Eurasia Press & News
The relief at US President Joe Biden taking office was toasted by global leaders emptying their cut glass decanters in his honour, one year ago today.
His promise of “strong, steady, stable leadership” didn’t sound like much of a sales pitch on the stumps, but a few weeks after the chilling scenes at the Capitol, when Trump supporters ran amok and people died, it was precisely what a bruised America and shocked world needed.
But currently, if poll standings and the state of America are anything to go by, Mr Biden has little to crow about.
In his defence, few presidents have ever had to face such a formidable to-do list.
He inherited a divided nation, a disunited party and pandemic that had the country in turmoil.
The fact that he has only faced the media six times on his own since entering office tells its own story. The weight of the pandemic is still bearing down on the Biden presidency.
Even as Donald Trump seems to override voting laws, Mr Biden finds himself thwarted by his own party. His Build Back Better initiative has been embarrassingly stymied.
A $2trn package aiming to address climate change, reduce child poverty and expand the social safety net languishes on the back burner in a time of dire need.
He has promised Americans a “reset”. He better deliver one, not just for his presidency but for an American people battered by the virus, and facing the highest levels of inflation in years.
One of his core pledges was to re-establish America at the forefront of global leadership.
