Former Obama Aide David Axelrod Once Said President Joe Biden is Driving Him 'Crazy’

Political consultant David Axelrod, most recognized for serving as chief strategist for former President, Barack Obama's successful campaigns, highlighted his dissatisfaction with incumbent President Joe Biden's economic messaging, calling his strategies "crazy." Axelrod, a former friend of Biden's from his stint as vice president in the Obama administration, has been among many who have criticized Biden's economic stance.

In an interview on Conversations with Bill Kristol last week, Axelrod told Kristol, editor-at-large of Bulwark, that Biden's economic message "drives [him] crazy" and pushed him to adopt a more sympathetic approach that acknowledges the problems of the working class while still highlighting his economic achievements. "That is the wrong strategy," Axelrod said about Biden's messaging on the economy, Newsweek reported.

Axdelrod's statements- were in reaction to a comment Biden made to NBC's TODAY when asked about people's fears that their economic possibilities are fading, to which the president replied, "I would tell [them] we've got the strongest economy in the world." As the economy recovered from the COVID-19 epidemic, the Biden administration's economy consistently experienced job growth. According to the most Labor Department data, 303,000 new jobs were generated in March, bringing the unemployment rate down to 3.8 percent. In February of last year, the unemployment rate dropped to 3.4%, the lowest level in more than, 50 years. Although the measures are still erratic, Biden has presided over significant declines in both inflation and gas prices since they peaked in 2022. In late February, the Dow Jones stock market index likewise reached its greatest peak in American history.

However, the working-class voters' opinions of the economy haven't changed despite this. Supporters of Biden have frequently blamed the gap on enduring media narratives about economic difficulties that have neglected to give the president credit for his accomplishments. Others have retaliated, pointing out that working-class people continue to face difficulties as a result of high expenditures in the sectors that most affect their everyday lives: housing, groceries, and car expenses. When Biden made the comments on NBC about the economy being the "strongest," Axelrod suggested this is the main problem with his messaging. "The right strategy is to say, 'Look, we've made a lot of progress from the day I walked in the door as a country and I'm proud of our country for fighting through this pandemic and getting her back to where we've got this much employment'," he explained.

"But the fact is, the way people experience this economy is the way I did when I was growing up in Scranton, Pennsylvania. How much did you pay for the groceries? How do you afford the gas, [and] the rent?" Axelrod asked, before explaining," 'And these continue to be a problem and I'm fighting that fight'...So I think he needs to put himself on the side of working people in their economic fight here."

Editor's note: This article was originally published on April 8, 2024. It has since been updated.