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Joe Biden's 6 Biggest Failures During His First Year as President

BY INIGO ALEXANDER ON 1/20/22 AT 5:44 AM EST

President Joe Biden's first year in the Oval Office has come to a close today and, as is to be expected of an administration's freshman year, the president has had a tumultuous path so far.

The series of challenges presented to Biden's administration have made the 46th president's inaugural year at the White House a difficult one, having to deal with record inflation, the ongoing COVID pandemic and political division.

As Biden calls an end to his first year in office, Newsweek looked back over some of the president's failures over the course of the last year.

1) Failed Build Back Better Act

President Biden's flagship Build Back Better Act has failed to get passed in law, despite his commitment to pass the bill by Christmas.

The Build Back Better Act is a central piece of the administration's objectives and was originally drafted with a budget of $3.5 trillion that included provisions and support for infrastructure and social policies. Eventually, the bill's budget saw itself slashed to $1.75 trillion.

The proposed bill was initially passed by the House in November, though has been stalled in the Senate since.

The Build Back Better Act also lost the crucial support of Democratic senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, all but killing the bill as it needs the support of all 50 Democratic senators.

President Biden could now be forced to sacrifice key components of the bill in order to maneuver through the divided Senate.

Biden might have to compromise on issues such as the extension of the enhanced child tax credit, universal preschool and increased climate change funding in hopes of passing his flagship bill.

Blocked by the Republicans, a repeat of their earlier stated attempt that they would not allow an Obama Act to be enacted. Pure, petty, vindictive spite- nothing by Obama could pass even if it was beneficial to America and Americans.

2) Stalled Voting Legislation

Other central elements of the Biden administration's agenda for his inaugural year have also met a deadlock.

Democrats also failed to pass voting rights legislation, which their Republican counterparts have successfully opposed. This follows the introduction of new voting restrictions in Republican-led states in the aftermath of the 2020 election, and former president Donald Trump's false claims of voter fraud.

In order to successfully pass the voting rights legislation, the Biden administration would also have to reform the Senate filibuster, which Manchin has repeatedly opposed.

Again, pure, petty, vindictive spite.

3) Failure to Cancel Student Debt

On the campaign trail, Biden vowed he would cancel at least $10,000 of student loan debt per person in an effort to undo individual burdens the loans imposed.

The President has extended the interest-free pause on federal student loan repayments that was introduced amid the pandemic, though the measure is by no means a forgiveness of standing loans. The pause is scheduled to lift in February, and payments will resume.

His primary actions on this front are primarily built on existing promises on the topic made by previous administrations.

Much debate has been had about the president's authority to personally write off student debts, with certain factions of the Democratic party urging the president to use executive action to resolve the issue.

However, Biden himself expressed his doubt towards that approach, and said in April: "I don't think I have the authority", a sentiment echoed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

I am in a quandary on this one- a college degree is now the equivalent to a high school diploma in the late 19th and easrly 20th century and high school became free as a result. An educated America is a strong America.

4) COVID Mismanagement

Biden has long been aware of the severity of the COVID pandemic and the need for effective measures to manage the crisis, and in the opening months of his tenure he oversaw a mass vaccination campaign.

However the emergence of the Delta variant over the summer and the recent wave of Omicron has stalled Biden's initial progress on the COVID front.

The administration's lack of preparation for new variants was reflected in the sharp surge in cases nationwide, as well as in the shortage of testing kits.

The surge in infections saw an average of over 750,000 daily new COVID cases reported over the last week, according to data from John Hopkins University. The number of daily COVID deaths has also seen a rise in the past week, with 1,796 deaths reported last Sunday according to John Hopkins data.

A number of Biden's fellow Democratic senators criticized his approach for being "reactive, rather than proactive."

Additionally, Biden recently saw the Supreme Court block Biden's vaccine mandate for businesses, which intended to enforce vaccine-or-test requirements for large private companies.

Criticism was also leveled at the CDC for its guidance recommending mask use in schools for children over the age of two. Scientists raised concerns over the method's effectiveness, while fellow international bodies offered contrasting advice to the CDC.

Consequently, more U.S. citizens than ever now disapprove of Biden's handling of the pandemic, with 48 percent of the public dissatisfied.

Fact, no argument. Having observed the effects of Trump's delayed response....

5) Record Inflation

President Biden's economic accomplishments have been bittersweet. On the one hand, the Biden administration approved a hefty $1.9 trillion COVID relief package and passed a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law. Additionally, a record 6.4 million jobs were created which saw unemployment drop to just 3.9 percent last December.

On the other hand, national inflation rose to a record 6.8 percent, the highest level in 40 years.

This has consistently driven up the prices of basic goods and services such as gas, food and housing. The upshot in prices seen in December represented the sixth consecutive month of price increments.

In November, gas prices skyrocketed by 58 percent, the largest increase recorded over a 12-month period since 1980.

Rising inflation was also compounded with supply chain shortages and delays, further aggravating the issue for consumers.

The White House has deemed the rising prices to be "transitory," a temporary effect as a result of increased pandemic-related costs. and expects the surge to settle over the coming months.

In a statement at the time, Biden said the ongoing inflation was not representative of "today's reality".

"It does not reflect the expected price decreases in the weeks and months ahead," Biden said in the statement

6) Immigration Debacles and Remain in Mexico

In Biden's opening year in the White House, the issue of migration and the administration's mismanagement at the US-Mexico border has become a constant headache.

Biden had vowed to undo many of Trump's heavily criticized immigration policies in a bid to guarantee increased protection and care for asylum-seekers and migrants entering the country. However, his administration's handling of the issue has left a lot to be desired.

Despite his campaign trail promises, Biden has reinstated the Trump-era Remain In Mexico program and has also upheld a controversial policy known as Title 42.

Title 42 has been heavily criticized for using the pandemic to enable veiled human rights violations and pre-emptively remove migrants found at the border. The policy has also led to family separations at the border, as many blocked from entering the country chose to send their children through alone in a bid to guarantee their safety.

Meanwhile, the Remain In Mexico program has been slammed by critics for denying migrants entry to the U.S. while keeping them in bureaucratic limbo at makeshift border camps in Mexico.

The administration's negligence at the border has also resulted in increased hostility. In the opening 10 months of Biden's presidency, over 7,647 cases of rape, torture, murder, kidnapping and violent assault towards asylum-seekers at the border have been recorded.

The administration has faced fierce criticism for their mismanagement at the border, with the United Nations urging Biden to lift the repressive policies.

By Glenn Kessler

September 25, 2012

(Carolyn Kaster/AP)

“When I first came into office, the head of the Senate Republicans said, ‘my number one priority is making sure president Obama’s a one-term president.’ Now, after the election, either he will have succeeded in that goal or he will have failed at that goal.”

— President Obama, interview on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” recorded on Sept. 12, 2012, and aired on Sept. 23

“It was no surprise, because the senator from Kentucky, who just spoke, announced at the beginning, four years ago, exactly what his strategy would be. He said, his number-one goal was to make sure that Barack Obama was a one-term president.”

— Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), on the Senate floor, Sept. 21, 2012

“Ed Rendell, who has criticized the president (objecting, for example, to the Obama campaign's attack on private equity), also argues that Obama has been constrained by an unprecedented obduracy in his Republican opposition. ‘I can't ever recall a newly elected president being faced with the leader of the other party's caucus saying “Our No. 1 priority is to make this president a one-term president,”’ says Rendell, citing the remark made by Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, that exemplified the fierce partisanship that has attended Obama's tenure. ‘That McConnell would say that in the first nine months of Barack Obama's tenure is absolutely stunning, disgraceful, disgusting — you name the term.’”

Clearly, a theme has emerged among Democrats: Republicans were so determined to thwart President Obama’s agenda that the Senate Minority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, even announced from day one that he was determined to make Obama a one-term president.

The timing of McConnell’s statement obviously makes a difference. In the Democratic narrative, the top GOP senator signaled early on he had no intention of cooperating with the new president.

Is that really the case?

The Facts

McConnell made his remarks in an interview that appeared in the National Journal on Oct. 23, 2010 — nearly two years after Obama was elected president. The interview took place on the eve the of the midterm elections. The interview is relatively short, so we will print it in its entirety, with key portions highlighted.

NJ: You’ve been studying the history of presidents who lost part or all of Congress in their first term. Why?

McConnell: In the last 100 years, three presidents suffered big defeats in Congress in their first term and then won reelection: Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, and the most recent example, Bill Clinton. I read a lot of history anyway, but I am trying to apply those lessons to current situations in hopes of not making the same mistakes.

NJ: What have you learned?

McConnell: After 1994, the public had the impression we Republicans overpromised and underdelivered. We suffered from some degree of hubris and acted as if the president was irrelevant and we would roll over him. By the summer of 1995, he was already on the way to being reelected, and we were hanging on for our lives.

NJ: What does this mean now?

McConnell: We need to be honest with the public. This election is about them, not us. And we need to treat this election as the first step in retaking the government. We need to say to everyone on Election Day, “Those of you who helped make this a good day, you need to go out and help us finish the job.”

NJ: What’s the job?

McConnell: The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.

NJ: Does that mean endless, or at least frequent, confrontation with the president?

McConnell: If President Obama does a Clintonian backflip, if he’s willing to meet us halfway on some of the biggest issues, it’s not inappropriate for us to do business with him.

NJ: What are the big issues?

McConnell: It is possible the president’s advisers will tell him he has to do something to get right with the public on his levels of spending and [on] lowering the national debt. If he were to heed that advice, he would, I imagine, find more support among our conference than he would among some in the Senate in his own party. I don’t want the president to fail; I want him to change. So, we’ll see. The next move is going to be up to him.

NJ: What will you seek from the president on the tax issue?

McConnell: At the very least, I believe we should extend all of the Bush tax cuts. And I prefer to describe this as keeping current tax policy. It’s been on the books for 10 years. Now, how long that [extension] is, is something we can discuss. It was clear his position was not [favored] among all Senate Democrats. They had their own divisions. I don’t think those divisions are going to be any less in November and December.

When seen in full context, McConnell’s quote is not really as shocking as the snippet that is frequently repeated by Democrats.

Generally, Democrats suggest that McConnell believed that no problem is bigger than getting rid of Obama, but it is clear that he is speaking in a political context — that the goals of Republicans could not be achieved unless Obama is defeated in his race for reelection. A case in point: the health care law could not be overturned unless Obama is defeated.

Moreover, McConnell goes on to say that he does “not want the president to fail” and cooperation was possible “if he’s willing to meet us halfway on some of the biggest issues.” McConnell in fact cited an extension of the Bush tax cuts — and Obama did strike such a deal shortly after the midterm elections.

Here’s how McConnell explained his remarks in a speech after the election, when Republicans had taken over the House of Representatives and made huge gains in the Senate:

“Let’s start with the big picture. Over the past week, some have said it was indelicate of me to suggest that our top political priority over the next two years should be to deny President Obama a second term in office. But the fact is, if our primary legislative goals are to repeal and replace the health spending bill; to end the bailouts; cut spending; and shrink the size and scope of government, the only way to do all these things it is to put someone in the White House who won’t veto any of these things. We can hope the President will start listening to the electorate after Tuesday’s election. But we can’t plan on it. And it would be foolish to expect that Republicans will be able to completely reverse the damage Democrats have done as long as a Democrat holds the veto pen.”

There is no doubt that McConnell said he wanted to make Obama a one-term president. But he did not say it at the start of Obama’s term; instead, he made his comments at the midpoint, after Obama had enacted many of his preferred policies.

Perhaps, in Obama’s memory, McConnell was always uncooperative. But that does not give him and other Democrats the license to rearrange the chronology to suit the party’s talking points.

Joe Biden's 6 Biggest Failures During His First Year as President