Joe Biden's Approval Rating Falls to Lowest It's Been in Months in New Poll

President Biden's approval rating has fallen to its lowest level since mid-January, according to a new survey.

The Premise poll of 2,116 U.S. adults, conducted between March 4 and 7, found just 38 percent approve of the president's performance in office, with 52 percent disapproving.

There is growing speculation over whether Biden will seek a second term in office in 2024. This could set up a highly charged rematch against former president Donald Trump. In February, first lady Jill Biden dropped a strong hint that her husband could run again. She told Associated Press that "he's not finished what he started, and that's what I think's important."

However, according to election website FiveThirtyEight, the Premise poll is the first time Biden has recorded approval of 38 percent or below since January. During that month, a Pew Research Center survey of 5,152 American adults, conducted between January 18 and 24, also gave Biden a 38 percent approval rating.

Biden hasn't recorded a positive net approval rating since August 2021, when a sharp drop in his popularity coincided with the botched U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

In further bad news for the president, the Premise survey showed that 49 percent of Americans think the current state of the U.S. economy is "poor." Only 14 percent of respondents believe it's "good," with just three percent for "excellent."

The poll also found Biden would lose the popular vote in a presidential race against either Trump or Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, by 44 percent to 41 percent, and 37 percent to 36 percent respectively. In both cases, the remainder of the voters said they were unsure about whom they would back.

Biden is due to deliver his budget in Philadelphia later on Thursday. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will announce his plans will reduce the federal deficit by nearly $3 trillion.

Speaking on Wednesday, she said: "The president's budget, which we will release tomorrow, will cut the deficit by nearly $3 trillion over the next 10 years. That's nearly a $6 trillion difference between the president's budget and congressional Republicans' agenda, which would add $3 trillion to the debt."

As part of this package, Biden is expected to raise taxes on Americans earning over $400,000 a year, to prevent the Medicare program facing a funding crisis.

In January, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said it is "critical" that Congress votes to "increase or suspend the debt limit."

However, some House Republicans have said that they will oppose this, unless the Biden administration agrees to major federal spending cuts. This sparked fears of another 2011 government shutdown if the two parties can't reach a deal.

Biden could also face a battle with sections of his own party over plans to toughen rules on irregular migrants. Democratic Senators Bob Menendez and Alex Padilla have told Newsweek they oppose the plans.