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President Biden excoriated reporters Friday, complaining they aren’t giving him a fair shake on the economy.
In remarks about the September jobs report, Mr. Biden blamed journalists for why his economic message hasn’t resonated with voters.
“You are all not the happiest people in the world,” the president lashed out at the reporters gathered to cover his remarks.
“You get a little more legs when you report something that is negative. I don’t mean you are picking on me. It’s just the nature of things. You turn on the television, and there is not a whole lot about boy saves dog as he swims in the lake. You know, it’s about somebody pushed the dog in the lake. I get it.”
He also told the reporters they should be more focused on the war in Ukraine and other international issues rather than finding fault with the economy.
“There are reasons for people to be concerned about what’s going on with Russia. Reason to be concerned with what’s going on in other parts of the world,” the president said. “I think that the American people are smart as hell and know what their interests are. I think they know they’re better off financially than they were before.”
Employers added 336,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said Friday in a much-anticipated report. Those are 170,000 more than economists predicted and the strongest gain since January.
The unemployment rate held steady at 3.8% last month, near historically low levels. Meanwhile, employers raised pay by 4.2% as they competed for a limited pool of workers.
The good news for Mr. Biden comes as the White House announced the third Investment in America tour, which it says will highlight his economic agenda he calls Bidenomics.
The report also showed that average real wages declined the past year as rising prices continue to chip away at worker gains.
Mr. Biden has made an improving economy coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic as the cornerstone of his reelection bid. The president and administration officials have traversed the country arguing that the economy is in better shape than it was under President Donald Trump.
However, a slew of polling shows that Mr. Biden’s argument of an economic recovery is not resonating with voters. Most Americans remain skeptical that the economy has turned around.
Inflation, which has cooled slightly since hitting a 40-year high last year, has overshadowed Mr. Biden’s argument about job gains and wage increases.
According to Real Clear Politics’ aggregate of several prominent polls, an overwhelming 60% of voters disapprove of the president’s handling of the economy, while only 36.7% approve.
Some polls have the numbers even higher, with a recent CBS News poll revealing that 65% of voters said Mr. Biden deserves poor marks for his handling of the economy compared with 35% who approved of his performance.
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