'I’m a Big Boy': Biden Says Not Afraid of Low Approval Ratings

In several battleground states, polls have been showing sad results for the 46th American president, who is facing challenges on all political fronts, not only over Afghanistan.

US President Joe Biden told reporters on Saturday that he does not care about lowering public approval ratings, noting that he is mature enough to accept it while continuing to perform his presidential duties.

"I get it, a lot more direct attacks on me ... I'm a big boy. I’ve been doing this for a long time.

Joe Biden

President of the United States

A new CNN poll, released on Friday, said that 69% of US citizens are disappointed with how things are going in the country. Another poll, conducted by NPR earlier in September, showed that Biden’s rating slid to 43%, down 6% from July.

As recent polls show, Biden’s popularity began lowering following a bumpy summer in the United States. This includes a new spike of coronavirus infections, the chaotic evacuation from Afghanistan and a rough hurricane season, together with wildfires.

In Afghanistan, the evacuation witnessed deadly terrorist attacks claimed by Daesh*, in which almost 200 Afghan citizens and 13 US soldiers were killed. Retaliation for the attack was conducted by the US and was also deemed controversial by some. The Pentagon said it had targeted an alleged Daesh-operative in a recent drone strike in Kabul, although a report has alleged that it may have been an ordinary Afghan man who worked for a US aid group. While the US military is still assessing the impact of the strike, some media reported that a family was killed in the attack, including seven children - with two of them as young as 2.

A Rasmussen poll, released shortly after the Taliban seized power in Kabul, as Afghan leader Ashraf Ghani fled his country, said that a majority of likely US voters, 54 percent, disapprove of Biden’s job performance, while 45 percent approve. Polls conducted by FiveThirtyEight and Reuters during the same period also showed that Biden's approval ratings hit the lowest of his presidency.

Simultaneously, Biden has triggered discontent from Republican politicians over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and a recently-unveiled plan to curb rising virus cases in the country, which includes mandatory vaccinations for companies with 100 or more employees and all federal government officials. GOP politicians were also angry that Biden's vaccination plan does not include illegal immigrants who continue to flow through the US southern border, while many COVID-19 cases have been registered among them.