The Point: This was the week Democrats realized how bad 2022 is going to get

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April 29, 2022 | by Chris Cillizza, Shania Shelton and Rachel Janfaza

This was the week Democrats realized how bad 2022 is going to get

For months now, one thing has been pretty clear: Democrats are headed for an absolutely brutal midterm election unless something BIG changes and QUICKLY.

But this week felt like the moment when Democrats -- from President Joe Biden on down -- realized just how bad things look out there.

Consider these two headlines, which ran on CNN on Thursday and Friday, respectively:

1. "After Build Back Better's collapse, Democrats still struggling with how to message the midterms"

2. "A frustrated Joe Biden will go on the attack against Republicans in the midterms -- and into 2024"

The tale told by those two stories is of a Democratic Party that lacks the votes to revive its signature piece of legislation (Build Back Better) and lacks the initiative or will -- at least at present -- to coalesce around an agreed-upon message that they can sell to the American public.

That lack of direction couldn't come at a worse time for Democrats.

The news this week that the gross domestic product fell at an annualized rate of 1.4% between January and March -- a stark reversal from the 6.9% GDP growth that the US recorded in the final quarter of 2021 -- was an absolute gut punch to a party and an administration desperately trying to convince the public that the economy is strengthening.

And on Friday came word that the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, a measure the the Federal Reserve looks at to gauge inflation, had increased by 6.6% for the year ending in March. That was the biggest increase in 40 years.

All of this lands as Biden remains mired in the low 40s in polling. According to Gallup, an average of 41% of Americans approved of Biden's job performance in the first quarter of 2022.

There is, of course, still time for the political environment to shift. (The election is less than 200 days away.)

But major shifts -- particularly in how people perceive the relative strength or weakness of the economy -- take time. And there's no sign of a turnaround right now.

The Point: 2022 was always going to be a tough election for Democrats given the narrowness of their House and Senate majorities. But the way the year has played out -- and the seeming lack of any clear message from Democrats -- could well foretell an absolute washout for their side.

-- Chris

TRIVIA TIME!

Which president was elected to a second term after suffering a heart attack? (Answer below.)

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"This is a President who has used the expression 'Not a joke, folks' more than he has told actual jokes."

-- Jeff Nussbaum, a former White House speechwriter, said ahead of President Joe Biden's speech at the White House Correspondents' Dinner this weekend.

FRIDAY ON THE SOCIALS

1. You'll want to read the Mark Meadows-Sean Hannity texts

2. Are Democrats ready for someone new in '24?

3. The GOP takes a generic ballot lead

4. Senate Democrats have a singalong

5. Elon Musk's Twitter obsession

6. Another Jeopardy! super-champ emerges

CHRIS' GOOD READS

Covering the White House isn't as great as it once was, according to Politico.

Did the White House Correspondents' Dinner ruin the Democratic Party? This piece in Rolling Stone argues it did.

David Brooks writes in The New York Times of the seven lessons Democrats need to learn -- and fast.

What, exactly, is the House Freedom Caucus these days? Politico explores.

The New Yorker on the Elizabeth Moss' on-screen darkness.

Yes! I ❤️ this. The Ringer's winners and losers from the first round of the NFL Draft.

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

Paul McCartney singing along with John Lennon's voice on "I've Got a Feeling." So good.

THE WEEK IN FIVE LINES

Here are the must-read lines from a top story each day this week.

Monday

Mark Meadows' 2,319 text messages reveal Trump's inner circle communications before and after January 6: "The vast trove of texts offers the most revealing picture to date of how Trump's inner circle, supporters and Republican lawmakers worked behind the scenes to try to overturn the election results and then reacted to the violence that effort unleashed at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021."

Tuesday

$10,000 per day contempt fines against Trump begin Tuesday, NY judge rules: "Former President Donald Trump will be fined thousands of dollars beginning Tuesday for failing to comply with a subpoena from the New York attorney general, a state judge ruled. In a three-page written order, Judge Arthur Engoron formalized the reasoning behind his decision made Monday in open court when he held Trump in contempt and said he would fine him $10,000 per day."

Wednesday

American Trevor Reed released from Russia: "The release ended a nearly three-year ordeal for Reed, who was sentenced to nine years in prison in July 2020 for endangering the 'life and health' of Russian police officers in an altercation. Reed and his family have denied the charges against him."

Thursday

Oklahoma lawmakers pass 6-week abortion ban modeled after Texas law that allows civil enforcement: "The 'Oklahoma Heartbeat Act,' Senate Bill 1503, would prohibit abortions at the time when a physician can detect early cardiac activity in an embryo or fetus, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy -- before many women even know that they are pregnant. The measure provides exceptions for medical emergencies."

Friday

White House braces for potential showdown between Biden and Putin at G20: "President Joe Biden and his advisers are still in conversations about how to approach November's Group of 20 summit, whose hosts received confirmation Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to attend."

ONE BIG NUMBER

The House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol will hold eight hearings in June, according to Chairman Bennie Thompson.

TRIVIA TIME ANSWER

Dwight Eisenhower suffered a heart attack in 1955 and was reelected in 1956.