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GPT-5Sep 18, 2026openai/gpt-5-2025-08-07
Was Joe Biden a good president?
Short answer: it depends what you value. Biden’s presidency (through 2024) was consequential, with clear successes and notable failures. Here’s a balanced snapshot many analysts would agree on:
Where supporters say he did well
•Passed major laws: American Rescue Plan (pandemic recovery), bipartisan infrastructure law, CHIPS and Science Act (semiconductors), and the Inflation Reduction Act (clean energy, Medicare drug negotiations, corporate minimum tax).
•Jobs and growth: rapid post‑pandemic job recovery with unemployment staying low by 2023–24; manufacturing investment and clean‑energy build‑out accelerated.
•Health and climate: capped insulin at $35 for many seniors, expanded ACA subsidies, largest federal climate spending to date.
•Judges and diversity: large volume of judicial confirmations, including the first Black woman on the Supreme Court (Ketanji Brown Jackson).
•Foreign policy: rallied NATO and led aid to Ukraine; launched AUKUS and other Indo‑Pacific initiatives; rebuilt some alliances.
Where critics say he fell short
•Inflation and costs: 2021–22 spike in prices (energy, food, rent) hurt real purchasing power, even as inflation later cooled.
•Afghanistan withdrawal: the 2021 exit was chaotic and costly, damaging perceptions of competence.
•Border and immigration: record crossings and policy whiplash drew criticism from both left and right.
•Crime and public order: although trends varied by city and time, perceptions of disorder hurt public confidence.
•Student debt: his broad cancellation plan was struck down; later, narrower relief reached fewer borrowers.
•Foreign-policy controversies: support for Israel during the 2023–24 Gaza war drew intense criticism from parts of his coalition.
Bottom line
•If you prioritize big domestic legislation on infrastructure, climate/industry, and a fast jobs recovery, you may judge him “good” or at least effective.
•If you weight price stability, the Afghanistan exit, the border, or aspects of his Middle East policy more heavily, you may judge him poorly.
•Historically, many see his domestic record as one of the more consequential in recent decades; public approval, however, was tepid, reflecting the trade‑offs above.
If you tell me which issues matter most to you (economy, foreign policy, immigration, climate, etc.), I can give a more tailored assessment—and, if you want, check the latest 2025–2026 data and expert surveys.