President Joe Biden’s tenuous hold on Congress is impeding his ambition to govern like Franklin D. Roosevelt as the Senate’s filibuster stymies the passage of his liberal agenda.
But the White House’s problem is that polling suggests not all voters understand the complicated rules exacerbating the gridlock after headlines celebrated Democratic “control” of the Senate following the Jan. 5 Georgia runoff elections.
Even an “Einstein” may have trouble following the congressional procedure, according to former California Democratic Party adviser Bob Mulholland. And voters tend to demand more and more from their elected leaders, Mulholland told the Washington Examiner.
“Pass infrastructure and the Uber driver can complain about all the bridge repairs and detours,” he said.
For analyst Dan Schnur, a Republican turned independent now at the University of California, the cardinal rule of political physics is that emotion cannot beat arithmetic.
“Biden has to deal with many frustrated progressives who are upset that he hasn’t moved on their priorities. But the math is unforgiving: As long as the Democratic majorities are so slim, Biden is limited in what he can accomplish,” he said.
