Biden's rating drops below 50% in 'summer of discontent'

New Delhi, Aug 24 : After a spike in US Covid-19 cases and bipartisan criticism over the chaos from America's withdrawal from Afghanistan, US President Joe Biden's overall job-approval rating has dipped below 50 per cent among adults for the first time in his early presidency, according to a new NBC News Poll.

The poll also finds fewer Americans support Biden's handling of the coronavirus and the economy now than they did last spring, and just a quarter of respondents approve of his handling of Afghanistan.

The survey findings demonstrate the public has grown more pessimistic about the coronavirus since April, the country remains split over whether Covid-19 vaccines should be mandated and an electorate is divided over which political party should control Congress after the 2022 midterms, NBC reported.

It all produced a 'summer of discontent' for Biden, said Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates, who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies.

"The promise of April has led to the peril of August," Horwitt said, arguing that Covid -- more than Afghanistan -- has dented Biden's numbers. "It is the domestic storm, Covid's delta wave, that is causing more difficulties at this stage here at home and for President Biden."

According to the survey, 49 per cent of adults approve of Biden's overall job performance, while 48 per cent disapprove.

That's down from April's NBC News poll, when 53 per cent of adults approved of Biden's job and 39 per cent disapproved -- with some of the biggest declines for Biden coming from independents, rural residents and white respondents.