While the United States has experienced a period of nearly unprecedented economic and cultural upheaval in the past two and a half years since President Joe Biden entered the Oval Office, most Americans are even more skeptical of the Republican party opposing him and his radical progressive agenda. In 2023, Republicans were trounced everywhere, losing ground in states like Virginia and New Jersey, where the party did exceptionally well in state legislative and gubernatorial elections just two years prior. Issues like abortion, early voting, and the reality that Democrats consistently outspend and out-motivate their voting base in comparison to the GOP continue to haunt the party every fall. Despite this, Biden remains unpopular among independents and currently experiences an extremely low approval rating.
Biden and the former 45th President Donald Trump remain deadlocked in a very tight contest which is set to occur in less than five calendar months. Biden reportedly obtains a slight edge over Trump; recent simulations conducted by Five Thirty-Eight show that Biden would win simulated contests against Trump 53% of the time. Despite these reports, Trump currently appears to maintain a narrow lead in several swing states, which will ultimately most likely decide the general election. Trump has also received some recent, rare sympathy from opponents politically and in the media after he was nearly assassinated while holding a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 16th. A young adult male gunman fired from a rooftop over one hundred yards away and miraculously issued Trump by a few inches. Horrifically, one rallygoer was killed by the wannabe assassin, and two others were critically injured.
Many issues are dominating the political cycle this time around, but one topic of discussion is that of foreign affairs. Republicans have claimed Biden has made America weaker, and two wars are ongoing. Trump recently signaled that he would not defend Taiwan from Chinese invasion, though, should he serve as president once again.
