But immediate political rewards for Biden and Democrats were less apparent. As Biden worked to get the infrastructure bill and the still-in-the-works $1.75 trillion social safety net package through Congress with slim Democratic majorities, confronting months of legislative logjam, his approval rating tumbled.

Americans are grappling with inflation, supply chain disruptions and a still-ongoing pandemic, and the promise of new bridges and lead pipe replacements in the years to come may not change the public sentiment anytime soon, pollsters and strategists say. Still, the midterm elections, typically a referendum on the party in power, are a year away.

“It does stop the bleeding for the administration, but there’s still real work to be done to repair the damage that’s been done over the past several months and how Americans overall feel about the president,” said Jeff Horwitt, a Democratic pollster who co-conducts the NBC News poll. “This legislation matters, it’s really important, but the White House is still explaining what this means and trying to break through.”