Joe Biden has mastered the art of quiet presidenting

The MAGA crowd didn't see this one coming. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a quiet victory of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Must-Reads - Biden’s [economy]( drives in the fast lane. - SpaceX marks [a new era]( for methane. - Steve Mnuchin put the [NYCB]( out of pain. - Chinese shoppers think [the iPhone]( is lame. I Stan a Humble King The formula for 99% of viral TikTok trends goes something like this: One person takes a verb or a noun and then slaps an adjective or adverb in front of it. Most of the time, these made-up terms stem from anecdotes, not numbers. So while catchy phrases like “quiet luxury,” “loud budgeting” and “chaotic working” sound pleasing, a lot of it is just [trendbait]( — another newfangled term that shouldn’t need to exist. But what if our trends were backed by actual metrics? If that were the case, maybe quiet presidenting would be a thing. Bloomberg Opinion’s [deep dive]( into the data finds that Biden has quietly outperformed Trump on a number of fronts — though you might not know it, considering the MAGA crowd’s preference for, uh, [louder tactics](: Tonight, Biden will take the stage to deliver his third [State of the Union]( address. It’s a rare instance where we see the president actively trying to convince the American people that he’s done a pretty good job. I say “rare” because Biden doesn’t usually flaunt his resume. He’s a doer, not a talker — the [antithesis]( of Trump’s erratic [AMERICA FIRST]( bravado. If the 2024 election hinged on what Biden has done (to help the economy, to increase green spending, to curb crime) then you’d expect winning a second term to be a cakewalk. But his dismal poll numbers paint him in the opposite light: He is weighed down by the legacy of Covid-era inflation and [doubts]( about his age. “No sitting president with a similar approval rating — 38% [according]( to Gallup — has ever gotten reelected,” Nia-Malika Henderson [writes](. Is that unpopularity an accurate reflection of his performance? Just like all those superfluous TikTok trends, dissatisfied voters are being spoon-fed stories about Biden’s [personal gaffes](, yet it’s unclear whether those blunders hurt America’s bottom line. In an effort to remedy that, our columnists, data viz editors and [video]( producers have meticulously charted how the president’s tenure stacks up against his predecessors. There’s no way I can squeeze all of it in one measly newsletter, so please read [the whole thing]( — it’s free! — but here’s a taste: Most elections hinge on the economy (cough, cough [Taylor Swift](), so why not start there? Biden added 14.8 million jobs over the first three years of his term, which Karl Smith [notes]( is a historical record. While Allison Schrager [says]( he will have a tough time improving on Trump’s wage growth record, he does have a good chance of beating the former president on income inequality. Those wage inequities are narrowing at a time when American households are wealthier and in better financial shape than ever before, [according]( t0 Robert Burgess. The stock market, in the meantime, is popping off: “The S&P 500 Index has returned about 45%, more than double the total returns of the rest of the world’s developed-market equities,” [writes]( Jonathan Levin. And although everyone from the [Cookie Monster]( to [Walmart]( has been angrily waving their fists over inflation, Matthew Winkler [says]( big price increases are finally in the rear-view mirror. Speaking of big increases: Biden spent $303 billion last year on the US energy transition alone — a record and two-thirds higher than before he entered office, by Liam Denning’s [calculations](. While it’s a solid start, we need that tab to climb to something closer to $1 trillion a year if we want to have a shot at reaching net-zero by 2050. Biden’s efforts to help the climate through the Inflation Reduction Act’s subsidies may not be lost on voters, [two-thirds]( of whom worry about our increasingly chaotic climate (hello, [Dune](!). In fact, Mark Gongloff [says]( a new [study]( suggests anxiety about global warming might be what kept Donald Trump from a second term in the White House in 2020, and it could deny him again this year. Health care is another hot-button issue that most Americans aren’t feeling great about. (See: [this guy](, who’s using TikTok to pay for his hospital bills.) But Lisa Jarvis [says]( access to affordable health care is Biden’s crowning achievement. “The number of uninsured Americans hit an all-time low of 7.2% in the second quarter of 2023, while the number of people who signed up for an Obamacare plan for 2024 surged to 21.3 million,” she writes. Although this is fabulous news for those of us who don’t have enough followers on Instagram to [crowdsource medical advice](, there is a caveat: “Some of the voracious appetite for marketplace plans in 2023 likely came from the millions of people who lost access to public insurance last year,” she writes. None of this is to say that Biden is perfect — he is not by a long shot. The situation at the border is the most obvious area where he’s fallen short. Despite his 500 immigration-related [executive actions](, James Gibney [says]( border encounters between ports of entry are near a record high as Republicans derail bipartisan legislation in the Senate. “Until that logjam is broken, the US immigration system and the border it defends will remain a disaster beyond repair,” he writes. But on the whole, Biden’s quiet victories point to a president who has led this nation with integrity and thoughtfulness at a time when integrity and thought are in short supply. No matter what he says at tonight’s State of the Union, that’s something to keep in mind. Bonus Biden Watching: Want to hear more from the columnists? Earlier today, Jonathan Levin joined Matthew Winkler and Allison Schrager for a live discussion about presidential metrics. Watch on [YouTube]( or [X](. Further Reading Free read: Here’s [a powerful tool]( to keep Big Oil accountable for the climate. — Michael R. Bloomberg IVF is a critical [fertility treatment](. Protecting it will require bipartisanship. — Bloomberg’s editorial board Steven Mnuchin’s [$1 billion boost]( for NYCB is no guarantee of survival. — Paul J. Davies The Great Resignation has given way to [the Big Stay](. — Jonathan Levin Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s [election budget]( will please almost no one. — Mohamed A. El-Erian Japan’s alcohol makers are growing tired of high-octane, [ready-to-drink]( cocktails. — Gearoid Reidy Apple’s reputation for having the next [hot innovation]( is waning. — Dave Lee Why do women often experience way worse [long Covid]( symptoms? — Lisa Jarvis Perhaps the highest form of philanthropy is [a for-profit company]( run by Elon Musk. — Matt Levine ICYMI TikTok is treating [Ozempic side effects](. The exes who [froze embryos]( and regret it. When Caitlin Clark’s in town, [the fans show up](. China wants to “[delete America](” from its tech. Trump got endorsed by [a stone-cold loser](. Kickers Would you buy [a bag]( made of air? [Rice pudding]( deserves more respect. Apply to become [a NASA astronaut](! (h/t Lisa Jarvis) AMC [lied to us]( about Nicole Kidman. This vegan [donut coverup]( is an outrage. Notes: Please send air bags and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. 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