The Biden Angle – A Primer for the Masses

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*Disclaimer: When you’ve been in politics as long as Joe Biden has, you’re likely going to take a variety of (likely conflicting) stances on issues as your base evolves. The information included in this article is the most up-to-date information relevant to his presidency.*

COVID-19: Biden and his campaign have outlined an approach different to the current administration, particularly in rhetoric. Biden has indicated his support for a national mask mandate but stopped short of greenlighting nationwide lockdowns. Biden plans to approach PPE and vaccination treatment similar to the current administration, focusing on production and rapid disbursement.

Race Relations: Biden’s stance on race relations is slightly ambiguous. Categorically, his only true position is “left of Trump.” Biden has expressed support for the reformation of justice systems but has stated that he is not in support of defunding the police. Biden has not given an opinion on some of the more progressive policies his party supports, including creating an anti-racist government agency.

Middle East: Biden is likely to return to the Clinton-Bush-Obama era of foreign policy in the Middle East by facilitating conflicts beneficial to the United States and seeking to end those which are not. Biden will likely approach solutions as his former boss did: seeking to appease regional powers like Iran and viewing the Palestinians as a key to peace.

China: Biden has neglected to provide a rhetoric on China’s behavior, considering it a distraction to larger issues. However, Biden’s former boss, Barack Obama, sought to keep a civil and mild relationship with China, considering the economic power China wields over the global market. Biden will likely approach a similar strategy, attempting to keep the superpower happy to not disrupt global supply lines.

Economy: Biden has illustrated a tax plan throughout his campaign. His plan seeks to overturn the tax cuts of the previous administration pertaining to larger corporations and powerful individuals. Biden has repeatedly stated: “Your taxes will not go up if you make under $400k a year.” For individuals who do, Biden has released tax rates which will take up to 62% of their yearly income.

Climate Change: While not an ardent supporter of the Green New Deal, Biden and his campaign have outlined a plan which takes many elements of the Green New Deal and combines them to form a different plan with a different name. Despite this change of hand, the fundamentals of the plan remain the same: restrictions on industry designed to curtail CO2 emissions from the United States.

Healthcare: Biden and his team have not endorsed a Medicare-for-All plan which seeks to completely abolish private insurance. Instead, Biden has taken the same approach Barack Obama took in his first term: establish a public option in competition with private insurance. He even repeated, “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor.”

Supreme Court (Court Packing): During his campaign, Biden refused to answer questions about court packing (increasing the number of seats on the Supreme Court) until roughly a week prior to the election. When he did answer, Biden essentially removed himself from the equation, stating he would appoint a team of legal scholars and lawyers who would examine and deliberate the solution and come to a consensus. Most analysts acknowledge that this team will likely inform Biden to pack the court.

Immigration: Biden seeks to reinstate DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), a policy which allowed undocumented children to stay in the country if they sought education. Biden wishes to remove the contested travel ban the previous administration installed on various state sponsors of terrorism, particularly from the Middle East. Biden has also expressed interest in reforming the border, though much of the current landscape at the border was established by his former boss.