BIDEN BOOM DRIVES MAGA NUTS

By Akin Ojumu

It has been a pretty bad couple of weeks for the MAGA crowd and its propaganda machine. With the economic and political tides turning in Joe Biden’s favor, the rightwing nut house can’t seem to catch a break. The man considered to be on political life-support is suddenly enjoying a new lease on life as the wind of good fortune blows his way.

As Biden is scoring wins left, right, and center, the enemies of progress on the far right are having the nightmare of their lives. The good turn of events is giving rightwing crazies all over the country heartburn. This is particularly true of the characters at Fox News who are left to consume volumes of Pepto Bismol to get some relief from the burning pain of their dyspepsia.

First, it was Senator Joe Manchin who opened the floodgate of good news. Ironically, it was the man who has for long sabotaged his own party’s agenda that he looked more like an agent of the other party who got the ball rolling. Suddenly, Manchin had a personal epiphany and realized he is making a fool of himself by being a clog in the wheel of progress. 

In a major political flip flop, the old fox from the soot-laden coal mines of the Appalachian Mountain announced he is going to sign on to his party's health and climate agenda. Seemingly waking up from the right side of his lumpy bed, Joe Manchin joined his fellow Democrats to inject life back into Biden’s Build Back Better agenda, the same legislation he seemed determined to scuttle ever since his party took control of the White House and Congress.

Next was the news that emanated from the sunbaked office of Krysten Lea Sinema., The Senator from Arizona, and Joe Manchin’s fellow saboteur in the Democratic Party Senate caucus, experienced her own come-to-Jesus moment. Like a delicious icing on the cake, she decided that she too would support her party’s climate, tax and health care package, clearing the way for a major victory for President Biden’s domestic agenda.

Coupled with weeks of steady decline in the prices Americans pay at the pump, this recent spate of heartwarming developments marks a turning point in Biden’s first term. As a result of a combination of policy changes made by the Biden administration, gas prices have dropped from a record high of $5.02 per liter to an average of $4.08.

Some of these strategic decisions include the tapping of 180 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve over the next six months, at a rate of one million barrels per day, the largest release in U.S. history.

After weeks of strident prognostication by high profile economists of all political stripes that the economy was in recession then comes the blockbuster jobs report that blows the lid off. Leading up to last Friday’s jobs report, everyone was bracing themselves for devastating job numbers that’ll validate the worst fears of the experts. It was a foregone conclusion that the report would show an economy that’s bleeding jobs in the millions and an unemployment rate that’s off the charts.

Billed as the jobs report that’ll put the nail in the coffin of sleepy Joe’s presidency, the MAGA world and the conservative media had already set up watch parties all over the country – with champagne, vodka, and raucous music – expectantly waiting to dance on the grave of Biden’s administration and celebrate his demise.

To their dismay, the July jobs report beats all expectations. It’s like a punch in the gut for those rooting for America to fail. Employers added 528,000 jobs, the jobs lost during COVID have been fully recovered, and unemployment rate edged down to 3.5%, all of these while red-hot inflation and fears of recession have been recurring economic themes of armchair economists.

Having spent days prepping their audience for a terrible jobs report, conservative media outlets were caught flatfooted and totally unprepared for the jaw-dropping economic news. The unexpectedly good jobs report disarmed the MAGA foot soldiers of their weapon of attack. 

With their talking points ripped to shreds, all they are left with is to take the news of economic boom, spin it to make it look all doom and gloom. Grasping at straws, they blame Biden for missing the forecast, predicts the good job growth will lead to an aggressive Federal Reserve raising the interest rates, and faults the low jobs participation.

There’s a lesson here for everyone. Never ever root for the president of your country to fail, even if he’s one you can’t stand his politics. Otherwise, you’ll end up with egg on your face when he eventually succeeds.