For the first time in more than two months, President Biden on Tuesday publicly uttered a word that he and other Democrats have largely abandoned: "Bidenomics."Why it matters: Republicans are now using the term — mockingly — far more than Democrats heading into the meat of the presidential campaign, even as the economy has improved under Biden.
After Axios asked the White House why Biden wasn't saying "Bidenomics" — including in his State of the Union address this month — he used the term at a Tuesday afternoon event in North Carolina.
"Bidenomics" mentions by congressional Democrats dropped during the fall and now have nearly disappeared, to less than a dozen a month.
But Republicans in Congress can't stop saying it: They've used "Bidenomics" nearly 500 times this month in their public statements, per Quorum.
The president's shift from "Bidenomics" is part of a broader move toward trying to energize his base ahead of the election, instead of trying to convince swing voters that the economy is better than what they tell pollsters.
Biden "will continue talking about Bidenomics, which is a sharp contrast with congressional Republicans, who are siding with special interests and the rich over middle-class families," White House spokesperson Michael Kikukawa said in a statement.