President Biden And The Democrats Put On A Masterclass In Governing
Joe Biden is already a consequential president even though has only served about two years. Biden’s first achievement was defeating Donald Trump and the greatest threat to democracy in America since 1861. Trump is the only president in history who tried to steal an election with force.
Biden and the Congressional Democrats inherited a nation in crisis. We were suffering from the worst pandemic since 1918 and the economy was moribund. Most people were stuck in their homes and the economy lost 90,000 jobs in December 2020.
The first order of business was the quick passage of the American Rescue Act. This landmark legislation included the biggest middle class tax cut in American history, a vaccine rollout, a rescue package for state and local governments and money to re-open schools. Every Republican voted against it.
The Biden administration’s COVID vaccine rollout has lowered COVID deaths by over 90%. When Biden took office, there was no plan to distribute the vaccines.
New statistics show that 5 million more Americans have health insurance because of the American Rescue Act. The American Rescue Plan led to a record 14.5 million Americans signing up for healthcare coverage for this year through the Affordable Care Act. The U.S. currently has the lowest uninsured rate in its history now.
The next big win was the infrastructure law, which passed with bi-partisan support. This was the biggest infrastructure package that passed since the Interstate Highway Act in 1956. Because of the infrastructure package, repairs have started on over 65,000 miles of roads and 1,500 bridges.
The year 2022 turned out to be an amazing year of progress for President Biden and the Congress. In 2022, Biden and the Congress passed:
Biggest ever investment in clean energy.
First major gun safety bill in 30 years.
Restart the American microchip industry.
Massive expansion of veterans benefits.
Cap seniors’ drug costs at $2000.
President Biden and the Democrats in Congress have capped insulin costs at $35 a month for Medicare recipients.
The Inflation Reduction Act will now save 13 million Americans an average of $800 annually on health insurance premiums.
End corporate tax evasion.
A ban on companies using mandatory arbitration to defeat sexual-harassment claims.
A renewal of the Violence Against Women Act.
Codify same sex marriage.
Many of these bills passed with bi-partisan support after the D.C. pundits said it could never be done. Biden’s bi-partisan wins includes the infrastructure bill , the CHIPS and Science Act, an expansion of veterans benefits in the PACT Act, the first gun safety bill since 1994, the Postal Service Reform Act, and marriage equality.
I think we can chalk it up to Biden’s long years of service in Washington, D.C. Biden knows what he’s doing and knows the players.
Another factor had to be the fear among Republicans that the filibuster would’ve been reformed or abolished. If the Senate GOP had gone back to the all out obstruction of the Obama Administration, the filibuster would’ve been gone.
Biden has racked up more bipartisan wins than any president since Lyndon Johnson. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said: “These two years in the Senate and House — in the Congress — were either the most productive in 50 years since the Great Society, or most productive in 100 years since the New Deal.”
What makes these accomplishments even more impressive is that Biden and the Democrats were working with razor thin majorities in both houses of Congress. In contrast, Franklin Roosevelt enjoyed 2–1 and even 3–1 Democratic majorities at times. Similarly, in 1965–66, the Democrats had a 2–1 majority in both houses.
The results of this flurry of legislation is already benefiting the American people. So far, 10.5 million new jobs have been created. Unemployment now stands at a historic low of 3.7% — down from 6.4% when Biden took office.
We’ve had more new small businesses launching than ever before. American manufacturers have now added enough jobs to regain all that they that they lost during the pandemic. Manufacturers have a net gain of 67,000 workers above pre-pandemic levels.
Trump added $7.8 trillion to the national debt and increased the annual deficit from $585 billion to $3.1 trillion. President Biden is on track to cut the federal deficit by $1.7 trillion by the end of the year.
“Oh, and by the way: He’s also managed (so far) to head off World War III and a possible nuclear conflict. We seem to forget that this is Job One for every American president, but while Republicans are griping about the gas prices (over which Biden also has no control), the Russians are replaying the Eastern Front against 40 million Ukrainians and also threatening NATO. It’s been reassuring to have a steady hand in charge of our foreign policy.” Tom Nichols, The Atlantic.
The Democrats were rewarded for these achievements at the polls in November 2022. In the run up to the election, the Republicans and the elite D.C. pundits forecast a red wave. As it turned out, Biden and the Democrats had the best mid-term election results for the in party since 2002.
• First midterm since ’62 that Dems netted Senate seats while holding White House
• First midterm since ’34 that the WH party netted Senate seats and governorships
• First midterm since ’34 that the WH party didn’t *lose* a single Senate seat
President Biden keeps demonstrating that the many months of media coverage portraying him and his administration as inept were just wrong. He is governing successfully and has had the best two years of any president since Lyndon Johnson in 1965 and 1966.
“Remember this moment: It might be the last time you see a competent government for at least two years. This will all come crashing down when — if — McCarthy assumes the speakership on Jan. 3.” Dana Milbank.
All of this progress will be at risk in 2023 and 2024. The Republican picked up 9 seats in the House and currently have a slender 9 seat majority. Already, the D.C. Republicans are fighting each other. At the current time, Kevin McCarthy lacks the votes to be elected Speaker. He is cutting deals with the most radical members of his caucus to pick up the necessary 218 votes.
The GOP House will turn Congress into a clown show. And they will get destroyed for it. “The House Republican Conference will have the barest majority, rendered ungovernable by the lunatic likes of Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Green. The self-sabotage of an ungovernable Republican majority will all but guarantee that Democrats take back the House in 2024.” Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY).
We Democrats have a lot to be proud of. Let’s take a short break and then get back to work. Our work is never done. Now let’s get it done!