WHAT DO YOU THINK OF BIDEN?

I was asked the other evening what I thought of President Joe Biden. A rather difficult question to answer in the light of what is happening in Afghanistan and the sceptical reception being faced by Vice President Kamala Harris in her trips abroad.

 

Indeed vice president Harris seems to be out on her own. At present she is hardly mentioned on the news bulletins across British television networks. I do not know what European networks are covering, as there is little coverage of events in Europe in the United Kingdom. News networks are actually rather insular and nationalistic, except when it comes to a shooting incident, fire or explosion of some kind. The goings on in Myanmar had short lived coverage, and the current foreign news is all about people trying to get out from under a Taliban Regime. The problems of the near middle east come and go leaving one as perplexed as ever over the continuing Arab - Israeli discord.

 

Were I a more diligent student of world politics, I would perhaps have a ready and considered view of the current American administration; but I am not, and therefore I find what little knowledge I have gleaned from the sources I do read, see and hear, leaves me apprehensive.

 

President Biden is still faced with a pandemic variant that is racing across the United States, and has a number of State Governors at odds with any rational suggestions to try and deal with the problem. He has a massive group of voters who are stubbornly clinging to a Trump inspired fantasy and a Republican Party that is intent of blocking any legislation proposed by the Democratic Party or the few Republicans who do not subscribe to that delusion.  Never has an American President had to deal with such a large segment of the population who refuse to acknowledge him as the legitimate President of the United States and who would do anything to prevent him succeeding in his stated desire to better the lives of every American citizen and person within the borders of the United States.

 

No president, except perhaps Franklyn Roosevelt, has had to deal with the chaos left by a previous president, in so short a time. Trump’s foreign policy, or lack thereof, has left him with a confused State Department with seemingly one objective, to pull back, regroup and begin again. The pulling back and regrouping is proving extremely difficult and has attracted severe criticism from western countries, particularly in the Parliaments of the United Kingdom and France. Their critique and denigration of the Biden Administration is particularly frustrated by the realisation that they have little influence on the United States and yet they themselves can do nothing without the backing and presence of United States forces. ‘Tis a consummation for which they hardly wished. As a result Boris Johnson continues to play the fool and makes ridiculous statements he cannot substantiate; but, I digress, back to Biden.

 

Given previous statements and comments made over the years Mr. Biden has been in politics, he appears to be a well meaning man, with a social conscience and a willingness to embrace new ideas with a strong desire to improve the lot of his fellow Americans of all descriptions; however, he is faced with looming catastrophes both economic and social. Because of an ongoing pandemic, the world economy is in flux, climate change is creating effects much sooner than expected and repressive regimes and movement towards the political right are emerging round the globe. Climate Change activists are also surfacing in the melee for political attention and solutions.

 

The reality is that what Mr Biden is facing, is what we are all facing, and do I think our current world wide elected representatives are equal to the task of sorting it all out? I have my doubts and certainly not the present United Kingdom cabinet of mediocrities. 

 

Being Joe Biden is not something I would wish on anyone. I have every sympathy for him and hope that he and Ms Harris will find some way to bring some things together and might leave the world in a better place after their time in office. Can they do it? I have no idea. Good luck to them. That’s about all I can say about what I think of President Biden.