Ukraine Is Biden’s Defining Issue, and His Biggest Economic Challenge

The shape of the war, and its effects on global markets, in the months and years to come could determine the president’s political fate. 

image from article: At the Group of 20 summit in Bali this month, Mr. Biden and his economic team pushed other policies to soften the war’s economic damage.Credit...Doug Mills/The New York Times

By Jim Tankersley, The New York Times, Nov. 29, 2022 Updated 12:19 p.m. ET

Jim Tankersley covered President Biden’s economic policy team at international summits in Cambodia and Indonesia this month. 

Excerpt: 

[Biden] has faced little domestic political pressure over his Ukraine decisions thus far. While the war has filled newscasts and commanded much of Mr. Biden’s time, including frequent speeches, it has not yet become an electoral wedge issue. Ukraine did not make the list of the top 60 topics of campaign advertisements nationwide in the midterm election cycle, according to data from AdImpact. 

But should Mr. Biden seek re-election, the economics of the war could play a large role. It could push up gas prices, which tend to affect the public’s view of the president. Stubbornly high food and energy inflation could prod the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates faster, and for longer, than officials currently forecast. That would slam the brakes on growth and raise the odds of recession.

Mr. Biden has repeatedly said those threats would not deter him from doing what he believed was right in Ukraine. ...

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