At this writing, President Joe Biden will soon be addressing the nation concerning his first 100 days in office and his plans to build on his successes. Politics being as they are, there are deep partisan divides on how well President Joe Biden has fared.
CNN praised Biden as best they could in their article, “Biden’s first 100 days: What he’s gotten done.” It began with glowing accolades like this:
President Joe Biden has moved fast since his January 20 swearing-in, signing a $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill into law less than two months into his term and issuing more executive orders so far than his three predecessors.
Those efforts have paid off, with the administration reaching the milestones of 200 million coronavirus shots delivered and vaccine eligibility opened to everyone 16 and over before Biden’s 100th day in office. Unemployment is falling, with new jobless claims hitting a pandemic low, and schools are reopening for in-person learning, returning kids and families to a semblance of normal life.
And Biden has delivered on his pledge to return the presidency to what it looked like before his predecessor Donald Trump, replacing tweets with daily press briefings and bringing in a Cabinet and staff of seasoned experts.
At a glance, it appears that the return on voter investment has been paying off. However, as you delve deeper into the piece, CNN has added a few contrarian facts that work against the sterling opinion in the introduction. For example, concerning the economic recovery, “…the rollout of relief programs hasn’t gone entirely smoothly” and “…going slowly is the Biden administration’s efforts to provide funds to low-income families whose children are missing free- or reduced-price meals in school because they are learning remotely.”
On the topic of reopening schools, “At first there was confusion over how the administration defined reopening…There are certainly more schools offering in-person instruction now than there were at the beginning of 2021. But it remains unclear whether a majority of schools are offering it five days a week for all students.”
When the subject was healthcare, “…the administration has asked the Supreme Court to uphold the Affordable Care Act, reversing the position of the Trump administration, which joined Republican-led states in urging the justices to strike down the entire law. The justices have not yet ruled in the case — and if they upend Obamacare, it’s not clear what Biden and congressional Democrats will be able to pass to replace it.”
And on immigration, “…Yet the Biden administration has struggled to keep up with the influx of migrants coming to the US southern border, particularly unaccompanied minors, who have been held in Border Patrol stations as officials scramble to find sites to accommodate them.”
The article continues with comments on Foreign Policy, Climate Crisis and Social Justice which praised his efforts as much as possible yet, naming missteps there as well. Overall, the message I received is that Biden has done a lot but his progress has been imperfect. That not withstanding, we should be persuaded by his limited success to allow trillions of new tax dollars to be spent that will be generated by (wait for it…) taxing the rich.
While Democrats see Biden as a blooming flower of success (CNN was not the only media outlet to nearly deify Biden), Republican complaints about Biden are near limitless. Take for example the comments made by Representative James Comer, the Kentucky Republican and ranking member on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. Washington Examiner quoted him as saying…
He promised unity but has delivered partisanship. He failed to fully reopen schools for America’s public school students but has opened our borders to illegal immigrants. He has killed thousands of American jobs through crushing regulations while reviving the radical Green New Deal and other extreme climate policies. Simply put, we’ve gone from ‘America First’ to ‘America Last’ under President Biden,” said Comer, who has targeted at least seven Biden initiatives for investigations.
To back up that claim, Comer’s team created a list called, “100 Days | 100 Failures” that details failed promises and policy reversals that Republicans cheered and believed made the country much better off. Here are the top twenty items of that list.
- Promised unity but has only pushed for a partisan, progressive agenda
- Signed more executive orders in his first week than any past president, ignoring the role of the legislative branch
- Failed to reopen schools – 50% of schools are still not meeting fully in-person
- Pledged to follow the science and listen to medical experts, but is following the teachers’ unions instead of Drs. Walensky and Fauci on reopening schools who have said there is no medical reason for schools to remain closed
- Created the Biden Border Crisis
- Has no plan to address the Biden Border Crisis
- Providing limited, censored media access to overcrowded facilities housing migrants
- Assigned Vice President Kamala Harris, who once compared ICE to the KKK, as border czar
- President Biden and Vice President Harris have failed to visit the southern border
- Proposes sending $4 billion to corrupt Northern Triangle countries to prevent illegal immigration
- Ended cooperative asylum agreements
- Opened the door for individuals who threaten America’s national security by revoking President Trump’s travel restrictions
- Terminated the “National Emergency” at the southern border
- Unraveled the Migrant Protection Protocols
- Not fully utilizing Title 42 at the border
- Ceased border wall construction despite congressional appropriations
- Released thousands of recently apprehended illegal border crossers from custody without even issuing them a Notice to Appear in Immigration Court
- Proposed amnesty
- Halted deportations
- Allowing criminal aliens to be released into American communities
I think the American people have to look at the pluses and minuses of where we are as a country, consider the leaders in charge, the direction we are heading and vote their conscience in 2022 and 2024. Hopefully that vote will make our country great… again.
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