
“Happy Birthday, President Trump! Everyone says they miss your policies!” tweeted former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Guiliani.
“Happy birthday to the best president of modern times,” said actor Kevin Sorbo, which quickly drew some 12,000 “likes” from his 593,000 followers.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, Donald Trump Jr. plus a wide sweep of GOP activists, Republican political candidates. Conservative organizations also joined in, as did The Washington Examiner.
POLL DU JOUR
• 61% of U.S. adults are in favor of requiring all college students to receive a COVID-19 vaccination; 31% of Republicans, 51% of independents and 88% of Democrats agree.
• 79% of those who have been vaccinated and 9% of those who do not plan to be vaccinated also agree.
• 56% are in favor of all high school students getting the vaccine; 26% of Republicans, 47% of independents and 84% of Democrats agree.
• 74% of those who have been vaccinated and 8% of those who do not plan to be vaccinated also agree.
• 51% overall are in favor of all middle-school students receiving the vaccine; 22% of Republicans, 42% of independents and 77% of Democrats agree.
• 68% of those who have been vaccinated and 7% of those who do not plan to be vaccinated also agree.
Source: A Gallup poll of 3,572 U.S. adults conducted May 18-23 and released Friday.
• Helpful information to jharper@Washingtontimes.com
• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.
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