Biden’s $13B package branded ‘cynical’ ahead of midterms

Joe Biden’s $13 billion package helping Americans with energy bills has been branded ‘cynical’ – due to its planned announcement eight days before the midterms vote. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to make a statement in Boston later today, revealing help with energy bills for US citizens. The timing has raised eyebrows and political expert Dr James D.Boys, a visiting scholar at Tufts University in Massachusetts, argues Biden will face more attacks as a result.The US President, 79, is already rock bottom in popularity ratings and recent polling for Express.co.uk suggests Republicans have a plus 22-percent lead on inflation and plus 14-percent lead on the economy.The data by Washington DC based Democracy Institute indicates 65 percent disapprove of Biden’s handling of the economy, 62 percent think his anti inflation measures won’t work and 55 percent believe Donald Trump was a better President.The battle for the Senate is neck and neck, with other data pointing to a Republican majority once results are counted.Dr D.Boys told Express.co.uk: ‘You’ve seen the President announced he’s going to try dump $13 billion into helping with the economy in terms of energy costs.”That’s fine but I think most people will look at this and go ‘well okay, in the run up to an election, he’ll be attacked from the Republican Party point of view for a cynical attempt to buy votes’, which it is. Let’s be honest about it.’ Joe Biden’s $13 billion energy bills package was branded ‘cynical’ by an expert (Image: Getty)The expert, who authored ‘Clinton’s War on Terror’ in 2018, added: ‘The way in which the Biden administration has tried to drop $13 billion suddenly into the American economy, I think it’s going to be…if it’s not too little, it’s certainly way too late.’Because, of course, things like that take a long time to filter down to people’s cheque books, wallets and purses. ‘At the moment, inflation is rampant in the United States. Whilst the cost of gasoline is coming down, it is still having a knock on effect in terms of having to distribute goods and food around the country, and therefore you’re still seeing massive inflationary problems, making everyday life for average American citizens much more expensive than it used to be.’And when you compound that with issues across of crime, I think it bodes ill for the Democrats potentially come the midterms.’READ MORE: Biden in crisis as 80 percent of voters say US ‘out of control’ Kamala Harris will announce the $13B energy package in Boston later today (Image: Getty)Dr Christopher Phelps, from the University of Nottingham, was also asked by Express.co.uk how the Democrats have struggled on the economy in the eyes of voters.He said: ‘Although the Biden administration and Democratic Congress passed an inflation reduction act this summer that included help on prescription drug prices, containment of the federal deficit, alternative energy subsidies, and tax reforms, and although gas prices have fallen at the pump, the direction of inflation is not abating enough to help them. ‘More voters put inflation at the top of their list than any other issue, and most of those think things are moving in the wrong direction. ‘The Democrats have lacked a program going forward and a unified message on this issue, which may prove disastrous for them at the polls.’There are economic strengths to the present economy, including a full-employment economy, which coming out of the Covid crisis is a major accomplishment. ‘Inflation, however, seems entrenched and is a major hardship for lower and middle-income Americans.’DON’T MISSDemocrats torn to shreds over Pelosi attack mid terms claim by GB NewsRepublicans warn of ‘civil war’ if party loses in US midterm electionsMissing boy, six, found 2,000 miles away from home Dr James D.Boys said the GOP will say the package is a ”cynical attempt to buy votes’, which it is’ (Image: Getty)Dr D.Boys also suggested the Democrats are struggling on the economy due to personnel in the party. He added: ‘The problem is what you’re seeing generally across the US at the moment is that for many years – in the 1970s and certainly in the 1980s – the Democratic Party were unelectable at a national level.’You saw them lose election after election at the Presidential level, what Bill Clinton tried to do in the 90s is bring the party in from the left. It’s what Blair did with the New Labour project, and he did it very successfully, and I think what you’ve seen since Bernie Sanders’ emergence in the Democratic Party, the emergence of the group known as ‘the Squad’, people like AOC for example, they have dragged the Democratic Party back to, in many people’s views, the old Democratic Party of the 1970s.”Which is the idea that ‘they can spend their way out of any problem, they can increase taxes, and really sort of run amok with the economy’ to a certain extent.’ ‘The way it’s been dropped … if it’s not too little, it’s certainly way too late’ (Image: Getty)Ms Harris will announce the new initiative while visiting a sheet metal workers’ training facility and union hall in Boston.It will see the Biden administration provide over $13 billion in aid to help low – and moderate-income Americans – lower their energy costs, with the Department of Health and Human Services releasing $4.5 billion in Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program funding. The amount will include $100 million from Mr Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $1 billion in emergency funding that the administration requested earlier in 2022.The Biden administration will also provide roughly $9 billion to help low and moderate-income families lower energy costs by making energy-efficient upgrades to their homes.