AMAC Exclusive – By Claire Brighn
Most Americans have grown used to the trail of broken promises that establishment politicians have left in their wake in recent decades, but Joe Biden might just have set a new standard for dishonesty, duplicity, and betrayal. After four years of a president who took pride in the mantra “Promises Made, Promises Kept,” Biden brings the unwelcome return of an old Washington tradition. Here are the top ten promises Biden has already flagrantly broken less than one year into office.
1. “I will shut down the virus, not the economy.” – Campaign Rally in Tampa, Florida, October 29, 2020
In the final months of his campaign, one of Biden’s central campaign promises was that he was going to get Americans back to work and eradicate COVID-19. Despite Biden lacking any clear plan for how he would accomplish this goal (and while he in fact worked to do the opposite by sowing vaccine hesitancy as a cynical campaign tactic), the mainstream media quickly adopted the narrative as well, insisting that a Joe Biden presidency would mean a “return to normal.”
Instead, more Americans have died in 2021 from the virus than 2020. Upon taking office, Biden pulled a 180, claiming credit for the very vaccines he once questioned would be “real.” November was the worst jobs report of the year. Over 550,000 jobs were expected, but just over 200,000 jobs were created. And as the economy continues to tumble, blue states are reinstating mask mandates and even closing schools again.
2. “I don’t think [vaccine mandates] should be mandatory.” – press conference, December 4, 2020
After Biden did everything within his power to undermine public confidence in the COVID-19 vaccines as a candidate, he then promised that he “wouldn’t demand it [the vaccine] to be mandatory.”
However, less than a year into his presidency Biden has abused his power and dictated an unconstitutional employer mandate regarding the vaccine, violating the medical and employment freedom of millions of Americans. Biden’s vaccine mandate threatens nearly 45 million Americans with the possible loss of their jobs and may cost businesses at least $1.29 billion in compliance costs, again undercutting his promise to put Americans back to work. Just this week, 27 Air Force service members became the first military personnel discharged over Biden’s vaccine mandate.
3. “If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst. I will be an ally of the light, not the darkness. It is time for us, for we, the people, to come together. And make no mistake, united we can and will overcome this season of darkness in America.” – Nomination Acceptance Address, August 20, 2020.
If there was one core promise of Biden’s campaign, it was to unite America in the wake of the supposedly divisive Trump era, a fake narrative constantly advanced by the establishment news media. Yet Biden has delivered the opposite of unity—with one exception: he has unified Americans against him, with some polls showing a dismal job approval rating of just 38%.
At every opportunity, Biden has promoted division by stoking an “us” versus “them” mentality. In one speech, Biden infamously blamed unvaccinated Americans for the struggling economy, saying, “We’ve been patient, but our patience is wearing thin.” He also told Republicans to “get out of the way” when it came to raising the federal debt ceiling, as if half of the American People’s representatives should be expected to simply stand aside at Biden’s insistence.
But beyond the divisive rhetoric, Biden’s policies and ideology are so polarizing that not even every Congressional Democrat can agree on them. His administration’s signature “Build Back Better” plan is so extreme that it has brought the Democratic Party to the brink of a civil war.
4. “No new taxes” for Americans making less than $400,000 – Interview, August 21, 2020
While on the campaign trail, one of Biden’s favorite lines was that anyone making under $400,000 would not pay a penny more in taxes. However, his nearly $2 trillion (many say $5 trillion) Build Back Better Act that just passed the House would undeniably raise direct taxes on many middle class households, something even the left-leaning Tax Policy Center has admitted.
But even if some families won’t be taxed directly, every family has been hit hard by the hidden tax of record-high inflation as a result of out-of-control government spending under the Biden administration. What’s worse, inflation is particularly devastating for lower-income Americans, the very people that Biden assured voters he would help the most. If Biden’s spending plan passes the Senate, those already hard-hit families will also have to face much higher costs for things like child care, something many can already barely afford.
5. “We will not conduct a hasty rush to the exit [out of Afghanistan]. We’ll do it — we’ll do it responsibly, deliberately, and safely.” – Remarks on Afghanistan, April 14, 2021
Far from his promise to exit “safely” and “responsibly,” shocking images emerged during the U.S. evacuation of Afghans flung off American planes mid-air in a desperate attempt to leave before all hell broke loose and the Taliban began executing people in the streets. Amid the chaos, 13 heroic American service members were killed by terrorists, and many more were gravely injured. More than $80 billion of American military equipment fell into the hands of the Taliban, and American allies felt completely blindsided.
The country soon learned that responsibility for this disaster ultimately fell at the feet of one man – Joe Biden. Top U.S. military leaders testified that they urged Biden against his withdrawal strategy, and foreign policy experts had warned that such a catastrophic outcome was likely. However, it is clear that Biden was more concerned with trying to achieve a domestic political victory than making decisions based on the realities on the ground. As a result, the world is less safe and millions of Afghans now suffer under a brutal terrorist regime.
6. “We’re going to stay until we get [all Americans] out [of Afghanistan].” – Interview with George Stephanopoulos, August 19, 2021
In addition to Biden’s assurance that the Afghanistan withdrawal would be responsible and safe, Biden also promised that no Americans would be left behind. However, when the last American plane departed the Kabul airport, there were actually “hundreds” of Americans left behind. CENTCOM Commander General Kenneth McKenzie said, “We did not get everybody out that we wanted to get out.”
Just this week the State Department said that there were still some Americans trapped in Afghanistan – nearly four months after Biden assured the nation that everyone who wanted to leave, could leave. Protecting Americans is the least a President can do, in Biden’s own words. In that case, Biden cannot even do the least of what’s required of him.
7. “America is back. The transatlantic alliance is back.” – Virtual Munich Security Conference, February 19, 2021
Biden campaigned on and opened his new presidency promising a “renewal” of alliances – particularly our transatlantic alliance. One of the favorite attack lines of Democrats and the mainstream media throughout the 2020 campaign was that Donald Trump had “destroyed” America’s relationship with key allies.
Initially, foreign leaders of countries like Germany and France were thrilled to have a new globalist ally in Biden. However, Biden’s botched Afghanistan evacuation soon strained those alliances far more than they ever were under Donald Trump. The U.K. Parliament held Biden in contempt, and Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called images coming out of Afghanistan “shameful to the political West.”
As if that weren’t enough, Biden soon caused another diplomatic crisis through his handling of a submarine deal with Australia that led to France taking the unprecedented step of recalling its ambassador. So much for putting “the adults” back in charge.
8. “I will make it clear to the Kremlin that it must end its aggression toward and occupation of Ukraine.” – Statement on Ukraine’s Independence Day, August 24, 2020
After four years of the left relentlessly and baselessly accusing President Trump of bending to the will of Vladimir Putin, Biden promised to hold Russia accountable. He further said he would “command the respect of Putin.”
Now, news has emerged suggesting the US “will press Ukraine to formally cede a measure of autonomy within its eastern Donbas region” as Russia has massed nearly 100,000 troops at the Ukrainian border. That kind of capitulation hardly seems like accountability or commanding respect. Biden weakly admits he hopes to work out “any accommodation” to avoid Russian invasion.
Putin, like other foreign adversaries such as China and Iran, has recognized Biden’s weakness and exploited it. Biden gifted Putin a series of concessions—including the Nord Stream 2 pipeline—while bowing to Russian aggression against Ukraine. This is textbook appeasement straight out of the Neville Chamberlain playbook, and the world is less safe as a result.
9. “[I will] end the opioid crisis.” – Biden/Harris campaign website
Prior to the pandemic, President Trump had overseen a massive reduction in opioid deaths thanks to targeted enforcement and community intervention. Instead of building on this success, Biden has presided over an all-time high in opioid deaths, in part thanks to open-border policies that have enabled a surge of illegal drugs to flow into the United States. The Texas Department of Public Safety just announced they seized enough fentanyl this year alone at the border to kill 200 million Americans, and border agents say that only about 10 to 15 percent of illegal drugs are actually captured.
10. “I will not…use the Justice Department as my vehicle to insist that something happen.” – NBC Interview with Lester Holt, November 25, 2020
Far from treating the Department of Justice as being charged with a sacred mission to impartially enforce the laws of the United States, the Biden administration has repeatedly used the DOJ to target Democrats’ political opponents.
Earlier this year, for example, Biden weaponized the DOJ to investigate Georgia’s election integrity law meant to make voting easier and cheating harder. Then, in the lead up to November’s elections, Biden Attorney General Merrick Garland ordered the FBI to target parents who spoke up at school board meetings over mask mandates and radical left-wing ideology being taught in classrooms.
Americans can undoubtedly expect more broken and empty promises in the months and years to come from Joe Biden. But if polls are any indication, the current president may have already destroyed any credibility he ever had with the public, a trust that is unlikely to be restored anytime soon. And if Republicans manage to retake Congress next November, broken promises may be all Joe Biden has to show for his trouble come 2024.
Claire Brighn is the pen name of a conservative researcher and writer with previous domestic and foreign policy experience in the Executive Branch.