Joe Biden was the oldest president of the
United States and once the youngest senator. His ambitions and achievements
propelled him to take up the job of the presidency. He has always been trying to
run for the presidency, but time and fate hadn't favoured him. Joe Biden became the US 46th President in 2020 with a massive
victory in November 2020.
Before becoming the president of the United States,
he spent eight years as vice president from 2009 to 2017 under Barack Obama. As the VP, he focused on Foreign Policy and National Security, diplomacy, working with a divided Senate, and overseeing various legislation. Additionally, he was the man behind the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), a $787 billion stimulus package post-2008 crisis to bring back the American economy. Although,
his most notable career has been as a Senator for 36 years where he got elected
to the Senate at the age of 29 years. In the Senate, he served as the Chair of
both the Foreign Affairs and Judiciary Committees. He was also the Committee Chair
who oversaw the appointment of Justice Clarence Thomas.
Fact Finder- Joe Biden has never lost an election whenever he was on the ticket.
Biden Presidency
The victory of Joe Biden in the 2020
Presidential election came as no surprise. He became the President at a very
polarised time, with Donald Trump not accepting or conceding the 2020 election
results and refusing a peaceful transition of power. The new administration had
to take charge of everything from scratch during a difficult time. The
government had to overcome both domestic and international challenges amidst
the raging pandemic. This article is aimed at discussing achievements and the
pitfalls of the Biden Administration in its tenure starting from 2021.
Achievements
The first and foremost is the need to discuss
the context of the election of the Biden administration. The pandemic was at
its peak, vaccines were yet to hit the market, misinformation was at its peak,
and the deaths in the US due to the pandemic were extremely high due to lax
policies of the Trump Administration and the economic crisis that followed.
Biden
had an extraordinary victory, mainly riding on the mishandling of the pandemic
as well as the uncertain economic situation at that time. The pandemic killed
more people in the US than the Second World War, and many people in the US deny the existence of the pandemic in the first place. Hence, the main
achievement of Biden would be to bring back the US to normalcy, which it has
achieved in two years since 2021. Incentivising testing, vaccination and
supporting the fight against the Pandemic across the globe have been the key policies
of the administration at that time. Vaccine mandates and the misinformation
against taking vaccines were very controversial at that time. He passed the
COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to prevent attacks against Asian Americans during the
Pandemic.
The second important achievement and one of the
initial decisions taken by the administration was concerning the January 6th
insurrection, which was to punish the culprits and prevent such incidents from
taking place in future. A special bipartisan Congressional committee named Jan
6th was formed, representing equally from both Republicans and
Democrats. The Committee examined the incidents that happened on that day,
threats from both inside and outside the Capitol, the role of leaders including
ex-President Trump and his aides, hate speech, threats to life and death
chants to ex-VP Mike Pence and ex-Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The committee examined
the visuals from CCTV and testimonials to investigate the same.
Thirdly, the U.S. economy rebounded from
the recession due to the COVID-19 pandemic under Biden’s leadership. Over 12 million jobs
were created during his first two years, marking one of the fastest
recoveries in U.S. history. The stock market has hit a new high in 2024. The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Extension Act enhanced extended support for
Businesses that were affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Overturning the past bad decisions- The harmful
and ill-informed decisions taken under the Trump administration, such as the
Muslim travel ban, exit from the Paris Climate Accord, exit from the World Health
Organisation (WHO), exit from UNESCO, exit from the UNHRC, extensive support to
Israel and Saudi Arabia, etc., were all revoked. Biden Administration believes
that the USA can be carbon neutral within 2050 with a carbon-free electric grid
by 2035.
Legislative Achievements
Biden has been one of the most successful presidents
in recent times, with the highest legislative successes. This is despite the
massive polarisation among both parties and an extremely divided Congress.
Despite his moderate political views, he has been more progressive than many
contemporary progressive politicians. The following are his legislative successes. In
the first two years, the Congress was Democratic, and in the next two years,
it was Republican. Despite that, the number of laws passed is immense and
only rivalled Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson.
American Rescue Plan- This is a policy of the Biden
Administration in its initial days to rescue Americans from the pandemic.
This included incentives for businesses and stimulus for the people through paychecks.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act- This act
poured $1.2T into the US economy in the infrastructure sector which comprises
Highways, Clean Energy, Bridges, railways, and much more. This is the highest U.S.
federal govt. Spending in the infrastructure sector ever since the time of
Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower. This act will replace the crumbling infrastructure
in the US. Today, even many Republicans who never voted for the bill want to
claim credit for it. Biden himself, being a fan of trains, has poured the highest
amount into the Amtrak system.
The Inflation Reduction Act- the bipartisan act
was aimed at reducing the increasing prices. The focus has been on
switching from expensive and ailing fossil fuels to renewable energy, lowering
drug prices, improving tax collection and much more. The act came up as a
result of Senator Joe Manchin's opposition to certain provisions in the Build
Back Better Act. This bill will increase tax security, energy security, and
healthcare security overall. Additionally, this also enhanced the Child Tax
Credit, expanding the benefits to families with Children.
The Science and Chips Act- The bill was
designed to make the USA a science and tech manufacturing hub. How? Make the USA
competitive in semiconductors, AI, Quantum Computing, Biotechnology, and advanced
energy. This will help the USA now compete against its rival, China, in this
particular field. In the background of the tech cold war, such an investment
will be helpful for the USA. Additionally, it will create thousands of jobs in
the country. By 2023, it bore fruit in states like Ohio, Oregon, California,
New Mexico, etc.
Safer Communities Act- Gun Rights have always
been a matter of debate in American Politics. This act was aimed at enhancing
background checks for gun owners and enhancing mental health programmes for
people with disorders.
Postal Service Reform Act- Passed
to assist the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), and its workers and to expand its
infrastructure.
Besides, there are other acts
such as the PACT Act for enhancing schemes for the Veterans, the Violence
Against Women Act (VAWA) Reauthorization, the Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which
eases problems within the Shipping Industry and many more. 25th
September was the thirtieth anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act
(VAWA). President Joe Biden was the one who authored and championed the
legislation as a senator.
Foreign
Policy
The US President’s job involves largely framing and
shaping the country’s foreign policy. He appointed experienced diplomat Antony Blinken as the Secretary of State. Biden’s main set of achievements came in
the foreign policy segment. As we know, Biden was the Senate Chair for foreign
affairs before becoming the Vice President. Also, Biden has good experience
working with leaders like Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping under the Obama
administration. The biggest achievement of Biden since his campaign in
2020 has been reassuring the larger involvement of the USA in world affairs as an alternative to Trump’s isolation. Europe has been the biggest beneficiary of the
same.
Ukraine- Support for Ukraine has been the main
parameter by which Biden has been advancing pro-West and Rules-Based Order
values. Isolating Russia and uniting Europe against the adversary has been a
successful project that the US has always vouched for. The US is back as the
biggest backer of the EU’s policies on multiple issues, which benefits the USA. Through
the American policy on Ukraine, the West has been successful in isolating
Russia. US Congress today has provided more than $175 billion worth of aid, of
which $68 billion is for the military. This figure includes direct military
aid, economic assistance, and humanitarian support. Despite all the propaganda
on social media, most of the money stays in the USA, generating positive returns
for the US economy, while sending weapons to Ukraine. Only a fraction of the
entire money allotted actually goes to the Ukrainian government.
NATO- Many would have argued a few years back
that the US’ hold is weakening and NATO is getting irrelevant, but today NATO is
more relevant, stronger, and united than ever. Most importantly, NATO is
expanding due to the wrong actions of Russia, and even Finland and Sweden have
joined the alliance. Today there is a much more favourable opinion in
favourable of USA under Biden from Europeans than the USA under Trump. On the
75th anniversary of NATO, the Washington Summit saw a very strong
message that NATO is stronger than ever, which was hosted by President Biden. This
was a grand success, attended by newly elected Keir Starmer and newly joined
member Sweden. They also elected Mark Rutte as the new Secretary General of
NATO.
Climate Change- One of the first decisions
Biden took after taking charge was to rejoin the Paris Climate Deal. Earlier, Trump had walked back on several of the US’ commitments to fight against
Climate Change, which has drastically changed under this administration. This
will also mean that the US is back as the frontrunner on the same.
Indo-Pacific- In recent years, Indo-Pacific has
been the buzzword in Geopolitics. Biden has rightly taken forward the importance
given by the Trump Administration to this region and also followed Obama’s
Pivot to Asia Foreign Policy, focusing more on Asia than the Middle East. Countering
China in the region and focusing on Freedom of Navigation in Open Seas
(FONOPS).
QUAD, or the Quadrilateral Alliance between the
US, Australia, Japan, and India, has been created to counter the rise of China
in the larger Indo-Pacific Region. Although QUAD did not start under President
Biden, the current administration has been instrumental in taking forward this
initiative as part of its foreign policy agenda. He held the first Leaders’ Summit
in 2021 which continues as an Annual Summit. Quad Vaccine Partnership was
launched to provide up to one billion COVID-19 vaccines to Indo-Pacific nations
by the end of 2022
AUKUS- The Biden Administration has been
effective in creating a trilateral security alliance between Australia, the UK
and the US to collaborate on nuclear technology. This collaboration is on nuclear-powered submarines and not exactly on nuclear weapons. Hence, this will
improve the capabilities of the Australian Navy and challenge Chinese dominance
in the Pacific region. A big flipside
has been the sidelining of France, which already was part of an old alliance-
ANZUS and had a contract with Australia on nuclear-powered submarines, which it
gave up when it signed with AUKUS. France was not informed in advance about the
AUKUS deal and the subsequent cancellation of the submarine contract, which
created a diplomatic rift between France and the AUKUS countries.
Israel- Since the Oct 7 attack in Israel, Biden
has been a staunch supporter of Israeli retaliation to Hamas but at the same
time he has been liberal in giving support to the Palestinians in the form of
aid, funds, diplomatic help and much more. Till now, the US Congress has given.
Even the most recent ceasefire has been
attributed to the Biden Administration. However, many Israeli critics also
blame Biden for enabling war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. This
has not only affected him internationally but also domestically, disenfranchising his own voters.
I2U2- This is a quadrilateral alliance of
India, Israel, USA, and UAE. It is also known as the West Asian QUAD. The four
countries work together on multiple domains, mainly in civilian areas such as
climate change, clean energy, food security, technology, etc. India has been
the biggest recipient of this, as the USA, Israel, and UAE are trying to invest
a lot in India. This initiative can be seen as the USA’s realignment for the West
Asian region.
Taiwan- Ever since the end of World War II, the
Republic of China has been a close ally of the USA. Since the recognition of the
People’s Republic of China, the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 has governed relations between both countries. All the administrations since then have
provided aid and support to the Government of Taiwan to prevent it from being annexed
by China. The Congressional Delegation led by Nancy Pelosi in 2022 has been the most notable US-Taiwan collaboration. How far the USA is ready to help Taiwan has been a question looming for years. Hence, Biden has been instrumental in supporting Taipei to stand up against Beijing. Trump, in a recent interview, claimed that Taiwan should not receive any aid and defence support, as the US should not be seen as an insurance company. Biden continued the exercises in the Taiwan Strait for Freedom of
Navigation in the region. Similarly, the USA has opted to support Taiwan in semiconductor supply chain resilience. The USA believes in the independent
existence of Taiwan and that it should be protected from China at all costs.
India-US relations- There has been a massive
improvement in the same. Despite both countries having seen improving relations
since the Bush administration, the relations have never been as good as it's
now. Even during the Trump administration, India was threatened by CAATSA
sanctions and tariffs. Biden invited PM Modi for a state visit, which is the
highest diplomatic offering possible, and called for a joint address of the US
Congress. Additionally, both countries are engaged in technological sharing and
are part of multiple alliances. Biden Administration believes in the same and
has actively worked for that. The US also played a pivotal role in the formation of the India-Middle East Corridor (IMEC) during the 2023 G20 Summit.
China- Compared to the Trump rhetoric of taking
China head-on, Biden has been trying to contain and rival China instead of
escalating the situation. However, Biden has continued to follow most of
Trump’s policies on China, such as containment and tariffs. There is no evidence
to suggest that Biden is any softer on China than Trump. Hence, whether it be the
Democratic or Republican Administration in Congress or White House, both will
continue to be hawkish on China. Moreover, the US is trying to limit China's access to Western Technology and impose 100% tariffs on Chinese-manufactured EVs
Besides, Biden did extensive work to Free
Americans from Russian Prisons in the largest USA-Russia prison swap since the Cold
War. Also, he tried his best to waive the student loan debt but was not
successful as SCOTUS had overturned it multiple times. Also, for the first time
since 1932, the ruling party did their best performance for the midterms
despite predictions of a Red Wave.
Failures of the Biden Administration
No President’s term is free of failures
and controversies. Hence, Biden’s single term was also marred by a lot of
controversies and several policy failures. As far as domestic policy is
concerned, Inflation has been the biggest obvious phenomenon which grabbed the
headlines throughout the term. Even though inflation has been record-low since
2020, high prices of groceries are still pinching families.
The biggest and most talked-about issue of this
government can be said to be the hasty pull-out of troops from Afghanistan.
Even though the Doha Agreement would have pulled out all the troops, the extent
of its management was up to the Biden Administration. With the hasty decisions
and overestimating local support, US plans failed as the Taliban took control
of Kabul within hours of US withdrawal. The Afghan army which was supposed to
deal with the problem, gave up without fighting. All this contributed to a massive
policy failure on the side of Afghans and the US administration. But on the
question of whether this is a problem that Biden created, not truly, because this
would have been the same under any president. Afghan withdrawal would have been
chaotic under Trump as well.
Support for Ukraine, although it saw massive
enthusiasm initially, has started to fade in both Europe and the USA. Most of
the Republicans and a handful of Democrats are refusing to continue to provide
monetary support to Ukraine. The situation across the globe has slowed American
public support for this war.
Additionally, even though the USA has united the West in the case of
both Israel and Ukraine, countries of the East and Middle East have taken
either a neutral or pro-Russia stance. Many Americans and people across the
globe are angry at the USA for prolonging the war or increasing the suffering. Also,
countries of the Global South, mainly in Asia and Africa, were reluctant to sever
ties with Russia and stop buying oil and weapons from Russia. Additionally,
China, Iran and North Korea have ganged up with Russia to counter the American
Rules-Based Global Order. The fears of sanctions have also forced a lot of countries
to rethink putting all their reserves in US Dollars and instead try to diversify.
The Middle East has been largely peaceful (aka no war; not intended as perpetual peace) since
2020. The Biden Administration was trying its best to extend the Abrahamic
Accords to Saudi Arabia as well. Israel-Palestine conflict extended after the
October 7th 2023, attack. In order to destroy Hamas and seek revenge,
Israel invaded Gaza for the first time in 2005. With 40,000 dead, there is no
sign of this invasion ending. For the past year, students on American Campuses,
Arab-Americans, and a few Democrats have been unhappy with both Biden and
Harris for their stance on the issue, which recklessly arms Israel and does not take
into account various war crimes.
Immigration has also seen massive controversy in
the past year. Biden administration for four years was trying its best to address
the root causes of immigration from Latin American countries. Kamala Harris was
in charge of leading the delegation to these respective countries. The borders
were closed during the COVID-19 Pandemic under Title 42. In March 2023, Title
42 was lifted followed by which saw massive illegal migration flowing to the
United States via Southern Border. This was also backed by the perception that the
Biden Administration is more lenient on immigration. After massive outrage
within the country, especially from opponents like Trump, Biden decided to pass
an executive order which stopped giving asylum to those immigrants who cross
the border illegally. By then, there was a smaller number of immigrants crossing
into the US. Before this, the administration tried its best to pass one of the strongest
Bipartisan Border Security Bills in history. Because Trump felt that Immigration was
one strong area of his campaign, he had asked the GOP congressmen not to vote
for the same, prolonging the crisis.
To what extent the reversal of Trump’s
decisions was successful is quite hard to assess, as Biden is still hard on China, the
tariff imposed continues and is hurting the American Economy, the support for
Israel is still very much evident, and nothing has been done on the embassy in
Jerusalem; moreover, stitching back the JCPOA agreement of 2015 has not been done
yet despite multiple opportunities arising. The Iranian regime has become harder-line
ever since moderate Hassan Rouhani left Office.
Biden’s Exit
Joe Biden, like any other president, was eager to
seek a re-election. He had tried multiple times to be in the race for decades,
but it was only in 2020 that he became the President. His health had significantly deteriorated in the past three years of his presidency, which became pretty evident in 2024. After the first
Presidential Debate on 26th June 2024, his age, ability to handle
the job and, most importantly, his narrowing path to victory became a matter of
concern. Finally, a month later, he dropped out of the race and nominated his
Vice President, Kamala Harris, to be the Democratic Presidential Candidate and be
the successor to his legacy. By doing this, he made sure his track record of
winning every election whenever he was on the ticket remained intact. He is leaving the post of the presidency with a mixed bag of promises yet to be fulfilled and partially completed.
Entry of Kamala Harris
Being his Vice President, she brought in the experience and
legacy. At the same time, his failures and mishaps were also a burden.
Moreover, she was unfamiliar to many Independent and Undecided voters, which are
crucial parts of the election. Now, Kamala Harris is taking on Donald Trump
with much more favourable numbers. However, the victory of either candidate
this year is not possible without winning one state in the Rust Belt. Being
from Pennsylvania, Joe Biden had much more grip on the Rust Belt. However, for
Kamala Harris, she has a better chance in the Sun Belt States. Ideally, she
can reach the white house comfortably if she manages to win Michigan,
Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, as well as at least one state among Georgia,
Nevada, and Arizona. The importance of Nebraska’s Second Congressional District
has also risen if the Democrats want to avert a tie.
Roe v. Wade was the biggest issue that has
grabbed headlines ever since 2022, after SCOTUS overturned it. It is also
a big issue in the 2024 elections as well. Besides Trump, a few Republicans
have called for a federal abortion ban, which has created more fear in liberal circles. On the flip side,
Kamala Harris has promised to codify the same, but this will require Congressional support. Reproductive rights have been the most important campaign
slogan of all the Democrats.
Do Democrats deserve the White House again?
Biden ideally represents an average American voter- a moderate, working-class, and Catholic Christian. In 2020, the main reason behind his success was the coalition building of a unique set of voters. He was able to bring together the Democratic Party along with a segment of Anti-Trump Republicans, which was the path to his election. Similarly, a lot of swing voters in 2020 were from the suburbs, and some even stood with Democrats in 2022. In 2024, Democrats have tried to broaden the coalition to a wider Democratic+Anti-Trump Republicans+Suburban women coalition.
Democrats were highlighting the consequences of a Trump second term. They believe that Trump's victory will break the US system, leading to isolationism, bringing back the era of high tariffs, rolling back immigration and keeping itself away from world affairs (the 19th-century
American Worldview). Europe wants a strong USA. So are its allies, Taiwan,
Australia, Japan, Israel, Ukraine, India, and many others. Democrats need to convey more about their achievements to the people through efficient communication, instead of shying away from the fact that Biden is an old man and the fact that Progressives hate his stance on Israel.
Do they deserve the White House again? People in America will decide soon in November.
Conclusion
Unlike the top-rated Presidents who have had multiple terms, Biden only had a single term to prove his calibre. The accomplishments he has achieved are immense for a single-term President. Whether it be legislative achievements, foreign policy, or other promises he made.
In 2020, many people believed he would be a transitional President. Beating this popular thought, Biden tried to seek re-election. But eventually, at the 11th hour, he had to give up his power and ambition for a greater cause. Handing over the torch to Vice President Harris and running mate Tim Walz, he changed the course of the democratic party without damaging the coalition Biden built in 2020.
On the policy front, with over 50 years of contributing to the country by being part of both Congress and the White House, he will remain one of the most experienced political leaders in the USA and the world.
Note: This article is the author's compilation on the topic, which is designed to improve the reader's knowledge on the topic rather than promote or demote a viewpoint.
Here's a book on Joe Biden. Here's a Book, he himself authored.
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