Administration

Haberman says Trump, Biden both have ‘disconnect’ with voters over economic situations

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by Sophie Brams - 05/09/26 1:36 PM ET

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by Sophie Brams - 05/09/26 1:36 PM ET

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New York Times White House Correspondent Maggie Haberman said on Friday that President Trump and former President Biden share a common “disconnect” with voters when it comes to messaging on the economy.

“Certainly, there has been a similarity in terms of how President Biden and how President Trump have handled how voters feel about their own personal economic situations,” Haberman said during an appearance on CNN.

The Labor Department announced Friday that the U.S. added 115,000 new jobs in April, while the jobless rate held steady at 4.3 percent.

The figure surpassed economists’ expectations and was a welcome sign for the Trump administration, which has faced mounting pressure from voters over rising costs brought on by the conflict with Iran.

“Happy Mother’s Day weekend to all, especially to the 115 THOUSAND AMERICANS who found jobs in the month of April alone!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday evening. “As usual, over 90 percent of Bloomberg Economists (nearly all of whom have a ‘Terminal’ case of TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME!) underestimated the strength of the Trump Economy.”

Haberman agreed it was a “good jobs report” for the White House, but noted that positive reports had also emerged during Biden’s term.

“And what would be very frustrating for President Biden was that voters did not feel that, and that showed up. That didn’t impact their lives, necessarily,” she said. “That is also true with President Trump. He is showing some of the same issues in terms of sounding as if he understands what people are going through.”

The longtime Trump reporter argued that while job reports are one positive metric, issues such as skyrocketing fuel prices could present a more tangible electoral problem for Republicans in the midterm elections.

Restrictions on shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — from both Iranian and U.S. blockades — have disrupted global oil supply chains, causing a sharp increase in gas prices across the country. The national average for a gallon of gas was $4.53 on Saturday, according to AAA.

“It depends where it is in a few months, if things turn around, if the war in Iran — even though I know they’re not calling it a war anymore— starts to scale back, energy prices come down, that will obviously help the party and help the President and the White House with its numbers,” Haberman said. “But there’s a gap there, and it’s a sour electorate.”

Recent polling has flashed warning signs of potential voter backlash against Trump come November, with Americans expressing growing dissatisfaction with the state of the domestic economy.

Trump’s approval rating on the economy is currently hovering around 30 percent, according to a recent Associated Press-NORC Research Center survey, which marks a 9-point drop from before the conflict began in late February.

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