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GPT-5Sep 15, 2026openai/gpt-5-2025-08-07
Was Joe Biden a good president?
Short answer: it depends on what you value most. People who focus on legislative output and coalition-building abroad tend to rate him well; people who focus on inflation, immigration, and the Afghanistan exit tend to rate him poorly. Here’s a concise, balanced snapshot.
Where supporters say he did well
•Big laws passed: American Rescue Plan (pandemic relief), a bipartisan infrastructure law, CHIPS and Science Act (semiconductors/tech), and the Inflation Reduction Act (clean-energy spending plus Medicare drug-price negotiations and ACA subsidies).
•Jobs and recovery: Rapid post‑pandemic job growth and low unemployment by historical standards; manufacturing investment picked up, especially in chips, batteries, and clean energy.
•Climate/industry: Largest federal climate package to date, with tax credits that accelerated renewables, EVs, and grid projects, while also keeping energy supply stable.
•Foreign policy: Rebuilt alliances, led support for Ukraine against Russia, tightened tech export controls on China, and helped expand NATO.
•Gun safety and veterans: First significant bipartisan gun-safety law in years; expanded benefits for veterans exposed to burn pits.
•Courts and norms: High volume of federal judicial appointments (including the first Black woman on the Supreme Court).
Where critics say he fell short
•Inflation and costs: Price spikes in 2021–2022 hurt household budgets; critics argue early stimulus was too large and fueled inflation. Even as inflation eased later, some prices stayed high.
•Border/migration: Record migrant encounters and strained local services; comprehensive fixes stalled in Congress, leaving executive actions that pleased neither side.
•Afghanistan withdrawal: Chaotic 2021 exit damaged perceptions of competence, despite ending a long war.
•Energy tradeoffs: Simultaneous record oil/gas production and climate push left both climate activists and fossil-fuel advocates unhappy for different reasons.
•Student loans: Broad cancellation effort was blocked in court; subsequent targeted relief and repayment changes helped some borrowers but frustrated others for being too little or executive overreach.
•Polarization/approval: Approval ratings were persistently underwater, reflecting a divided public and concerns about age/communication.
How to decide for yourself
•If you prioritize passing major laws, industrial policy, climate action, and allied leadership, you may judge him favorably.
•If you prioritize low inflation at all times, strict border control, and a flawless foreign‑policy execution, you may judge him unfavorably.
•Many land in the middle: crediting major accomplishments but faulting inflation, immigration management, or Afghanistan.
If you tell me which areas matter most to you (economy, foreign policy, immigration, climate/energy, health care, civil rights, courts), I can dive deeper—and, if you want, pull the latest hard numbers for jobs, prices, migration, emissions, or deficits.