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Presidency of Joe Biden

Joe Biden's tenure as the 46th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2021.[1][2] Biden, a Democrat from Delaware who previously served as vice president for two terms under President Barack Obama, took office following his victory in the 2020 presidential election over Republican incumbent president Donald Trump. Upon his inauguration, he became the oldest president in American history, breaking the record set by Ronald Reagan. Biden entered office amid the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, and increased political polarization.[3]

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of the Joe Biden presidency.

Cabinet

On the first day of his presidency, Biden made an effort to revert President Trump's energy policy by restoring U.S. participation in the Paris Agreement and revoking the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. He also halted funding for Trump's border wall, an expansion of the Mexican border wall.[4] On his second day, he issued a series of executive orders to reduce the impact of COVID-19, including invoking the Defense Production Act of 1950, and set an early goal of achieving one hundred million COVID-19 vaccinations in the United States in his first 100 days.[5]


Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill that temporarily established expanded unemployment insurance and sent $1,400 stimulus checks to most Americans in response to continued economic pressure from COVID-19.[6] He signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a ten-year plan brokered by Biden alongside Democrats and Republicans in Congress, to invest in American roads, bridges, public transit, ports and broadband access.[7] Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, making Juneteenth a federal holiday in the United States. He appointed Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court—the first Black woman to serve on the court. After The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Biden took executive actions, such as the signing of Executive Order 14076, to preserve and protect women's health rights nationwide, against abortion bans in Republican led states. Biden proposed a significant expansion of the U.S. social safety net through the Build Back Better Act, but those efforts, along with voting rights legislation, failed in Congress. However, in August 2022, Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, a domestic appropriations bill that included some of the provisions of the Build Back Better Act after the entire bill failed to pass. It included significant federal investment in climate and domestic clean energy production, tax credits for solar panels, electric cars and other home energy programs as well as a three-year extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies. Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act, bolstering the semiconductor and manufacturing industry, the Honoring our PACT Act, expanding health care for US veterans, and the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act. In late 2022, Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act, which repealed the Defense of Marriage Act and codified same-sex and interracial marriage in the United States. In response to the debt-ceiling crisis of 2023, Biden negotiated and signed the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, which restrains federal spending for fiscal years 2024 and 2025, implements minor changes to SNAP and TANF, includes energy permitting reform, claws back some IRS funding and unspent money for COVID-19, and suspends the debt ceiling to January 1, 2025.[8] Biden established the American Climate Corps and created the first ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. On September 26, 2023, Joe Biden visited a United Auto Workers picket line during the 2023 United Auto Workers strike, making him the first US president to visit one.


The foreign policy goal of the Biden administration is to restore the US to a "position of trusted leadership" among global democracies in order to address the challenges posed by Russia and China. In foreign policy, Biden completed the withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Afghanistan, declaring an end to nation-building efforts and shifting U.S. foreign policy toward strategic competition with China and, to a lesser extent, Russia.[9][10][11] However, during the withdrawal, the Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban seized control, leading to Biden receiving bipartisan criticism. He responded to the Russian invasion of Ukraine by imposing sanctions on Russia as well as providing Ukraine with over $100 billion in combined military, economic, and humanitarian aid.[12][13] Biden also approved a raid which led to the death of Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, the leader of the Islamic State, and approved a drone strike which killed Ayman Al Zawahiri, leader of Al-Qaeda. Biden signed AUKUS, an international security alliance, together with Australia and the United Kingdom. Biden called for the expansion of NATO with the addition of Finland and Sweden, and rallied NATO allies in support of Ukraine. During the Israel–Hamas war, Biden condemned Hamas and other Palestinian militants as terrorism and announced American military support for Israel; Biden also showed his support and sympathy towards Palestinians affected by the war, sent humanitarian aid, and brokered a four-day temporary pause and hostage exchange.


Biden began his term with over 50% approval ratings; however, these fell significantly after the withdrawal from Afghanistan[14] and remained low as the country experienced high inflation and rising gas prices.[15][16] His age and mental fitness have also been a subject of discussion.[17]

Media appearances

Biden has been interviewed for several news outlets and appeared on several late-night talk shows throughout his presidency.


In December 2021, Biden appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where they discussed "his Build Back Better Plan, the importance of his bipartisan friendship with the late Sen. Bob Dole, rejecting extremism and getting Americans vaccinated against COVID-19."[601]


In June 2022, Biden appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! where he discussed "27 school shootings in America in 2022, why he believes nothing has been done so far about gun violence, an overwhelming amount of Americans supporting background checks, meeting with families after the tragic events in Uvalde, Texas, the idea of passing an Executive Order, the strides made in regards to Climate Change, Joe Manchin & Kyrsten Sinema's voting record, housing, food and gas prices being very high and what he intends to do about inflation, the negative impact that the pandemic has had on families and the need for mental health care, being optimistic about this generation of young people, changes in the press, his process for flushing documents down the toilets, what his intentions are if Roe v Wade does in fact get overturned, and his hopes for America."[602]


In July 2022, comedian and host of The Late Late Show, James Corden, visited the White House and spoke with Biden, Jen Psaki, and White House custodian staff. He also gave a fake press briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room.[603]


Biden has also been interviewed by Drew Barrymore, Jake Tapper, Jonathan Capehart, Yonit Levi, George Stephanopoulos, David Muir, Scott Pelley, Lester Holt, and Norah O'Donnell, for The Drew Barrymore Show,[604] CNN,[605] MSNBC,[606] Channel 12 in Israel,[607] ABC News,[608][609] 60 Minutes,[610] NBC,[611] and CBS News,[612] as well as a solo interview by Heather Cox Richardson[613] and Brian Tyler Cohen.[614] Notably, Biden has not sat down with Fox News, despite its popularity in the United States.[615]


News outlets have criticized Biden for only doing a limited amount of interviews during his tenure. Biden participated in 23 interviews in his first 100 days, compared to 95 for Donald Trump, 187 for Barack Obama, 60 for George W. Bush, 64 for Bill Clinton, 70 for George H. W. Bush, and 78 for Ronald Reagan.[616]

Foer, Franklin (2023). The Last Politician: Inside Joe Biden's White House and the Struggle for America's Future. New York: Penguin Press.  978-1-101-98114-6. OCLC 1395141546. Excerpt.

ISBN

Wayne, Stephen J. (2022). The Biden Presidency: Politics, Policy, and Polarization. New York: Routledge.  978-1-032-01007-6. OCLC 1306538369. Excerpt; covers first 18 months.

ISBN

Whipple, Chris (2023). The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House. New York: Scribner.  978-1-9821-0643-0. OCLC 1333841502. Excerpt; comprehensive history of first two years.

ISBN

at the Miller Center of Public Affairs

Coverage of Joe Biden's presidency