President Joe Biden speaks to reporters in Nantucket, Mass., on Friday, Nov. 24, 2023, about hostages freed by Hamas in the first stage of a swap under a four-day cease-fire deal. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden is facing fierce political headwinds heading into 2024 as he tries to convince voters that his policies over the last four years have created a more prosperous America.
Polls indicate the message isn’t working, as Biden’s approval rating is hovering around 38%, lower than that of every president since President Jimmy Carter at this point in their first term. He remains about two points behind Donald Trump in a hypothetical rematch of the 2020 election.
A longtime senator and vice president in former President Barack Obama’s administration, Biden ran in 2020 as a “uniter in chief” seeking to heal the country from what he contended was years of division under Trump.
Since taking office, Biden has signed legislation that provided stimulus money in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, invested in infrastructure projects across the country and bolstered American clean energy initiatives.
Much of his first term, though, has been mired by high inflation, a record number of migrants crossing the southern border — two years in a row — and a spike in violent crime in many major cities.
Ahead of the 2024 election, NewsNation is committed to covering the issues that matter most to voters so they can make the most informed choices possible at the polls. You can also read similar policy breakdowns of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former President Donald Trump, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
Here’s a look at Biden’s policy positions and political views as he competes for your vote:
Student loan forgiveness, education
Inflation, economy and national debt
- Shortly after taking office, Biden signed the American Rescue Plan, a $2 trillion stimulus package that delivered checks to Americans, boosted unemployment insurance benefits and expanded the child tax credit.
- Inflation peaked at a four-decade high of 9% in summer 2022 but has since receded to around 3.5%. Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022, which invested in clean energy that the White House estimates created 117,000 jobs and will reduce Americans’ energy costs by as much as 9% by 2030.
- Though Biden has repeatedly claimed the national debt reduced during his time in office, it in fact grew from more than $27 trillion in Jan. 2021 when he took office to nearly $34 trillion as of November.
Violent crime, mental health
- The president in March declined to veto a Republican-backed bill that blocked a Washington, D.C., law from taking effect. The D.C. law would have overhauled the city’s criminal code and eliminated most mandatory minimum sentences, NBC News reported.
- Biden signed an executive order in May 2022 that aimed to advance “accountable policing and criminal justice” by creating a national database of police misconduct and mandating the adoption of body-worn cameras for federal law enforcement agencies.
- The administration’s fiscal year 2023 budget called for $35 billion to support law enforcement and crime prevention.
- Biden in July announced a new rule intended to make it easier for patients to find in-network mental health care through their insurance provider.
Gun reform, ghost guns
Border crisis and immigration
Stance on Israel and Palestine, war in Ukraine
- The president delivered his most forceful statement of support yet for both Israel and Ukraine when he gave an Oval Office address asking Congress for an additional $100 billion in security assistance for the two countries, as well as for the southern border
- Setting out a framework for the Israel-Hamas war, Biden said in a Washington Post op-ed that a two-state solution is needed for peace in Israel and Gaza
China’s military aggression, role in fentanyl production
- Relations with China had been strained for much of Biden’s tenure, but the president said after a November meeting with Xi in San Francisco that the two countries agreed to restore military-to-military communications following a series of unsafe or unprofessional encounters between the two nations’ aircraft and ships.
- The pair at that meeting also discussed trade, fentanyl and climate change, but Biden maintained afterward he still believes Xi is a dictator.
- An executive order issued in August restricts and regulates high-tech U.S.-based investments going toward China.
Childcare availability and costs
- The Child Care Stabilization Program, included in the American Rescue Plan, saved families about $1,125 per child per year, according to the White House.
- The administration proposed new rules in July 2023 that would cap childcare copayments for working families, encourage states to waive copayments for some families, improve financial stability for childcare providers and make it easier for families to access the Child Care & Development Block Grant program.
Abortion, birth control
Fentanyl crisis, opioid epidemic
Climate change, global warming
- On his first day in office, Biden rejoined the Paris Climate Accords after his predecessor, former President Donald Trump removed the U.S. from the agreement while he was in office. The agreement sets a goal for nations to cap their carbon emissions.
- Biden established the first-ever National Climate Task Force, which is working on “protecting the most vulnerable Americans from extreme heat, strengthening the nation’s resilience to extreme weather events, and lowering energy costs for families.”
- Biden has set a goal of having electric vehicles make up 50% of all car sales in 2030. To achieve that, the administration is investing billions of dollars to bolster infrastructure like charging stations and battery components.
Social Security, Medicare
- Biden vowed in a February 2023 speech that he will “not cut a single Social Security or Medicare benefit.”
- In his 2024 budget proposal, Biden called for “protecting and strengthening” Social Security but offered few specifics on reforms to the program, CNBC reported.
- During the 2020 campaign, he proposed raising taxes on those making more than $400,000 to shore up Social Security but largely dropped the idea after taking office, Politico reported.
Rural development
- One of Biden’s signature achievements, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocated $1.2 trillion for road, bridge, rail and port projects across the country
- Biden pledged that high-speed internet will be available to all Americans by 2030 when he announced a $40 billion plan to expand access across the country/
- An estimated 42 million Americans do not have access to broadband internet, creating challenges for both students and teachers in rural school districts across the country.
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