On January 20, 2021, Democratic candidate Joe Biden officially became the 46th President of the United States. What did he succeed in during his year in the White House, and what promises did he not keep? Read today in USA.ONE magazine:
Results of the first year of Joe Biden's presidency
The fight against climate change, the coronavirus pandemic and more.
World leadership and climate issues 
photo: dailymotion.com
Former President Donald Trump did not want to spend energy and money on other countries, so the Biden administration announced the United States' readiness to return to the international arena. The main challenge has become rivalry with China, relations with which have only worsened under Joe Biden. The withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, which was not agreed upon with the ally, played a significant role in this.
Since November, the issue of Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been on the agenda and this topic has become number 1 in the State Department. It is no coincidence that Biden devoted most of his press conference at the end of the year in office to this very situation, once again threatening Vladimir Putin with severe sanctions.
Also in the fall, the US President became one of the main guests at the climate summit in Glasgow, shaming the Russian President and Chinese leader Xi Jinping for not attending. At the same time, he failed to pass through Congress a plan for the transition to renewable energy, which is still at the draft stage. But still there is progress. Thus, Joe Biden returned the United States to the Paris climate agreement, from which Donald Trump withdrew shortly before the end of his presidential term. It also created a National Climate Task Force to look at ways and means to combat climate change not only in America, but throughout the world.
The fight against coronavirus 
photo: bbc.com
Donald Trump has been blamed for being slow to react and inactive during the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe Biden has firmly vowed to take control of the situation. All efforts were devoted to vaccinating the population and the majority of Americans were vaccinated. Despite the fact that the percentage of vaccinated people in the United States is 63.1%, this is lower than in the European Union (70%) and a number of Asian, African and Latin American countries.
And yet the number of vaccinated people is slowly but growing. During the press conference, Biden acknowledged mistakes made in the fight against coronavirus, but noted that during the year of his administration, the number of vaccinated Americans increased from 2 to 210 million. Vaccination has become mandatory for all employees of companies with more than 100 employees. Republicans immediately challenged this decision in the Supreme Court. As a result, now this applies only to government organizations, not private ones.
The wave of delta strain in summer and omicron in winter revealed a new problem. Before Christmas, thousands of Americans faced hours-long lines at COVID-19 testing centers due to a lack of available at-home antigen tests. This problem was quickly resolved by launching a federal website where you can order a free test. To receive it, you need to provide your name and address. The government has purchased 500 million rapid tests, which will be available to any family, but no more than 4 at one address.
Social justice and green economy 
photo: politico.com
Joe Biden promised to launch a massive construction project, create new jobs and begin the fight against poverty as the economy shifts to the green side. The priorities were reducing prices for medicines, expanding budgetary health insurance, switching to renewable energy and supporting families with children. Biden's ambitious plans have been compared to the "New Deal" Roosevelt, but unlike him, there are no stunning results yet, although there are changes.
A record number of Americans purchased Obamacare in 2021. Even before the deadline, 14.2 million people signed up for it, which is 20% more than in 2020. Insurance plans have new benefits and their costs have decreased. The rules for providing financial assistance have also changed to support individuals with different income levels.
Many Americans were dissatisfied with inflation and rising gasoline prices, empty store shelves and problems with the delivery of goods. In December, the inflation rate hit a 40-year record. To contain price increases, interest rates could rise as early as March, which would have a negative impact on credit, economic growth and spending. Biden himself noted progress in economic growth, improved infrastructure and the fight against inflation. He also recalled the creation of 6 million additional jobs, calling 2021 a “year of testing.” due to opposition from Republicans in Congress.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many people had to leave expensive cities for cheaper ones, take remote jobs, cut expenses and even retire early. Hence the shortage of personnel in the retail, hotel and restaurant businesses. Staff shortages and delivery disruptions have left store shelves empty. Traders have imposed restrictions on essential goods, and experts have advised ordering Christmas gifts in October to ensure they arrive in time. Some stores have reduced their opening hours, while others have closed entirely.
Rivalry with Donald Trump 
photo: Twitter
Many thought Trump would go into hiding after his election defeat, especially after the storming of the Capitol and the deletion of his Twitter and other social media pages. But a year later, most Republican voters are backing his return to politics. Donald Trump is actively holding rallies, despite the fact that the election campaign will begin only in 2023. But elections to Congress will take place this year, and the former president has every chance of getting into it.
If Joe Biden loses the Democratic majority, it will be almost impossible for him to achieve the adoption of any of his plans. He makes no secret of the fact that the level of Republican opposition has never been higher. At the same time, in his opinion, Republicans only speak out against it and stop talking about what exactly they support.
The issue with immigrants 
photo: 9111.ru
Each president dealt with illegal immigrants on the US-Mexico border as best he could. Donald Trump was building a wall that cost billions of dollars. Biden halted its construction, reversing many of his predecessor's immigration decisions. And this also gave rise to a crisis both within the country and at the border. Illegal immigrants dispersed across the States, awaiting the consideration of their cases. In his election campaign, Joe Biden promised to reverse all of Trump's decisions, but he failed.
A federal judge in Texas blocked an end to the ex-president's immigration policies forcing non-Mexican migrants to remain in Mexico until their U.S. trials are scheduled, and pressed the Biden administration to reinstate a controversial program it opposed and wanted to end. The public health authority also allowed authorities to turn away immigrants at the Mexican border, barring them from seeking asylum in the United States. But Biden also had small victories.
He managed to increase the refugee limit from 15 to 62.5 thousand, but by the end of the fiscal year he was able to accept only 11,411, which was the lowest number in the history of immigration policy. Joe Biden also limited law enforcement activities in relation to certain categories of immigrants. But his main achievement can be called speeding up the procedure for considering requests for asylum. Now the judge must make a decision within 300 days from the moment the illegal immigrant first appears in court. This will reduce the backlog in immigration courts, where more than 1.5 million cases are pending.
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