Opinion: Biden’s First 100 Days

By Keegan Bankoff ’22 and Ben Mihailovich ’22
​Two weeks after an insurrection struck the Capitol, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. Former President Trump’s remarks on how the election was ‘stolen’ from him left the country deeply divided, and many believed Biden would be unable to overcome that division. However, through one hundred days, Biden has overseen many successes, particularly regarding the pandemic, helping pass measures to support those hit hardest by COVID-19. Though his first hundred days have been eventful, this is no ‘New Deal’; Biden has not achieved the frenzied pace of FDR’s first hundred days in office, nor passed as much legislation. Nevertheless, Biden is surely off to a strong start.

So far, Biden has received a 52% total approval rate, with his highest marks coming from his handling of the pandemic and the surprisingly steady vaccine rollout. At the beginning of the year, Biden set a goal to reach 100 million vaccination doses by his one-hundredth day in office. That goal was reached on just day 59. Just this past week — with the help of millions of healthcare workers around the country — 200 million doses were reached, a milestone many thought would take much longer to hit. One of the key legislations Biden has passed is the American Rescue Plan, which is a $1.9 trillion-dollar package offering relief, stimulus, and long-term assistance to those hit hardest by the pandemic. Similarly, Biden is working on the American Jobs Plan — a public domestic investment project — which will fund infrastructure projects and job investments by injecting $2 trillion into our staggering economy. These measures just touch the surface on Biden’s plans for the future, and with the way things are going right now, those goals don’t seem too unrealistic.
 
Biden exercised his executive power to undo some of the decisions made during the Trump presidency, including re-entering the Paris Climate Agreement, standing up to Russian cyberattacks, and reversing many verdicts intensifying climate change. These executive orders showed the country how much people’s voices matter to Biden. Nonetheless, many disagree with his handling of immigration and the border crisis. Republican congressmen have called out Biden numerous times in efforts to make him visit the border and prevent illegal immigration. Democrats, on the other hand, are very pleased with Biden’s willingness to deliver on his promises.
 
The progress Biden has made in the first hundred days of his tenure brings up the question — Are we entering a new era in American politics? If so, what does that ‘new era’ entail? It seems as if only time will tell.