Five reasons for Biden, GOP to be thankful this season

Thanksgiving marks a brief cease-fire from partisan warfare in Washington.

But the usual hostilities will resume soon enough. The midterm elections are less than a year away.

Here are five political reasons President BidenJoe BidenOvernight Health Care — Feds, military top 90 percent vaccine rate Cities prep security plans for large holiday crowds On The Money — Biden’s big plans for the Fed MORE can be thankful today — and five reasons for his GOP opponents to feel some gratitude, too.

Biden can be grateful for…

Vaccines

The nation’s battle against COVID-19 has not been won yet, but it has been transformed by the widespread availability of vaccines.

According to the latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), roughly 196 million Americans are now fully vaccinated and an additional 35 million have received at least one vaccine dose.

The extension of vaccine eligibility to young children has given some much-needed peace of mind to them and their parents. Meanwhile, nearly 40 million adults have received a booster dose.

COVID-19 is the issue on which Biden polls most strongly, for good reason.

His standing would be vastly different if the vaccines had not come on-stream when they did.

Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiBipartisan success in the Senate signals room for more compromise The GOP’s post-1/6 playbook is clear — and it’s dangerous China draws scrutiny over case of tennis star Peng Shuai MORE

It’s been a long and winding road, but Biden’s biggest legislative goals are within reach.

A major infrastructure bill has been signed into law, and the president’s even larger social spending measure has finally made it through the House.

In both cases, Biden owes a debt of thanks to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who is now almost three years into her second stint wielding the gavel.

Even Pelosi’s ideological opponents acknowledge her skills as an exemplary strategist and vote-counter. The first female Speaker ever, she has led House Democrats through almost two decades of enormous tumult.

Biden, relying on tiny congressional majorities, is lucky to have someone of such proven mettle by his side.

Job growth

The economy is still beset by problems, primarily inflation. But there are bright spots for the president, too — and one is job growth.

In June and July, the economy added approximately 1 million jobs per month. Growth slowed as summer turned to fall. But the latest figures showed employment growing again at a healthy clip, with the nation adding 531,000 jobs in October.

Biden didn’t get as much credit as he might have at some points during the year, partly due to flawed data. 

Jobs reports for August and September — panned at the time as mediocre — now appear to have significantly undercounted new employment.

New jobs in August, initially projected at a shockingly low 235,000, have been revised to 483,000 based on additional data. According to The Washington Post, it was “the biggest positive revision in…