There's a lot of truth to that. The human brain has a remarkable ability to forget traumatic events as a coping mechanism. And 2020 was an extremely traumatic national event. It wasn't just Covid. We had George Floyd and the whole Black Lives Matter movement. And, oh by the way, we damned near went to war with Iran after droning the head of the IRGC.
But that's not to say that those suppressed memories can't be recovered.
The only reason to advertise this far ahead of a November election is to define yourself or your opponent. But these candidates are already well-defined.
You're right that anything that tries to talk up the status quo is a waste, because the status quo will change between now and November (whether for good or ill remains to be seen).
I hate to tell you . . . and I really do hate to say this, because I abhor this type of cynicism in politics . . . but this is not going to be a positive election focusing on Biden's accomplishments. This is going to be a very negative campaign.
And that is very good (albeit intensely cynical) politics. Because while there is no conclusive evidence that negative campaigning helps the candidate undertaking the mudslinging (or hurts him/her due to an anti-negativity backlash), there is conclusive evidence that negative campaigning reduces turnout. And that's what Biden and the Democrats have to want right now. As reflected in the midterms and every special election, Democrats excel in low-turnout races. That's because Democratic voters are (1) more educated, and (2) super-pissed about things like abortion.
Biden has low approval ratings. That's just how it's going to be. But if he can convince marginal voters "they both suck, I don't want to vote for either of them," then that's probably a win for him.
So buckle up, folks--we're probably going to see the most negative presidential election in our lifetimes.