It’s been just over a year since Joe Biden took office, and the reviews have been mixed. With Democratic majorities in both the Senate and House of Representatives, Biden has been able to deliver on many of his hallmark campaign promises, but has not received credit for many of these achievements.

Of these accomplishments, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is arguably Biden’s most impressive. Passing in the Senate with a vote of 69 to 30, it is the largest investment in American infrastructure in over a decade, with many drawing comparisons to Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal. The law is wide-ranging and provides major funding to improve America’s roads, bridges, railways and airports. It also invests in nontraditional infrastructures, such as broadband internet and electric vehicle charging. Improving infrastructure as a general idea is extremely popular among the American public, with 83 percent of the country in support, including 79 percent of Republicans. If this is the case, why is Biden’s approval rating so low?

President Biden’s approval rating started at 57 percent when he was elected, but has since slipped by over 10 points, reaching 40 percent at its lowest. This sharp drop in approval is puzzling, since Biden has kept his promises and been a relatively uncontroversial president. There is no reason why a president who has passed such popular legislation should himself have a rating so dismal.

Taking all of this into account, it has become clear that Biden’s biggest problem lies with his messaging. Despite passing multiple pieces of impactful legislation over the past year, many Americans are still unaware of many of his policies that greatly benefit them. It’s due to this poor messaging that Biden continues to be seen as a mediocre president. I believe that his achievements must be simplified and explained for the average American to understand.

As it stands now, Democrats are in serious trouble heading into the 2022 midterm elections. Throughout history, the party that wins the White House has consistently lost ground in the midterms. With this in mind, Democrats need to enter the midterms with the best possible odds. If President Biden wants his party to maintain control of the House of Representatives and Senate in 2022 onward, it’s vital that he improves his messaging, and fast.

Biden’s style of messaging differs strongly from that of former President Donald Trump. Despite your opinion of him, it is fair to say that one thing President Trump did well was messaging. As a former reality television host, Trump was well accustomed to the medium and always had a great screen presence. He used television to his advantage and greatly utilized the medium to spread his message, for better or for worse.

One easy way that Biden could improve his messaging is by holding more in-person televised press conferences. President Trump was known for holding press conferences almost daily regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. These press conferences effectively got his message across to the American people. As of Jan. 19, Biden had held only six press conferences over the first year of his presidency. His lack of press conferences is a big issue that has definitely contributed to his souring public image.

I believe that President Biden could also improve by running television advertisements touting his achievements. These advertisements would ideally highlight his legislation, such as COVID-19 relief and infrastructure, and simplify them so that average Americans are able to understand their benefits. These advertisements would allow the public to see how Biden’s policies impact their everyday life and make him seem more relatable and successful. Appealing to the public as he did during his election campaign might even help his approval rating as well.

Finally, I think that Biden would benefit from spreading his message in person. Biden and other notable figures in his administration should travel around the country, making stops in states across America to present their ideas directly to the public. This is something that Biden did during his 2020 presidential campaign, which proved to be very effective. Even during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans across the country came out in droves to see Biden speak when he visited their towns. This demonstrates the power of live events and the great impact that they can have on people. I believe that speaking directly to the American people with live events is the most effective form of messaging that Biden can utilize.

In my opinion, if Biden takes these key steps to improve his messaging, the Democratic Party will be in a much better position to win big in 2022. With just over eight months until the start of the 2022 midterms, the time is now for President Biden to make a major messaging change.

Michael Toscano is a freshman majoring in business administration.