These are turbulent times for America. The economy is in choppy waters, there are tensions on the geopolitical stage, and we are full steam ahead into a midterm election year.
No one wants America to be in this situation right now, even those of us who didn’t vote for the current president. As Americans, we all should prefer a problem where most of the country is thriving, but that’s not where we find ourselves right now.
Heck, even those of us who predicted the present situation playing itself out under the current administration didn’t exactly expect it to all crash and burned as quickly as it has. And that’s not me being partisan: A new CNN poll released on Thursday shows that 58 percent of Americans disapprove of Biden’s performance in office.
In comparison, 56 percent of that group say the president hasn’t accomplished anything in his first year of which they approve. That’s astonishing.
Also of note, the president’s disapproval rating has spiked seven percentage points from early December and 17 percentage points from early March. That’s a rapid tank-job for any politician to have inside of 12 months.
”I’m hard-pressed to think of a single thing he has done that benefits the country,” one respondent wrote in the survey, according to CNN.
“He’s not Donald [T]rump. That’s pretty much it,” answered another.
Well, when we look back to 2020, that was Joe Biden’s only redeeming quality to many who voted for him: he wasn’t Donald Trump. And now the country is paying for those who voted with their emotions.
But for the talk radio format, a poll like this tells me that the frustration and aggravation with many Republicans, and Independents, could be at a level we haven’t seen since the Obamacare days over a decade ago. This could lead to more Time Spent Listening, the key to success for any talk station, and possibly some new cume for those frustrated voters looking to scratch their itch.
The poll also showed only 36% approval from Independents. Those are the voters who may not typically be your traditional, daily talk radio listener, but who are so fed up they need to know what is going on and enjoy hearing the host(s) and others (guests/callers) voice their displeasure as well.
In many ways, it can be therapeutic for the listener. It’s like watching a train wreck that you can’t take your eyes off of.
Granted, hours upon hours of ripping Joe Biden would get old pretty fast, and I would never recommend that for a show without topic variety. Still, the fact that this administration has crashed and burned so quickly with the American people presents a chance for our format.
The base is there and fired up; Republicans as a party should be leaving their internal squabbles behind and focusing on uniting for the upcoming midterms, while Independents and even some Democrats may be wondering if the current climate can get worse.
I hope it doesn’t, and I don’t want it to, but in the meantime, we can all seize the moment.
Pete Mundo is a weekly columnist for Barrett Media, and the Vice President of News/Talk for Cumulus Media, while also hosting “Mundo in the Morning” and programming KCMO Talk Radio in Kansas City. Previously, he was a fill-in host nationally on FOX News Radio and CBS Sports Radio, while anchoring for WFAN, WCBS News Radio 880, and Bloomberg Radio. He’s also the owner of the Big 12-focused digital media outlet Heartland College Sports. To interact, find him on X @PeteMundo.
