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<\/p>\nWASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Joe Biden is plunging into the next phase of his administration with the steady approval of a majority of Americans, according to a new poll from\u00a0The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The survey shows Biden is buoyed in particular by the public\u2019s broad backing for his handling of\u00a0the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n
In the fourth month of his presidency, Biden\u2019s overall approval rating sits at 63%. When it comes to the new Democratic president\u2019s handling of the pandemic, 71% of Americans approve, including 47% of Republicans.<\/p>\n
The AP-NORC poll also shows an uptick in Americans\u2019 overall optimism about the state of the country. Fifty-four percent say the country is on the right track, higher than at any point in AP-NORC polls conducted since 2017; 44% think the nation is on the wrong track.<\/p>\n
Those positive marks have fueled the Biden White House\u2019s confidence coming out of\u00a0the president\u2019s first 100 days in office, a stretch in which he secured passage of a sweeping $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package and surged COVID-19 vaccines across the country. The U.S., which has suffered\u00a0the most virus deaths\u00a0of any nation, is now viewed enviably by much of the rest of the world for its speedy vaccination program and robust supplies of the shots.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are turning a corner,\u201d said Jeff Zients, the White House\u2019s COVID-19 response coordinator.<\/p>\n
The improvements have also impacted Americans\u2019 concerns about the virus. The AP-NORC poll shows the public\u2019s worries about the pandemic are at their lowest level since February 2020, when the virus was first reaching the U.S. About half of Americans say they are at least somewhat worried that they or a relative could be infected with the virus, down from about 7 in 10 just a month earlier.<\/p>\n
As has been the case throughout the pandemic, there is a wide partisan gap in Americans\u2019 views of pandemic risks. Among Democrats, 69% say they remain at least somewhat worried about being infected with the virus, compared with just 33% of Republicans.<\/p>\n
Despite the overall positive assessments of Americans, Biden\u2019s advisers are well aware that the next phase of his presidency is potentially trickier. Vaccination rates have slowed, and the administration is grappling with how to persuade those who are reluctant to get the shots about their safety and efficacy.<\/p>\n
Biden\u2019s legislative agenda for the rest of this year also faces obstacles on Capitol Hill. Republicans are resisting his calls for passing\u00a0a sweeping infrastructure package, and there\u2019s insufficient support among Democrats for overhauling\u00a0Senate rules\u00a0in a way that would allow the party to tackle changes to immigration policy, gun laws and voting rights on its own.<\/p>\n
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President Joe Biden speaks with the Interstate 10 Calcasieu River Bridge behind him, Thursday, May 6, 2021, in Lake Charles, La. (Photo: Alex Brandon, AP)<\/span><\/p>\n There are also potential warning signs emerging on the economy after a strong start to the year. A new government report out Friday showed\u00a0employers added just 266,000 jobs in April, sharply lower than in March and far fewer than economists had expected. The slowdown was attributed to a multitude of factors, including nearly 3 million people reluctant to look for work because they fear catching the virus. Some businesses \u2014 and Republican lawmakers \u2014 also argue that a $300-a-week jobless benefit, paid for by the federal government, is discouraging some of the unemployed from taking new jobs.<\/p>\n Biden, however, argued that the report is an indication that more federal spending is needed to help bolster the economy. He\u2019s pitched to Congress a $4 trillion package for spending on infrastructure, education and children, a measure many liberal Democrats say should be bigger and most Republicans argue is far too large.<\/p>\n \u201cWe never thought that after the first 50 or 60 days everything would be fine,\u201d Biden said after Friday\u2019s job report was released. \u201cThere\u2019s more evidence our economy is moving in the right direction. But it\u2019s clear we have a long way to go.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s unclear is whether the employment slowdown will continue or how it will impact Americans\u2019 views of Biden\u2019s handling of the economy. Ahead of Friday\u2019s new jobs numbers, his approval rating on the economy stood at a solid 57%.<\/p>\n Compared with Biden\u2019s approval ratings on the pandemic, there is a starker partisan divide in views of his handling of the economy. Nearly all Democrats, 91%, back his economic stewardship, while just 19% of GOP voters do.<\/p>\n While the pandemic and the economy have dominated Biden\u2019s early months in office, other significant issues loom.<\/p>\n Immigration in particular has become a growing concern for the White House as it grapples with an increase in migration, including by\u00a0unaccompanied minors, at the U.S. border with Mexico. Republicans have tried to tie the uptick to Biden\u2019s rollback of more stringent border policies enacted by his predecessor, Donald Trump.<\/p>\n Immigration is also among Biden\u2019s lowest-rated issues in the AP-NORC survey. Overall, 43% approve of his handling of the issue, while 54% disapprove.<\/p>\n The president also receives lower marks on gun policy, which has catapulted back to the forefront of the national debate following a string of\u00a0mass shootings\u00a0across the country. Americans are largely split over Biden\u2019s approach to the issue, with 48% approving and 49% disapproving.<\/p>\n The next phase of Biden\u2019s presidency is also likely to include more action on foreign policy. He announced that\u00a0all U.S. troops will withdraw from Afghanistan\u00a0by September, and American negotiators have resumed\u00a0discussions with Iran on a new nuclear agreement. The White House has also signaled that Biden may hold his first in-person meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin this summer.<\/p>\n Thus far, a slim majority of Americans, 54%, say they approve of Biden\u2019s foreign policy.<\/p>\n The AP-NORC poll of 1,842 adults was conducted April 29-May 3 using a sample drawn from NORC\u2019s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.<\/p>\n