Opinion | For a Biden desperate to beat Trump in 2024, it’s still the economy, stupid

Last week, Biden welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington in an effort to provide further support for Kyiv. A year ago, on his last visit, Zelensky received a standing ovation in Congress – before having uttered a single word. Democrats and Republicans alike could hardly contain their enthusiasm. Comparisons with Winston Churchill, the prime minister who led Britain during World War II, made the rounds.

But when Zelensky gave a speech in the US recently, it was not in Congress but at the National Defence University. It’s a reflection of how the United States’ attention has shifted as scepticism towards aid for Ukraine advances among Republican Party lawmakers and American voters.

In a recent Gallup poll, most Republican voters and 44 per cent of independent voters believe the US was “doing too much” to help Ukraine. The view is growing even among Democrat voters.

Given how much of a coin toss the next election could be, the contrast between the rising American scepticism and Biden’s public efforts in Washington is apparent.

Yet Biden seems oblivious to both the lessons of the past and the changes occurring. Yes, many Americans once considered liberalism or neoconservatism on the global stage a noble commitment. But as the 2016 election showed, a large part of the population has fallen for an “America first” doctrine in which neo-isolationism is the order of the day.