Among independents, however, Biden is about as unpopular as Trump was at this stage in his presidency. An average of only 39 percent of independents approved of Biden’s performance in the three polls taken between Sept. 18 and 26 that made data available for those voters; 52 percent disapproved. Trump’s comparable numbers among independents in three polls taken between Sept. 22 and 27, 2017, were 38 percent approval and 50 percent disapproval. That means Biden’s minus-13 net job approval among independents is statistically identical to Trump’s minus-12.

This symmetry continues even if we include other polls that were worse for each president. Biden’s net job approval among independents in the most recent Economist/YouGov poll, which was taken between Sept. 26 and 28, dropped from minus-15 in the prior week to minus-22. If we replace the previous Economist/YouGov poll with this new data, Biden’s net approval among independents drops to minus-15. Similarly, if we add a Quinnipiac poll from September 21 to 26, 2017, to Trump’s average, his net job approval rating with independents drops to minus-16.

Now consider the context of the Trump polls: They were taken only five weeks after the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, where neo-Nazis and white supremacists shocked the nation’s conscience. Controversial Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon had been fired only one month before the polls.