Joseph R. Biden: The Indispensable President of Our Time

 

When I think of Joe Biden, I reflect on his flawed humanity, a person who also has the capacity for greatness. His core values are rooted in his deep-rooted patriotism reminiscent of the “greatest generation,” those who endured the Great Depression and defeated fascism in World War II. While the current political climate is not amenable to it, Biden would like to channel the vision and policies of FDR into an era that is as perilous as what the US faced in the 1930s and 1940s.

As senator, Biden chaired the judicial and foreign policy committees, and gained considerable mastery of the political and policy intricacies of these two critical areas of governance. Based on a lifetime of public service, his broad grasp of policy and governing acumen is as astute as anyone’s who has held public office at the national level in the past few decades. 

While adroitly serving as President Obama’s Vice President, he expanded his operational knowledge of the executive branch a great deal. As VP, Biden carried out his supportive role with considerable finesse, while making the case for policy positions which sometimes substantially differed from the President’s. His opposition against US expansion of the war in Afghanistan was a case in point.

 Biden is convinced that he was the only candidate who could have defeated Trump in 2020. Whether that was the case, in fact, he did so in a decisive manner, in both the Electoral College and the popular vote. His victory was indisputable, except for the election denying fanatics following the lead of the former president’s latest conspiracy rant that the 2020 Presidential Election was rigged. This lie, supported by 147 Republican congressional members who voted against confirming the results of the Electoral College vote of December 14^th, 2020, sought to delegitimize the Biden presidency from the get-go. This built-in dagger plunged at the heart of the Republic was and continues to be an ongoing debilitating factor that the new administration has had to confront from its inception. 

With a 50-50 split in the Senate and two Democratic senators who voted against the initial Build Back Better proposal, it was no surprise that Biden lost support among dispirited Democrats That the Party leadership kept working at it, despite the setbacks, paid off in the recently passed Anti-Inflation Act. This speaks well of the political persistency of congressional Democrats as well as that of the president. In short, the Democrats have important policy initiatives to enact amidst a tough political climate where getting anything accomplished is a noteworthy achievement. 

The precipitous removal of US troops from Afghanistan was the single most damaging factor leading to the decline of Biden’s poll numbers. While President Trump initiated the withdrawal process, President Biden was not required to follow suit. Even if the US were to leave, the way it did so without collaborating with our allies was a significant failure. The perceived chaos at the Kobul airport at the end of August 2021, shocked many Americans as well as international allies. The destruction of civil society in Afghanistan, especially the repression of girls and women is a major catastrophe, in which partial blame needs to be cast on Biden. This criticism stands, even as many policy analysis argued that the US needed to end its commitment, which, in 20 years, had not established a stable national government. 

Biden’s leadership in bringing world allies together to support Ukraine in its heroic defense against Russia has been nothing short of masterful. In this, he has made the case that the US remains the indispensable nation, even as it needs to become increasingly clear to our European partners that they will ultimately need to take the leadership role in matters of war and peace on that continent. The need for this is heightened given the current instability of the US political climate, where it is not clear, at this time, whether this nation can sustain a worldwide leadership role, beyond the current administration, that Biden has enacted in support of Ukrainian independence, the defense of democracy, and the strengthening of NATO.    

Lastly, President Biden’s recent “Battle for the Soul of the Nation” speech was spot on. The danger Biden spoke of was stoked by the previous president’s refusal to accept the legitimate results of the 2020 election and to graciously participate in the peaceful transition of power. This threat was compounded by Trump’s unrelenting efforts overturn the results by legal and not so legal means. If this were simply a fabrication of his own mind that would be one matter. The problem is that this mendacity has a stranglehold over the GOP that is so extensive, that over 70% of Party stalwarts readily accept his conspiratorial propaganda. It is this socio-pathology stemming from Trump’s malignant political values—where he recently claimed he should be reinstated to the presidency—that threatens the very fabric of this nation’s constitutional republic. The more cultic fanatics of the MAGA movement have led the charge to nominate individuals for state level positions who would have the capacity to overturn the popular vote by granting the electoral college decision-making power to the largely Republican based legislatures, many of whom are election deniers.  When Biden asserts “that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans,” this is what he is getting. That is, he rightly views this cultus as “a threat to this country.” In sounding the clarion call against this Trump provoked outrage to delegitimize the election, Joseph R. Biden stands, despite his flaws, stands as the indispensable president of our era.