President Biden’s First Year in Review

by Sylvie Dougherty January 20, 2022

President Joe Biden addresses the crowd and nation during the 59th Presidential Inauguration ceremony in Washington, Jan. 20, 2021. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris took the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. (DOD Photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II)

January 20, 2021, the nation’s capital, still reeling from the violent insurrection only two weeks prior, is now the site of that fundamental institution of American democracy, the peaceful transfer of power. This would be an inauguration day like no other the nation had seen before, with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic vastly limiting the audience to only politicians, dignitaries, and a few celebrity guests, the new president sought to unite a deeply divided country.

Now, a year after his inauguration, President Biden, who went into the presidency having received the most popular votes of any candidate in American history, has an approval rating of 42%, lower than all previous presidents at this point in his term since Harry S Truman, with the exception of only his predecessor.

Biden came into the White House with monumental ambitions. Through his “Build Back Better” initiative, the President would expand the Affordable Care Act that Barack Obama, whom Biden served as Vice President, had initiated. The initiative would also combat the effects of climate change, provide affordable care for older Americans and individuals with disabilities, expand the child tax credit, and strengthen the middle class. Now, a year into his administration, Republican opposition and gridlock within his own party has impeded President Biden’s ability to pass this important legislation.

Biden’s American Rescue Plan was an early achievement of his presidency. Signed into law in March, this legislation was a response to the economic impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This $1.9 trillion plan encompassed increased federal unemployment benefits, loans to small businesses, and a temporary child tax credit. The plan offered only short-term relief, and now most of its benefits have expired.

During President Biden’s first year in office, 500 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, but hostility has continued, particularly from the President’s opponents on the right. Over 60 million people remain unvaccinated. Rural residents, young adults, children, and Republicans make up most of those who have not received the vaccines.

The President’s COVID policies have garnered him support on the left, as well as staunch criticism on the right. Recently, Biden has pushed for convenient and affordable COVID testing, with plans to distribute half a million free rapid tests across the country. The President has also announced a plan to distribute 400 million free N95 masks across the country.

President Biden’s greatest legislative success of his first year was the Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act. The bill invested the most federal money into passenger trains since the creation of Amtrak in 1971, and the most federal money invested in public transportation in history. It also made the largest investment in bridge construction since the Interstate Highway System was created under Eisenhower.

The bill ensures that all Americans have access to high-speed internet, and makes the largest investments in history into clean drinking water, waste water, and renewable energy. This legislation is to be paid for in part with unspent COVID relief funds.

Signed into law on November 15, 2021, this $1 trillion dollar infrastructure bill was probably most notable for one reason, it was authored by a bipartisan group of legislators, and received support from both sides of the aisle. In the House of Representatives, 215 Democrats and 13 Republicans voted to enact the bill, as well as 48 democrats and 19 Republicans in the Senate.

Not all of President Biden’s legislative plans have been as successful as the Infrastructure bill. The President still faces strong opposition, even within his own party, from Democrats including West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema. The Build Back Better bill, which many have called Biden’s New Deal, has stalled for the foreseeable future.

Senator Manchin, who’s state’s economy depends on coal, objects to the clean energy measures in the bill, and others object to its high cost in a time of economic downturn. At this time, it seems to many that the promises Biden won the presidency on will not be achieved.

Like all presidents, Joe Biden has faced immense trials and tribulations in just his first year. Unlike most of his predecessors, the forty-sixth president started his term in the middle of a global pandemic which has only continued since then, his predecessor continues to fan the flames of hatred amongst his supporters who continue to view Biden’s election as fraudulent. It may be unfair to judge a president at such an early juncture, with his legacy not yet determined, but it is accurate to say that we as a country have been in difficult times before and have survived.

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