First, let me just mention that I’ve become a big fan of historian Heather Cox Richardson. Although she teaches American history at Boston College, I know her from her books and now mostly get her masterful ability to put current events into historical context via her weekly podcast (“Now & Then”) with fellow historian Joanne Freeman. But I’ve read some of her books and online columns as well.
For some stupid reason, I don’t mention her nearly enough in Black Ink. But the other day I stumbled on a recent video of Richardson interviewing Joe Biden just after he had nominated Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. I recommend the wide-ranging 30-minute interview not just because I’m a Richardson fanboy but because the interview brought me back to the times when I have been most impressed with Biden.
To be clear, Biden didn’t make any news in the interview, nor did Richardson ask him the kind of questions he is usually asked. He seemed relaxed, but not rambling. Richardson asked Biden questions journalists wouldn’t ask, in the sense that they were not “news” questions, and also that she was never in “gotcha” mode, trying to get Biden to say something he shouldn’t say or didn’t mean to say.
As a result, Biden seemed quite human, authentic and willing to open up a bit. His stutter practically disappeared. Really. He talked for 30 minutes and, if you weren’t obsessed with noting the few small exceptions, his stutter disappeared.
But his answers were quite substantive. Well, maybe “substantive” is the wrong word. He seemed open, honest, more philosophical than we’re used to hearing. He spoke without notes or a script, but also without the heavy pressure to give short answers, or even newsy answers.
If you watch it, maybe you’ll think his answers ramble (not much, according to me). He seemed roughly the opposite of a guy who had walked into the interview with five talking points his handlers told him to be sure to mention.
You might find him a bit rambling, but that surely seems to be because Richardson wasn’t interrupting. And he didn’t have to worry about recognizing any other questioners. It helps, I suppose, that Richardson doesn’t start with a “news agenda” designed to elicit headline-worthy answers. Also, Richardson let him talk. She asked only a few questions and he stretched out into them, but he didn’t repeat himself. It was calming, refreshing, even reassuring.
I’m not in love with Biden as a speaker. Not at all. Of course, when it’s a speech, he’s generally reading it off a teleprompter. I guess you could say that the ability to read smoothly of a teleprompter has become vital to a successful presidency, but it’s kind of a dumb pet trick. And when it’s a press conference, Biden is often facing hostile or “gotcha” questions.
This was better. Not newsier. Not at all. I can’t find a single news story anyone wrote about this interview. But “news” is its own construct. Biden made roughly no news in this 30-minute interview. But it left me feeling a bit better about Biden, about the country, life in general.
If this makes you want to watch the Richardson-Biden encounter, it’s right here.
Mr. Black, do you feel the American people can take comfort from an interview where non of the major concerns of their life were discussed? People (in the real world) need leadership not companionship from their President.
No, he didn’t address the price of gas in Minnesota (the most important issue facing America today, I know), but that wasn’t the point of the interview.
Once in a while, it is good to hear elected officials talk about their ideas and principles in terms that are perhaps more detailed than a Twitter message or some taunts shouted during the State of the Union address. Many Americans don’t have the patience to sit still for anything that doesn’t amuse them, or that doesn’t concern them personally at this very moment, but a lot of us have lost patience with the politics of entertainment and solipsism.
I take comfort in knowing that in a time of international crisis the former guy, who wanted to exit NATO, spends his days just trying to extort dollars from his loyal followers.
Any criticism of Biden must include an analysis of “what if the other guy won” because that is the reality of our circumstances: Outcome A or outcome B, take your pick.
Biden, for all his faults and idiosyncrasies, is a basically competent manipulator of the controls of government. Making competent hires and then listening to their advice. I’m reminded of the former guy’s White House Chief of Staff and National Security Advisor, two fairly significant jobs in the White House, talking pre-COVID and the theme was “What would he do if we had a real crisis”. Not exactly a vote of confidence from the team of “I only hire the best people”.
We know how well Trump handled COVID. And what next?
The shots in arms would have been left to the states with endless finger pointing
Why get out of Afghanistan when you can just talk about it for 4 more years
He would have held a couple more Infrastructure Weeks with no infrastructure
And all of our newly minted Russia Hawks here would really be doubling down on the Tucker Carlson line of “Why should we hate Putin?” and who really cares about Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania anyway?
Seems our conservative friends are going with Outcome F: Fantasy of what their perfect world looks like. Not sure who leads them there.
I think that NATO’s purpose (America’s promise to defend Europe against the Soviets) ended when the Cold War ended, but if Europe wants to maintain a defensive alliance, that’s their business. If anything Trump strengthened NATO by demanding that they start building up their defenses and contributing their 2% to the kitty. Germany essentially has no functioning military, France still refuses to fight in most cases, and so if anything, Trump’s warning has come to pass and some seem willing to learn from it.
They should be thanking him for his insight.
“They should be thanking [Trump] for his insight.”
And for his latest stoke of genius: paint US stealth fighters with Chinese markings and bomb Russia in a “false flag” attack. What could possibly go wrong?
To RB and Edward, I’m happy for you that an interview with the President of the United States, without one question about real world problems, makes you feel good. Who could ever get tired of good ole “Corn Pop”? Many Americans, around 70%, would like a bit more information on supply chain, why we buy oil from Russia as opposed to more drilling here, empty shelves in stores, you know real world problems.
“Many Americans, around 70% . . .”
That’s an interesting figure. How did you arrive at it?
“. . . would like a bit more information on supply chain . . .”
I’ll bet a bunch of those Americans – at least, the ones who know what “supply chain” means – are aware this is a global issue, not something the President of the United States can solve.
“. . . why we buy oil from Russia . . .”
They don’t know about the former President who was Putin’s BFF? I find that difficult to believe.
“. . . as opposed to more drilling here . . .”
You’re right: most Americans are opposed to more drilling here. There are real surveys (i.e. a sample size greater than “people I happen to talk to”) saying that.
” . . . empty shelves in stores . . .”
That’s the “supply chain,” Joe.
Sorry RB but 70% of Americans want more domestic oil production according to Rasmussen. That would be 7 out of 10 people that disagree with you and Biden.
Opinion polling on this issue is volatile, even for reputable, non-Rasmussen polls. I’ve seen surveys from a year or two ago that show a majority opposed to domestic oil exploration.
Opinions are also contradictory, with some showing a majority opposing increased exploration while also wanting the US to become energy independent.
Just as a thought experiment: would this discussion even be happening if research and development of renewable energy had not been dismissed over the last few years as just more hippy nonsense?
All of America thinks we should ban Russian oil and drill for our own except for one person – Joe Biden. Asking him why would have been my first question.
I’m an American. Have been all of my longish live. I have believed for quite some years now that fossil fuels drive the world…but shouldn’t. They have cost the world collectively in many ways, from massive profit$ plus fed govn subsidies (?!) To massive destruction to over-whelming amts now choking the world and broken down into beads if it being ingested by many species. Madman Putin’s war against Ukraine is primarily about continuing to sell the world oil far into the future. Break away from that trend and make giant leaps to sustainable, safer, greener energy modes…and the short man’s power and fortunes sink.
LK, hard to heat your home with a green energy source that is years away from being able to power major areas of the USA. Ask Germany how that “green” energy is working for them.
The GOP has sided with the extraction industries for over 40 years. We could’ve learned from the gas crisis of the late 70s & focused on severing our economy from resources buried under other countries. Remember Reagan removing solar panels from the White House? We should’ve been investing in new technology all this time; instead we’ve spent trillions “stabilizing” the middle east to maintain an oil based economy. What a colossal waste of money, time, & energy.
Just the facts: “Germany has been called “the world’s first major renewable energy economy”. The share of renewable electricity rose from just 3.4% of gross electricity consumption in 1990, provided by conventional hydro, to exceed 10% by 2005 thanks to additional biomass and wind, and reaching 42.1% of consumption in 2019.” Success happens over time not over night. Guess who will be the leaders when Green is a must do not a nice to do?
Joe, it was 30 minutes out of the President’s life. It wasn’t a 4 hour round of golf. It was 30 minutes. And no time out of your life that you didn’t sacrifice all by yourself. And, as an actual person, I’m perfectly fine with my president being both a leader and a human being. Biden’s doing just fine.
A puff piece about a softball interview? Has there ever been a less timely column on this site?
I find Biden to be an absolute breath of fresh air. He’s a statesman, is honest, cares deeply, is well versed daily in world events, is well regarded by other world leaders, and is trying hard to be supportive of Ukraine while avoiding WWIII. Short version. His biggest skill throughout his long illustrious career has been the ability to covene large disparate groups of people and emerge w consensus…and everyone happy with the results and each other. Life under the Trump regime, by comparison, felt constantly explosive and like living in a meet grinder. It was tense and exhausting and purposefully kept everyone off balance.
Biden is who we thought he was. Most importantly Not Trump
Amiable mediocre placeholder
In terms of actual experience, I can only note that Biden is probably the most qualified person ever to hold the office.
Whatever that’s worth…
Greg didn’t actually watch the interview. If he had, there’s no way he would have come away with “mediocre.” I have to admit that watching the interview opened my eyes to just how brilliant and qualified Biden actually is.
I was have not yet watched the interview. Judging his performance in general, mediocre is apt. His handling of Ukraine has been a good job in a bad situation.
Anything is better than his predecessor
WOW! More vanilla news on the pages of MinnPost about Joe Biden. Who would have thought it?
If they write about Trump, you complain because they keep bringing him up.
If they write about Biden, you complain because you think the article is too favorable.
Are you never satisfied?
Agree with your description and reaction, Eric. The complainers here no doubt were triggered to witness a generous, articulate President not at all like their tiresome agitprop.
I am also a fan of Heather Cox Richardson. She produces a daily “Letter from an American” It’s free. You just have register. It’s a recap of events here and around the world from a historical perspective. She does a nice job defining the issue(s) and reminds us we have been here before in many cases. It’s a well sourced commentary which one would expect from a history professor. She also reminds us of the courage some of our political leaders have exercised to keep this great experiment of the United States moving to a more just future. And to be watchful of the perils that could lay ahead that could undermine our freedoms. I certainly don’t mind a more conversational approach as opposed to circus atmosphere of press briefings and the recent State of the Union address where some are just trying to score points. There are great challenges ahead for this country and the world and a little historical perspective sharpens us all. She doesn’t shrink from pointing out the forces that produced our original sin of slavery and that these forces exist today in different forms. And that we have our own oligarchs in this country that greatly influence how we all live. It’s worth the time to read whether you agree with her or not. Thanks for posting Mr. Black.
For a too large segment of the American population, it makes no difference that Biden is a decent, empathetic man doing what he thinks is best for the nation, and not for himself. I would be willing to bet that 4 out of the first 5 responses are folks who get their “news” from the Fox ghouls and others way over on the right. I don’t think that all Americans want to “ban Russian oil and drill for our own.” Quite sure the too large segment would be crying about the price of gasoline in no time. There is also the inconvenient factor that our allies in NATO would have to go along. And, maybe, just maybe, if this nation would take climate change seriously, we would have weaned ourselves from oil enough so Putin wouldn’t be holding that card.
(Side note: NATO is an organization the great leader mused about leaving and did his best to fracture. A good many people hope that its collective response will deter Putin from any more “genius” moves. You know, genius moves that try to bring 40 million or so people living in a democratic nation back under Russian rule. Or moves that create over a million refugees. Or moves that destroy places where civilians live and kill a good many of them.)
Several similarities really stand out between Putin and the great leader. Putin plays at a different level, but one is the ruthlessness of both. And it’s a ruthlessness born of craving total domination. Two, is blatant lying. Ukraine was planning to invade Russia and the great leader had an election stolen. Three, is the willingness to ignore any rules. Just when you think he can’t sink any lower, Putin and the great leader manage to do it.
So give me a decent human being to lead this country through a scary time. One cares about people and is content to speak as a regular person instead of blathering on any chance he gets without any regard for the welfare of others.
OK lets try again: Appears a number of commenters would prefer presidential discussions that can be answered in ~ 3 words, such as “build a wall”, “drill baby drill” etc. beyond that all no interest in diving into the whys about what is happening and how we are, where we are, or the consequences of actions.
Thank you for posting this interview and plugging Heather Cox Richardson. She has a large and growing audience for good reason. Jill Biden is one of her millions of fans world-wide, which I guess is how the invitation to interview came about. It’s a shame not to include her written intro to the interview from her substack email and Facebook post, which illuminates both her questions and his answers.
She’s a powerful counter to the conservative narrative and has to contend with threats, trolls, and an imposter page on Facebook. Spreading the word about her as a source of learning history and finding hope and encouragement is a real service to your readers.
I have a question for Dennis and Joe. Why aren’t our Saudi friends stepping up to help with the oil supply issue? We flew them home after 9/11, sold them all the discounted arms they wanted, fawned over them during the last administration, didn’t and still don’t have much to say about the Kashoggi or the Yemen thing. And why were they pumping away trying to keep us from fracking our way to energy independence a couple of years ago? Ideology is nice but macroeconomics are the straw that stirs the drink.
Remember the First Gulf War? When US soldiers fought and died to protect the monarchies in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia?
I would say they still owe us for that one.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been turned off by Biden’s insane embrace of Iran. And ironically Biden needs Russia’s help to revive the terrible deal Obama signed. Just one more example of the terrible decisions Obama and Biden made which lead us into this mess.
Biden won’t recognize MBS as the ‘defacto leader’ so he’s having a temper tantrum. And regressing back–a big but foolish REP push now on many fronts–to heavy fossil fuel usage is not the answer now! Massively & quickly–and finally!–moving towards safer, greener, more sustainable and far less destructive energy modes will also move the world away from the fossil fuel carnage the earth is crumbling under…and away from more resultant and also enormously costly and destructive wars. Reading daily news accounts from a wide variety of reputable media sources worldwide will provide much needed clarity on the relevant issues.
So you’re saying the Biden administration shouldn’t be asking OPEC to increase production? You realize this is what’s happening? Domestically pretend wind and solar can power all your batteries, while begging other countries to increase oil production.
There is an important timeframe distinction that you don’t mention. Our current infrastructure is built around fossil fuels. This means we have ongoing fossil fuel demand, until we can convert to other fuel sources. Basically, we need to electrify everything. But even if auto manaufacturers sould switch to 100% ev production overnight, there are still millions of vehicles on the road that have years more of useful life. Some for home heating, hot water & cooking appliances. Not to mention commercial / industrial grade stuff.
The point is about accelerating the rate of change from fossil fuel sources to renewable sources. But it doesn’t happen overnight.
Though, in my opinion, a little pain at the pump would do us some good.
The truckers who convoyed paid a huge price for diesel.
Shale wells have been idled due to the collapse of the oil market. Now that oil has breached the 100 dollar mark, many players will start up their pumps and pipelines, even if OPEC continues to slow production to support better prices.
Nuclear war notwithstanding, President Biden and his spokespeople have explained that decisions about what to do with Russia need approval from our allies, or at least a chance to see if they are unified.
It strikes me as more petulant immature Republican grievance for them to demand unilateral actions by the USA.
That’s a good thing.
I wonder whether some of the money that used to come from Russian sources to fund things like the “Freedom Convoy” might dry up. I guess I don’t feel too bad for anyone losing their shirt over protesting masks and vaccines. Especially since I’m certain that those very same truckers were more likely than not to claim that protesting in a major road and blocking traffic isn’t legitimate way to protest. They think the sauce discriminates between dead geese. Every action has consequences, and if they go broke, don’t come crying to the government for aid. If the last 5 years and a pandemic have taught me anything, it’s that my empathy does, indeed, have limits.
Biden bans Russian oil…. What changed?
Apart from giving you something new to complain about, not much in the US, at least as far as what it will cost you to gas up the pickup. Oil is a global market, so this just shifts what the US would be buying to other buyers.
On the (gasp!) moral end of the equation, it means we are not supporting Putin’s economy and are helping it towards a crash.
Here’s how the NYT explained it:
President Biden announced a ban on the importation of Russian oil and natural gas into the United States, a step that could increase gasoline prices, after pressure from lawmakers in both parties to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Speaking from the White House, Mr. Biden said: “This means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable to U.S. ports and the American people will deal another powerful blow to this war machine.”
So… sounds like bipartisan consensus built over time.
He saw the polls. And after all, it’s only the people who have to go to work every day who will be harmed, and the democrats disowned them when they started voting republican.
I’m shocked, just shocked that you’ll now criticize the President for doing exactly what you said. How could anyone have seen THAT coming.
If he hadn’t shut down our oil and gas industries on his first day in office, none of this would have been necessary. Just another thing Trump was right about. Energy is a national security issue that shouldn’t be jeopardized by having to rely on sketchy foreign powers. Now Biden has to go hat in hand to Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and yes, Iran.
Way to go, Joe.
I’m not aware that the Democrats ever started voting Republican.
Well, so Biden does what you have been calling for since the start of the invasion and your response is to question the basis for the decision? This is arguing in bad faith and is unreasonable; even when Biden implements what you endorse you find fault.
And does it really matter “what changed?” Your proposed policy preference is now in effect. But I predict that it, too, will be inadequate because Keystone, federal land leases, green energy efforts, something, something, etc etc.
A new CBS poll indicates that 71% of Americans agree that we should pay more at the pump if it will aid Ukraine. So there’s that as well….
Ian, so our intelligent President thought it was a good idea to pay the Russians 10’s of millions of dollars per day for their oil until he didn’t . Our intelligent President had both parties pushing him to stop the idiotic practice of paying Russia to wage war, yet Biden said no we will continue to buy Russian oil. Then in one moment our intelligent President decides it is not a good idea to pay for Russia to invade Ukraine. As I stated what happened? So far I have not seen one thing written here that explains it. Just a bunch of excuses.
He changed his mind. Just like conservatives do when they find themselves, as always, on the wrong side of public opinion, and need to save face. Difference being of course, the President actually means it, and conservatives always, always, always lie, even if telling the truth is to their benefit.
First of all, I don’t think you know how Russian oil is imported into America. I don’t either, but I doubt it’s a daily occurrence and instead likely depends on orders placed rather far out in time. And even if we somehow bought “daily”, the small amount of oil the US imported hardly “financed” the Russian army; that’s simple hyperbole on your part.
Second, if you’ve been following the invasion of Ukraine, it’s clear the war crimes of Putin and his generals have escalated over the course of the first week of Putin’s War, with the Russian soldiery now openly bombing civilians and trying to destroy pubic works infrastructure (electricity, water, etc) solely to harm Ukrainian civilians and break “morale”. That’s (another) war crime. So Biden concluded that the US should escalate our sanctions regime to include Russian energy, a move you claim to have supported from the start.
It’s not really hard to understand the “change” if one wants to.
We already add so much more info based on data and could add more. But you either: 1) wouldn’t read it, or 2) would refute it. You only want to stir the pot on here daily with short snarky comments. Never anything in-depth or thought provoking. Your goal is never facts, truth, clarity or depth or back & forth dialoque. The R has been taught for years by their politicians to hate & blame, hate & blame. At this point it’s an automatic knee jerk reaction of every loyal REP. No thought or effort required. It’s beyond frustrating when almost half the population is OK with this completely non-productive approach. Where blind automatic acceptance of one political side’s ‘talking points’ displaces informed discourse.
The current price of gas rests squarely on the naive energy polices of Western elites. But it’s the poorest who will suffer the most.
I agree with you, cory, but for vastly different reasons, I’ll wager.
In 1973 with the first Arab oil embargo, every futurist prediction was that the world (and especially the major consumer US of A) would transition to smaller, fuel efficient vehicles to reduce both our demand for oil and our dependence on foreign oil. But what happened was essentially the opposite: the world oil companies scoured the globe for new deposits (mostly offshore) and successfully increased “reserves”.
This allowed our irresponsible auto manufacturers, and the “conservative” regime of St Reagan, to permit the US auto fleet to transition not to more fuel -efficient vehicles, but instead to the absurd elephantine gas-guzzling monsters we see clogging the roads across America today, from sea to shining sea. In order to help these drivers waste the irreplaceable fossil fuels, the (always subsidized) oil industry found ways to improve fracking technology to restore the US to its position as a major fossil fuel manufacturer. That this production method is environmentally harmful was of course of no consequence, because the fleet of gas guzzlers had to be gas-upped on a daily basis. That these methods were dependent on a higher price of crude and were scraping the bottom of the oil barrel was also not much considered.
Enter the Trump Pandemic in 2020. Demand fell substantially, so prices fell. The expensive methods became uneconomical; global supply constricted. Now, in 2022 as the world climbs out of the pandemic, demand has rebounded faster than supply can quickly accommodate. And OPEC has decided that it wants more for its irreplaceable oil. And Putin’s War has made Russian oil anathema, hopefully until such time as Czar Putin is deposed. So gas prices are rising. They will likely moderate as US production increases again with the high per barrel price.
Under the irrefutable theory of Peak Oil, at some point maximum global oil production will be reached, since all the world’s oil has been discovered, and no more ancient fossil fuel can be created. This reality will (in the not-too-far-off future) implacably impose itself, and world oil production will relentlessly decrease, year after year.
So what’s moral of the story? The US was indeed “naive” in its oil policy, thinking that the route to “freedom” was via the SUV and the Monster Pick-up, and thinking that destructive fracking was going to get us anything more than another couple decades of (high cost) production. When will we finally understand that there is only so much crude oil in the ground, that it’s an irreplaceable energy source, and that it’s a monstrous immorality to simply waste it by letting anyone with $3000 dollars in their pocket “buy” a $65,000 gas guzzler?
Never, as long as the “conservative” movement holds power in this country….
I wasn’t aware that we had ‘energy police’.
At most, cheap gas has encouraged people to drive pickups and SUV’s instead of more fuel efficient vehicles.
Biden is doing a super Job.
1) Disastrous pullout from Afghanistan
2) Brink of WW3
3) Rampant Inflation
4) Skyrocketing Energy Prices
5) Southern Border Chaos
This is just the top 5. And in office for a bit over a year. I can’t wait to see what else happens in the next 2-3/4 years.
Articulate??? He can’t speak without a teleprompter and they won’t let him answer any reporters questions. He looks at his watch to see how much longer he has to endure the pain. His mouth might work, but I questions his brain.
Would you rather have a President who speaks like an aphasic sociopath? Because we tried that.
Pretty simple actually. I want an honest president with the best interest of the people he is serving in mind. One who can communicate, think and has a backbone. Neither the current president, nor the last president fit that criteria.
That you cannot differentiate between the strengths and weaknesses of Trumpolini and Biden, or determine which are important and which are not, pretty much tells the story….
We have that. Take a step back, stop talking, and do an honest assessment. One doesn’t have to be as miserably and perennially as discontented as you clearly are. How do you get out of bed every morning if you think the world is so awful??? Your tunnel vision is blinding you.
Trump says exactly what’s on his mind … which I find refreshing and others find horrifying. Regardless, his problem is that people have been conditioned to mealy-mouthed politicians who speak plenty of words but say nothing. Trump had no “minders” and would answer press questions on the tarmac all day long. Biden refuses to take questions after he’s read the words that someone else has written for him.
Reminder: every president has had speech writers. Still hearing way too much “it’s fine if our side does it, but not yours”. Both words & actions have consequences, so let’s focus on those instead. And be fair about it. I’ll take a person w honesty & empathy over one who lies incessantly and shows a complete lack of empathy, plus a massive cruelty & destructive streak, any day. Our elected officials take oaths of office and pledge to do what’s best for the masses. To meet the ‘needs of the people’. Not their own. That is civil service.
Umm, pretty sure Trump never spent an iota of time with the press discussing hamberders, not yet legal beauty pageant contestants, and what he might do with his daughter if he was able, so that puts the lie to your “he spoke about what was on his mind” up front. Of course he did spend the rest talking about himself…
Trump’s words revealed himself to be an ignorant narcissist and bully, as well as one of the most crass, classless people to occupy the White House.
Refreshing? Humiliating for Americans to have to admit he was the President, you mean.
Well, let’s discuss your critique.
1. I’ll grant the troop withdrawal was chaotic, and turned out to be disaster for the ideal of a free, liberal and democratic Afghanistan. But the Afghan army simply refused to fight an enemy it totally outclassed, and most Americans agreed that we can’t support the Afghans forever. The (immediate) collapse of the regime showed it was a Potemkin protectorate at best. I doubt “conservatives” care too much about the values of a liberal Afghanistan, frankly. Its chief function now is to serve as a cudgel to beat Biden with. That was the risk he ran trying to finally end the nation’s longest war.
2. This WW3 talk is hyperbole, and in any event the invasion of Ukraine is the fault of one man and one man only, Czar Putin. Further, he’s the one rattling his nuclear saber. Who’s more to blame for WWII, Chamberlain or Hitler? We’ve spent enough time jousting over your idea that Biden or the West could have easily and quickly stopped Putin from commencing his reconquest of Ukraine; I’ve found all your arguments 20/20 hindsight or merely manufactured out of whole cloth solely for Biden-Blaming.
Your 3. and 4. are naturally interrelated, and both are overwhelmingly the product of western capitalists’ building of a fragile supply chain that collapsed with the very first global shock it experienced: the Covid Pandemic. Oil supply is a very slow moving ship, which also proved very susceptible to a major variation in demand during the pandemic. Most goods markets will adjust with time, but it must be remembered that the reality of Peak Oil means that there never will be cheap gas ever again. Price will ALWAYS ratchet upwards over the coming decades, it’s just a question of how quickly the next price plateau is reached.
And to the extent that wages are rising because the labor market is tight, that’s because many people have decided they’ve worked long enough or long enough for low wages; again, that’s a result of the shock to the markets from the pandemic, and there’s little that any politician can do about it, whatever conservatives may imagine. The pandemic is of course not Biden’s fault, he’s the one who has actually been dealing with it, to the extent the “conservative” movement and its judges have allowed him…
Your 5. is in my view a special fake news topic reserved mostly for rightwing consumption. I’ll leave it to you to explain in depth the exact danger to the country you foresee.
Finally, I seem to remember watching Biden have a press conference in Jan, where he answered questions for around 2 hours. I will await your explanation as to how this feat fits within your imagined “Biden handlers don’t allow him to talk” narrative…
With all that’s going on in the world, when was the last time Biden had a press conference to answer questions about the events of the day? Why isn’t the press pressuring him to hold one? Because they don’t want him, their choice for president, to be embarrassed.
Leaving Afghanistan was actually much more successful than I would have imagined was possible. Very little loss of life for US troops, we would have certainly lost more troops by staying than by leaving. No armed conflict with the Taliban. 130,000 people airlifted out of the country in a month. If you’re upset that the misadventures in Afghanistan turned out to be a colossal waste of blood and treasure you should be upset with the decisions of past presidents that kept us there way past the time when it had any benefit to our country. Leaving Afghanistan was the best decision Joe Biden has made in his entire presidency.
The US oligarchs are raising prices to try to oust Biden because they knew it worked with Jimmy Carter. US energy policy is about 50 years behind the times.
Yup. The gas price scandal can only be explained as proof of an oligopolistic, non-competitive market, since not a single oil company paid or incurred a per barrel price that justifies today’s price/gallon.
In a country with a functioning Congress, today’s gas price gouging would be all the evidence needed to implement laws regulating the oil industry as a public utility. Which should have been done 20 years ago.
And providing fighter planes to Ukraine to the pile of pathetic flip flops.
What shade of sunglasses do you have to be looking through to refute that Joe Biden has not had any negative effect on anything over the last year?