Democrats find their inflation villains: Putin and Big Oil

Democratic strategists are happy with the new message and optimistic that it will at least stabilize their poll numbers and help their candidates.

“Every fight needs a villain, and right now, there’s no better one than Putin,” said Jefrey Pollock, a Democratic political consultant and pollster.

Privately, they say that linking gas prices to Putin and oil companies is the White House’s best option, though it’s hard to tell what will resonate in November.

Independent pollsters and analysts generally say that voters do seem willing to make sacrifices to help Ukraine and punish Russia, but are less likely to respond to Democrats’ attacks on Big Oil.