The Daily Scoop: The battle over ‘Bidenomics’ branding

The White House packaged its federal policy for President Joe Biden’s economic vision into one simple term: Bidenomics. The policy hangs on three key initiatives: make public investments, help workers and promote competition across industries to reduce consumer costs.

The White House put the Inflation Reduction Act, the Chips and Science Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act together under one umbrella term to form Bidenomics.

The Associated Press reported that Bidenomics represents Biden’s goal of ushering America into a new place with domestic manufacturing and bringing the country to compete economically to help lower consumer spending.

The White House noted that the “once in a generation” federal policy has generated over $500 billion in private investment going to the states, much of it in Republican-run congressional districts, according to The Associated Press.

“Even Republicans who voted against the bills are now vying for credit,” The Associated Press reported.

Why it matters: Bidenomics is an eye-grabbing, ear-enticing name that Dems are using to inspire voters. The name echoes another successful branding effort that is in common usage nearly 40 years later: Reaganomics.

Policy branding can simplify even the most complex ideas together into a single word that puts the president (and presidential candidate) front-and-center. But there can be drawbacks. The term Obamacare polarized people who didn’t like former President Barack Obama. But its official name, the Affordable Care Act carried less stigma, NPR reported. The dueling names confused people who didn’t realize they represented the same policy. A 2017 Morning Consult survey found that at the time, 80%of Republicans “strongly disapprove” of Obamacare, while roughly 60%“strongly disapprove” of the Affordable Care Act, NPR reported.

“Word choice matters,” Morning Consult’s Kyle Dropp told NPR.

Communicating policy is always complicated. Finding simple terminology can help these concepts stick in voters’ minds — or it can confuse the issue, as happened with Obamacare. Including the candidate’s name in a policy can help him take full credit, but it can also potentially saddle Biden’s name with criticism from the right.

It’s easy to say during a stump speech — to promote accomplishments or attack perceived failures from the other side.

“Democrats see the trio of bills — two of which also drew bipartisan support from Republicans — as their calling card to voters ahead of the 2024 election,” per The Associated Press. “For Republicans, many of whom voted against all three bills, Bidenomics is a powerful punchline about big government overreach.”

It will take time to see how successful this branding effort is. The ultimate answer won’t come until November 2024.

Editor’s Top Picks:

•     X, formerly known as Twitter, throttled some websites on Tuesday. The platform put a five-second delay on shortened links for competitor websites or platforms Elon Musk has criticized, including Facebook, the New York Times, Reuters, Bluesky and others, according to testing from the Washington Post.  After their story broke yesterday, the delay disappeared for some sites, the Post reported. X seems to do whatever it wants. Being inconsiderate and erratic never bodes well for users or brands who bear the brunt of that instability.
•     L’Eggo my liqueur? Eggo partnered up with Sugarland Distilling Co. to debut an Eggo Brunch in a Jar Sippin’ Cream ahead of National Waffle Day, Aug. 24. Kellogg Company said that the liqueur has a flavor of toasted Eggo waffles, bacon, maple syrup and butter. The drink is for parents to “L’Eggo and enjoy that ‘treat yourself’ feeling brunch evokes,” according to a Kellogg news release. While this drink might turn some off, the ingenious, albeit eccentric, drink is sure to capture media interest and virality on social media. Cheers.
•     Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife of 18 years, Grégoire Trudeau, separated. The couple’s marriage and their three children boosted the prime minister’s image, which, in part, helped him get elected in 2015. Now the public separation and an uncertain electorate are testing Trudeau’s personal brand. “The question now is how will they change the message, the packaging, now that it won’t be about Justin Trudeau in a relationship with his partner and their family,” University of Ottawa Political Science Professor Geneviève Tellier told the New York Times. The separation might create sympathy from Canadians for Trudeau. He’s being upfront about difficult issues and building a sense of relatability with stakeholders who can relate to marital issues.

Sherri Kolade is a writer at Ragan Communications. When she is not with her family, she enjoys watching Alfred Hitchcock-style films, reading and building an authentically curated life that includes more than occasionally finding something deliciously fried. Follow her on LinkedIn. Have a great PR story idea? Email her at sherrik@ragan.com.