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End of an Era

Recap of Joe Biden’s Presidency



Joe Biden, 82-years-old, was the president of the United States from January 2021 to January 2025, serving under the Democratic Party. He has signed over 150 executive orders during his presidency.


The first issue Biden addressed was the COVID-19 pandemic, which claimed the lives of over 100 million Americans. In his first 150 days of office, he administered 300 million COVID-19 shots.


“When he got into office, COVID-19 was definitely a big issue,” freshmen Brennan Abatecola said. “They [the administration] handled it fairly well. It was difficult to control.”


He also passed the American Rescue Plan in March 2021, which had a budget of $1.9 trillion. It provided economic relief to those affected by job loss by giving $300 a week in unemployment benefits.


To improve the nation’s roads, bridges, railways, power and access to clean water and internet, Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in November 2021, which had a budget of one trillion dollars.


A major conflict during the Biden presidency was Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, starting in February 2022. Biden has sent over $113 billion in funding to Ukraine to support their resistance efforts. Many have criticized this, saying that he spent excessive money supporting a foreign nation.


“The narrative surrounding the war in Ukraine has shifted towards a weight on the American economy given how much money we send,” upper school Spanish teacher Joseph McCann

said. “But since it’s framed around protecting western democracy around the world from authoritarian influences from Russia, it doesn’t strike me as much of a weight that should be considered very much.”


Gun violence was another major topic of conversation during Biden’s presidency because of mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, N.Y. that claimed the lives of 30 adults and students. As a result, Biden signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in June 2022, which limited access to guns, enhanced background checks, required those who sell guns to register as licensed dealers and gave $13 billion for mental health services. In an attempt to stop the root cause of gun violence, this was the largest gun-safety bill passed in the last 30 years.


“I definitely think that what they are doing right now is a good start,” Abatecola said. “But there is a lot more that needs to be done to make sure that gun violence is controlled.”


Inflation was rampant during Biden’s presidency. In August 2022, he signed the Inflation Reduction Act, which aimed to stop inflation from rising by reducing the federal deficit, promoting production of certain goods and limiting the cost of prescription drugs. The act also dedicated $369 billion to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.


Towards the end of Biden’s presidency, he made a controversial move by pardoning his son Hunter Biden. H. Biden was charged with three felonies: tax evasion with $1.4 million owed, making a false statement when purchasing a gun and illegally owning a gun.


“Honestly, if I was a dad, I would probably pardon my son too,” upper school math teacher Gussaroff said. “I understand why he did it.”


Biden had planned to run for re-election but decided to drop out a few months before the election day, on Nov. 7, 2024, endorsing Kamala Harris as the 2024 Democratic Party presidential nominee. Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election and has replaced Joe Biden as U.S. President by taking the oath of office on Jan. 20, 2025. Trump will be America’s president for the next four years.

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