Cannon’s Corner: Thank you, Joe Biden

A Look Back at Accomplishments of the Biden Administration

Cannon Schultz, Writer

November 20, 2024

46th President, Joe Biden, has almost completed his first term, he has faced many crises that he has had to deal with: the COVID-19 pandemic, the inflation crisis, and the Russo-Ukrainian war. He has undergone much unjust criticism by millions in our nation who do not appreciate him for what he has gotten us through. Since his presidency is coming to an end, let’s take a look back at his accomplishments and put these false claims to bed.

COVID-19 Pandemic

In early 2020, COVID-19, a disease first found in China, made its way to the US mainland. The first case was reported on January 20th by the CDC, the 3rd anniversary of when Donald Trump was inaugurated as President. Trump was alerted of the first COVID-19 cases in China on January 3rd. Many people, including health advisors, doctors, and senators, started alerting him throughout January to declare a state of emergency. On February 5th, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) tweeted this:

Just left the Administration briefing on Coronavirus. Bottom line: they aren’t taking this seriously enough.

Notably, no request for ANY emergency funding, which is a big mistake. Local health systems need supplies, training, screening staff etc. And they need it now.

— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) February 5, 2020

5 days after this tweet, the White House released a budget proposal which included “cutting Health and Human Services funding by $9.5 billion, including a 15 percent cut of $1.2 billion to the CDC and a $35 million decrease to the Infectious Diseases Rapid Response Reserve Fund’s annual contribution.” 15 more days later, Trump had this to say in a Press Briefing, “within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero.” It wasn’t until March 13th that a National Emergency was declared. 130 people had already died, with many more cases reported. COVID then became a national pandemic, leaving 450,000 dead by the time he left office.

As soon as Joe Biden was inaugurated, he worked on quelling the Pandemic. On March 11th, Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which was composed of a $2 trillion stimulus package and built upon procedures in previous acts. The stimulus included direct payments to Americans, increased unemployment benefits, vaccine funding, and expansions of health insurance. Deaths at this point had reached just under 100,000 deaths but started to stagnate, going from 20,000 deaths per week to 1000. After this, the death rate would never reach near the previous levels. From March 2021 to March 2023, administered vaccines increased from 88 million to 670 million.

The Recovery from the Economic Disaster

COVID had disastrous effects on the economy. In April 2020, the unemployment rate peaked at 14.8%, while GDP declined by 3%. (INSERT – Civilian unemployment rate) Inflation rates shot all the way up to 9.1%, which hadn’t been seen since the 80s. As the United States is the largest importer and exporter in the world, and due to the global outbreak of COVID, most other nations were also negatively affected. As the world economy collapsed, it made it increasingly difficult for any given country to bounce back.

August 9, 2022 – The CHIPS and Science Act, which boosted the domestic manufacturing of semiconductors, provided domestic subsidies for chip manufacturing, and strengthened the supply chain’s resilience against China, was a massive step forward to becoming more technologically self-sufficient. A semiconductor, or a computer chip, is a material that works as an electric bridge between the conductor and insulator. Semiconductors are used for all pieces of technology, which has become vital for modern-day equipment and technology.

The Biden Administration passed additional Acts and Bills during his Presidency to address the economic trouble.

August 16, 2022 – The biggest of these Acts/Bills was the Inflation Reduction Act, which had multiple goals. Lowering the ever-increasing federal budget deficit was one of these key goals, as the budget has made it harder for the government to function and allocate money for social welfare programs. Another issue the IRA addresses is the abuse individuals receive from the high cost of prescription drugs. The cost of prescriptions that many people rely on to live is unimaginable. Pharmaceutical companies abuse the lack of regulation to take in as much profit as possible at the expense of people’s lives. The main portion of the IRA was to invest in cleaner forms of energy and increase the production of said energy.

Statistic: Budget surplus of the United States government from the first quarter of 2009 to the first quarter of 2024 (in trillion U.S. dollars) | Statista

Find more statistics at Statista

2020/2021 – The Build Back Better Plan or the Build Back Better Agenda, is a “framework [that] will set the United States on course to meet its climate goals, create millions of good-paying jobs, enable more Americans to join and remain in the labor force, and grow our economy from the bottom up and the middle out,” according to the White House.

April 27, 2021 – “President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed Executive Order 14026, “Increasing the Minimum Wage for Federal Contractors.” 86 FR 22835. In relevant part, Executive Order 14026 raised the hourly minimum wage paid by Federal contractors to workers performing work on or in connection with certain covered Federal contracts to $15.00 per hour, beginning January 30, 2022, with annual adjustments for inflation,” according to the Federal Registry. This increased the minimum wage of 390,000 workers.

November 15, 2021 – The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or the ‘Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,’ signed into law by Biden, was a $547–715 billion infrastructure package that provided for highway aid, highway safety, hazardous materials research, transit programs, and more. Donald Trump previously had tried to get numerous infrastructure deals passed but failed because he had only promised the deals if ‘democrats were to stop looking into his scandals.’ Trump then tried to sabotage Biden’s Infrastructure Act in anger and even stated that he knows ‘more about building buildings.’

These accomplishments have led to a strong economy, which experts consider the fastest economic recovery from COVID-19. Creating 15.7 million jobs, he’s exceeded the amount Trump did while in office, even when considering COVID. Inflation rates dropped to 2.6%, unemployment rates dropped to 4%, and the Biden Administration has produced more crude oil than any nation in history. Biden’s tax cuts focused on the lower and middle class compared to Trump, whose tax cuts have primarily benefited the 1%, even adding $10 trillion to the national debt. The GDP index numbers, adjusted for the average in 2017, are up 12% higher than Trump ever had it. Biden was able to bring down the high deficit Trump created, while also dealing with COVID and 2 wars. Trump has made this false theory that Biden has destroyed the economy and did a disastrous job with COVID, but the statistics say the exact opposite. As we enter Donald Trump’s presidency, we will see him take credit for the economy Biden has produced, much like he did when inheriting Obama’s economy.

Protecting the Climate, Rights, and Health

The Biden Administration held a hard stance against the threat of climate change. The Paris Climate Agreement is an international treaty that protects the climate by abiding by specific standards. Trump withdrew us from the agreement, claiming it puts our country “at a permanent disadvantage.” Plainly admitting we would rather destroy the earth than protect it is further proof of his egotism. On the very first day of his presidency, Joe Biden signed a bill to get us back into the agreement. We have been the leading greenhouse gas admitters for decades, it is of the utmost importance for us to lower the production of dangerous fumes.

Cannabis, weed, marijuana, or whatever you call it, has been hotly debated, and many agree it’s not as dangerous as the laws say they are. President Biden announced he would pardon lawful residents who were convicted of possession, buying, or using small amounts of cannabis.

The Respect for Marriage Act, signed by Biden into law in 2022, reaffirms the right of same-sex and interracial couples to marry. Over decades, different laws have been passed to establish and protect these rights, but loopholes have made it so courts could still deny these marriages. This Act repeals the Defense of Marriage Act, which banned same-sex marriage by making the definition of marriage only refer to a man and woman.

In the last 40 years, the cost of attending college has tripled. Today, there is $1.6 trillion worth of loan debt spread across 45 million borrowers. On average, a person does not pay off this debt until they are 45. The cumulative debt of a person can be debilitating, failure to find a job in a highly competitive market can ruin someone’s life. President Biden pledged to the nation a 3 step play to alleviate the pains of debt. Targeted debt relief, fixing the loan system, and reducing the cost of college will make it easier for more people to get an education and to get a higher-paying job. Over 20 million people’s student debt will be completely covered, while another 23 million people will have large deductions. The Department of Education will be at the forefront of this, but this could be threatened, as both Project2025 and President-Elect Donald J. Trump have vowed to remove the Department of Education.

Trump has promised he would provide more for veterans. The Biden Administration has already done that. The Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022 appropriates $797 billion for veterans who were exposed to toxic fumes and veterans who were disabled in other ways. Millions of people who fought to protect the innocents of the world will now have some of the extra help they deserve.

But our veterans aren’t the only ones fighting to protect the lives of those who cannot defend themselves.

A Better and Safer World

On February 22nd, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the biggest European conflict since the Second World War. Since then, over 100,000 people have been killed, including men, women and children. 30,000 battles have been recorded, decimating many parts of eastern Ukraine. Over the course of 2 years, five bills have been passed to send aid to Ukraine, amounting to $175 billion. It is vital to protect our allies; we are the strongest country in the world, and we cannot back down from foes. Russia intends to take over Ukraine and move further west so they can have more power over central Europe. Whoever can control the first-world nations in Europe would be able to control global trade and relations. We cannot let Russia have this control, we cannot let millions of innocent people die, we must be strong and protect our allies so we can defend ourselves.

“For those who thought NATO’s time had passed, they got a rude awakening when Putin invaded Ukraine,” stated Biden at a NATO summit marking the 75th anniversary of its creation, “Some of the oldest, deepest fears in Europe roared back to life because once again a murderous madman was on the march. But this time, no one cowered in appeasement, especially the United States.” Finland and Sweden, countries that surround Russia, have joined NATO. Joe Biden has expanded NATO, bringing more nations, each providing their fair share. World peace can only come from a world where nations come together, and Biden has helped push us in that direction.

Since the beginning of the year, there have been 76 school shootings, most of which in k-12 schools. School shootings in America have been on the rise for decades, since Columbine, many have been inspired to do monstrous acts. Gun reform is needed, which is what the Biden Administration has done. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act was a multi-party effort to implement several changes in the laws and procedures of mental health and gun rights. The act includes extending background checks on gun buyers, reinforcing the Federal Firearms License, providing more towards mental health programs, and closing loopholes that allow easier access to guns. This was the first gun legislation enacted by the government in almost 30 years, which was long overdue but was finally done by the Biden Administration.

In Conclusion

Compared to what many critics have to say about Joe Biden, his administration has been very successful and has adequately addressed many issues; let’s not let his accomplishments go unnoticed. Trump is going to inherit an incredibly strong economy, Biden’s success of getting us out of the COVID pandemic quicker than any first world nation shows his inteligent leading abilities. Reforms in major markets, including healthcare and the firearm industry, will save the lives of thousands of Americans. Defending our allies in Ukraine will help stabilize global conflicts and increase trade relations with Europe.

So, as a human being and, more importantly, an American,

Thank you, President Joe Biden.

Direct link to Sources:

https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/the-infrastructure-act-and-forestry-a-brief-overview

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