President Biden entered office promising rapid action to bring the coronavirus pandemic under control and deliver an aid package for millions of people struggling in the economic downturn.
After 50 days in office, supporters tout his avalanche of executive orders reversing former President Donald Trump’s policies, his work to secure vaccine doses for every person in the United States by the end of May, and the passage of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan as evidence that he is governing just as he promised.
But that may have been the easy bit. Even as he celebrates his first legislative win, analysts and allies suspect Biden will face tougher battles to enact the rest of his agenda.
Recent history shows that presidents in polarized times can hope to deliver only one or two major packages in a term, according to Jeanne Zaino, professor of political science at Iona College. Biden might have just had his big success.
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“We are in the midst of a pandemic that comes once a century. Rahm Emanuel says never let a good crisis go to waste,” she said.
“This is one of the very rare times in our system when a leader could get things done.”
The bill was shunned by Republicans in Congress. But about 70% of the public supported the spending packing, including 41% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, according to a poll published by Pew on Tuesday.
White House advisers spelled out the importance of the bill in a memo obtained by the Washington Examiner.
“At a moment in which the American people are facing dual health and economic crises, this package will get economic relief to the families who need it the most, including $1,400 checks to 85% of households, it will help us reopen schools safely, keep teachers, cops, firefighters, and other essential workers on the job, and it will give us the tools and resources we need to crush this virus,” wrote Anita Dunn and Brian Deese.
The White House has strongly suggested a massive package of infrastructure spending is next — although it has not specified what that will include.
Zaino said that whatever it contains would not be as popular as legislation that will send the checks to people.
“When you are talking voting reform, criminal justice reform, immigration reform — infrastructure might be the easiest to pass — but it will be difficult, and Republicans are signaling they are going to fight,” she said.
Biden has had the wind behind him for his first 50 days. His left wing has largely fallen into line even as a $15-per-hour minimum wage fell out of his bill while Republicans and their cable news allies have focused on the culture wars — exercising outrage over everything and everyone from Mr. Potato Head to Dr. Seuss to Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
They were powerless to slow Biden during his first days in office, using executive orders to show he meant business. On Inauguration Day, he revoked the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline and recommitted the U.S. to rejoin the Paris climate agreement, the largest international effort to curb global warming.
He ordered a review of Trump-era regulations on science and the environment, as well as foreign policy priorities. And he signed orders revoking other Trump policies, ending restrictions on travel from Muslim-majority nations, rejoining the World Health Organization, and ending construction of a border wall.
And he has made progress on a promise to vaccinate 100 million people against COVID-19 within his first 100 days.
“I think Biden and his administration made very clear coming into the White House that the priority was getting shots into arms and checks into bank accounts, and it seems like, as of this week, they are going to be successful,” said Nick Ryan, former campaign chief for Andrew Yang’s presidential campaign and a strategist at New Politics.
The government and the country have responded to unprecedented crisis. In 50 days:
?85% of country to receive financial support
?75% of those > 75 have received vaccines; 1/4 of all adults
?50% cut in child poverty
?expansion of ACA
?small business support
?safe schools— Andy Slavitt @ ??? (@ASlavitt) March 10, 2021
Now, Biden is up against the reality of governing, he added, dealing with a Senate caucus that covers everyone from Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders to centrist Joe Manchin and a filibuster rule that means he needs 60 votes in a chamber split 50-50 unless he uses the “reconciliation” process as he did with his spending bill.
“It took some political capital to get those things done,” said Ryan, referring to progress on vaccines and the relief package. “And I’m sure the administration is going through, thinking is it minimum wage, is it infrastructure, is it election reform? What’s the next priority?”
“There are not unlimited bullets in the revolver,” he added. “You only get a few.”
Particularly when Biden is dependent on using reconciliation to get his priorities through a divided Senate. Under congressional rules, he has one more stab at using the mechanism for a spending bill, such as the $2 trillion infrastructure plan he unveiled during the campaign.
That has the left of his party hoping for great things.
“This will be a giant, long-term economic recovery bill that has infrastructure and clean energy jobs as a giant centerpiece,” said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee and an ally of Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
Rather than marking the high-water mark of the Biden presidency, he added, passage of the COVID-19 relief bill will serve as precedent.
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“There was no muscle memory in the Joe Manchins of this world or the White House about how to go big, stick to a position, and win. But the concept is now proven,” he said. “They can do it with just Democratic votes, and the public will support them. You can argue it might be easier the second time around.”
