Dark Brandon Earns It

Joe Biden’s persona is at the whim of fate; his story is captured in the morphing of an insult (“Go Brandon”) into laser-eyed alter ego of sheer power (“Dark Brandon”). The popularity of that meme among Biden supporters was so swift and powerful that it has become a super-charged affirmation. Who knew?

It’s like the man himself. The polls show lackluster approval, but the mid-term ballot boxes reflected a different story about Joe Biden’s record thus far.

Despite the low-key way he operated, four in ten Americans approved of the job he was doing. Six in ten thought he was doing the right thing in international affairs. External views show 75% approval from a dozen key nations, compared to 17% for Trump. Biden’s approval paralleled the Obama story.

Manchin stabbed him in the back; Sinema went after money and changed sides. Both Sinema and Manchin have opposed the “Build Back Better” social spending and climate bill and also the Democrats’ plans to weakening the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster to pass voting rights legislation. Infighting thrived. Biden rose above it.

What did Biden do despite that opposition?

Look at the sectors he transformed:

Economic: He got a $1-trillion infrastructure package passed and grew the economy faster than any time in decades, and pushed policies that benefitted the middle class and pushed the semi-conductor sector. He has flipped the owners from viewing inflation as a product of overpaid employees to a recognition that it is due to excess profit-taking from companies. The Wall Street Journal itself noted with shock that “some companies might have been raising prices faster than their costs increased.” [gasp!] This is a big deal because it marks the final coffin-nail for Reaganomics.

Employment: He added 6.4 million jobs. The economy is so hot that there are still 10 million job vacancies — a nice position to be in for wage-earners trying to push the wage bar up.

Climate change: He set a goal to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030, and invest in the green economy;