Biden’s First Year
One year into the Biden administration, we’ve seen big wins: the American Rescue Plan, a Green Steel Deal, a new global minimum tax.
We’ve seen a new approach to policymaking—with an overdue focus on full employment, climate, care work, and racial equity.
Public power is on the rise, with this week’s COVID test and mask announcements showing what government is capable of.
And corporate power is facing new resistance, from progressive leaders who are reshaping agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
The major hurdles of the last year are still with us: The filibuster continues to obstruct voting rights legislation and essential climate investments, among other progressive priorities. Congressional stalemates have allowed milestone policy achievements, like the expanded Child Tax Credit, to lapse. Antidemocratic institutions are posing threats to democracy itself.
Those existential challenges—which have no easy solutions—must remain a central focus of this administration. But there’s more they can do now, Suzanne Kahn writes.
“It’s vital that the Biden administration act quickly where it can address its priorities—from racial equity to the climate crisis—because Congress has proven it cannot.”
Read more in “Biden’s First Year: Signs of a New Progressive Approach, and the Same Congressional Obstacles.”
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