More answers like this
Claude Sonnet 5Oct 21, 2026anthropic/claude-sonnet-5-20260630
Was Joe Biden a good president?
Whether Joe Biden was a "good" president is a matter of political opinion rather than something with an objective factual answer, so I can't give you a definitive verdict—but I can lay out the major arguments on both sides and let you weigh them.
Arguments often cited in his favor:
•Legislative achievements: He signed significant bills including the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act (which included major climate spending and allowed Medicare to negotiate some drug prices).
•Pandemic/economic recovery: His administration oversaw a strong jobs recovery and low unemployment following COVID-19, along with a significant vaccine rollout push.
•Foreign policy coalition-building: Supporters point to his rallying of NATO and Western allies in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
•Judicial appointments: He appointed Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.
Arguments often cited against him:
•Inflation: The U.S. experienced the highest inflation in four decades during his term, which hurt his approval ratings and became a dominant issue in the 2024 election.
•Border/immigration: Critics point to record levels of illegal border crossings for much of his term as a major policy failure.
•Afghanistan withdrawal: The chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, including the deaths of 13 U.S. service members at Kabul airport, is widely seen as a low point.
•Age and fitness for office: Concerns about his age and mental acuity grew throughout his term, culminating in his widely-criticized debate performance in June 2024 and eventual withdrawal from the 2024 race.
•Approval ratings: His approval ratings were persistently underwater for much of his presidency, ending at historically low levels for a departing president.
Historical assessments of presidents typically take years or decades to settle, and scholarly/public rankings often shift significantly over time. If you'd like, I can look into how recent polls or historians are currently ranking his presidency.