#46 President Joe Biden

gimmesometruth27

did joe talk at a 3rd grade level? i am thinking no, because so many people seem to have missed the point on a few of the topics.

benjs

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

Great press conference today! No issues at all, new guy seems great.  Called a “lid” on the day right afterwards since doing your job for an hour is some heavy lifting!  Everything is peachy over there, awesome stuff today.

There's no challenging an individual who only observes evidence to prove he's right, and ignores all else. It's not even that you're illogical, it's that you're purposely ignorant.

RoleModelsinBlood31

Over/under- Biden makes it through the end of the year.

I say under.

The Juggler

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

Over/under- Biden makes it through the end of the year.

I say under.

@RoleModelsinBlood31

aww, how cute!


Hey, how much do you enjoy cosplaying as a fiscal conservative?


https://www.thebalance.com/trump-plans-to-reduce-national-debt-4114401

President Trump's Impact on the National Debt

The national debt has increased by almost 36% since Trump took office

 

Updated February 05, 2021

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Republican candidate Donald Trump promised he would eliminate the nation’s debt in eight years.1 Instead, his budget estimates showed that he would actually add at least $8.3 trillion, increasing the U.S. debt to $28.5 trillion by 2025.2 However, the national debt may reach that figure much sooner. When President Trump took office in January 2017, the national debt stood at $19.9 trillion. In October 2020, the national debt reached a new high of $27 trillion. 

That's an increase of almost 36% in less than four years.3

The total amount that President Trump contributes to the national debt will probably be higher once the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is realized.

Key Takeaways

• During his campaign in 2016, President Trump promised to eliminate the national debt in eight years.
• Instead, it is projected that he will add at least $8.3 trillion.
• As of October 2020, the national debt reached a new high of $27 trillion, an increase of almost 36% since President Trump took office in 2017.
• The national debt and the amount President Trump contributes to it may be higher once the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is realized.

How Has the National Debt Increased Since Trump Took Office?

At first, it seemed Trump was lowering the debt. It fell $102 billion in the first six months after Trump took office. On January 20, the day Trump was inaugurated, the debt was $19.9 trillion. On July 30, it was $19.8 trillion. But it was not because of anything he did. Instead, it was because of the federal debt ceiling.

On Sept. 8, 2017, Trump signed a bill increasing the debt ceiling.4 Later that day, the debt exceeded $20 trillion for the first time in U.S. history. On Feb. 9, 2018, Trump signed a bill suspending the debt ceiling until March 1, 2019.5 By February 2019, the total national debt was at $22 trillion. In July 2019, Trump suspended the debt ceiling until after the 2020 presidential election.6 On Oct. 1, 2020, the debt hit a new record of $27 trillion.3

Trump has overseen the fastest increase in the debt of any president—almost 36% from 2017 to 2020. Trump has not fulfilled his campaign promise to cut the debt. Instead, he's done the opposite.

Will President Trump Reduce the National Debt?

Trump promised two strategies to reduce U.S. debt before taking office:

1. Increase growth by 4% to 6%
2. Eliminate wasteful federal spending

Increase Growth

While on the campaign trail, Trump promised to grow the economy by 4% to 6% annually to increase tax revenues.78

Once in office, Trump lowered his growth estimates to between 2% and 3%.9 These more realistic projections are within the 2% to 3% healthy growth rate.10 When growth is more than that, it creates inflation. Too much money chases too few good business projects. Irrational exuberance grips investors and they could create a boom-bust cycle that ends in a recession. 

President Trump had also promised to achieve between 2% and 4% growth with tax cuts. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% beginning in 2018.11 The top individual income tax rate dropped to 37%. It doubled the standard deduction and eliminated personal exemptions. The corporate cuts are permanent, while the individual changes expire at the end of 2025.12

Trump's tax cuts won't stimulate the economy enough to make up for lost tax revenue. According to the Laffer curve, tax cuts only do that when the rates were above 50%. It worked during the Reagan administration because the highest tax rate was 70%.13

Eliminate Wasteful Federal Spending

Trump’s second strategy was to eliminate waste and redundancy in federal spending.14 He demonstrated this cost-consciousness during his campaign, such as when he used his Twitter account and rallies instead of expensive television ads.

Trump was right that there is waste in federal spending. The problem isn't finding it—both Presidents Bush and Obama did that. The problem is in cutting it.15 Each program has a constituency that lobbies Congress. Eliminating these benefits may lose voters and contributors. Congressional representatives may agree to cut spending in someone else’s district, but resist doing so in their own.

Any president must cut into the biggest programs to make a real impact on the national debt.

More than two-thirds of government spending goes to mandatory obligations made by previous Acts of Congress. For FY 2021, Social Security benefits cost $1.2 trillion, Medicare cost $722 billion, and Medicaid cost $448 billion. The interest on the debt is $378 billion.

To lower the debt, military spending must also be cut because it's such a large portion of the budget. Instead, Trump increased military spending in FY 2021 to $933 billion. That includes three components:

1. $636 billion base budget for the Department of Defense
2. $69 billion in overseas contingency operations for DoD to fight the Islamic State group 
3. $229 billion to fund the other agencies that protect our nation, including the Department of Veterans Affairs ($105 billion), Homeland Security ($50 billion), the State Department ($44 billion), the National Nuclear Security Administration in the Department of Energy ($20 billion), and the FBI and Cybersecurity the Department of Justice ($10 billion)16

What's left of the $4.8 trillion budgeted for FY 2021 after mandatory and military spending? Only $595 billion to pay for everything else. That includes agencies that process Social Security and other benefits. It also includes the necessary functions performed by the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service. You'd have to eliminate it all to make a dent in the $966 billion deficit.17

You can't reduce the deficit or debt without major cuts to defense and mandated benefits programs. Cutting waste isn't enough.

Does Trump’s Business Debt Affect His Approach to U.S. Debt?

During the 2016 campaign, Trump said in an interview with CNBC that he would "borrow, knowing that if the economy crashed, you could make a deal.”18 However, sovereign debt is different from personal debt. They can't be handled the same way.

A 2016 Fortune magazine analysis revealed Trump's business was $1.11 billion in debt.19 That includes $846 million owed on five properties. These include Trump Tower, 40 Wall Street, and 1290 Avenue of the Americas in New York. It also includes the Trump Hotel in Washington D.C. and 555 California Street in San Francisco. But the income generated by these properties easily pays their annual interest payment. In the business world, Trump's debt is reasonable.

The current U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio is 136%. That's the $26.5 trillion U.S. debt as of June 2020, divided by the $19.5 trillion nominal GDP at the end of the second quarter this year.203

The World Bank compares countries based on their total debt-to-gross domestic product ratio. It considers a country to be in trouble if that ratio is greater than 77%.21

So far, the high U.S. debt-to-ratio hasn't discouraged investors. America is one of the safest economies in the world and its currency is the world's reserve currency. Even during a U.S. economic crisis, investors purchase U.S. Treasurys in a flight to safety. That's one reason why interest rates plunged to historical lows in March 2020 after the coronavirus outbreak.22 Those falling interest rates meant America's debt could increase, but interest payments remain stable. 

The U.S. also has a massive fixed pension expense and health insurance costs. A business can renege on these benefits, ask for bankruptcy, and weather the resulting lawsuits. A president and Congress can't cut back those costs without losing their jobs at the next election. As such, Trump's experience in handling business debt does not transfer to managing the U.S. debt. 

How the National Debt Affects You

The national debt doesn't affect you directly until it reaches the tipping point. Once the debt-to-GDP ratio exceeds 77% for an extended period of time, it slows economic growth. Every percentage point of debt above this level costs the country 0.017 percentage points in economic growth, according to a World Bank analysis.21

The first sign of trouble is when interest rates start to rise significantly. Investors need a higher return to offset the greater perceived risk. They start to doubt that the debt can be paid off.

The second sign is that the U.S. dollar loses value. You will notice that as inflation rises, imported goods will cost more. Gas and grocery prices will rise. Travel to other countries will also become much more expensive. 

As interest rates and inflation rise, the cost of providing benefits and paying the interest on the debt will skyrocket. That leaves less money for other services. At that point, the government will be forced to cut services or raise taxes. That will further slow economic growth. At that point, continued deficit spending will no longer work. 

Ledbetterman10

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

mrussel1

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

Over/under- Biden makes it through the end of the year.

I say under.

I'll take that bet. How much?

RoleModelsinBlood31

It’s regime-like to watch how it’s all so orchestrated.  The flash cards, the pre-chosen reporters and practiced answers already written on cards that he’s not even trying to hide.  A big propaganda machine.  People call it refreshing for a potted plant wind bag to have to be rolled out to read a script to the people, I think it’s just weird and odd. Why even have a press conference if you’re going to make us all question you more? It’s like he practiced all week for something no one should have to practice for and failed anyway.

mrussel1

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

It’s regime-like to watch how it’s all so orchestrated.  The flash cards, the pre-chosen reporters and practiced answers already written on cards that he’s not even trying to hide.  A big propaganda machine.  People call it refreshing for a potted plant wind bag to have to be rolled out to read a script to the people, I think it’s just weird and odd. Why even have a press conference if you’re going to make us all question you more? It’s like he practiced all week for something no one should have to practice for and failed anyway.

Let's make the bet.  How much?

Hobbes

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

The use of eagle was more symbolic than simply size. Had he used condor, perhaps not the same impact.

gimmesometruth27

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

Over/under- Biden makes it through the end of the year.

I say under.

well considering you guys cannot impeach and remove, are you hoping/betting that he dies in office?

pretty shitty thing to wish for imo.

The Juggler

RoleModelsinBlood31 said:

It’s regime-like to watch how it’s all so orchestrated.  The flash cards, the pre-chosen reporters and practiced answers already written on cards that he’s not even trying to hide.  A big propaganda machine.  People call it refreshing for a potted plant wind bag to have to be rolled out to read a script to the people, I think it’s just weird and odd. Why even have a press conference if you’re going to make us all question you more? It’s like he practiced all week for something no one should have to practice for and failed anyway.

-https://www.thebalance.com/trump-plans-to-reduce-national-debt-4114401

President Trump's Impact on the National Debt

The national debt has increased by almost 36% since Trump took office

•••

Updated February 05, 2021

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Republican candidate Donald Trump promised he would eliminate the nation’s debt in eight years.1 Instead, his budget estimates showed that he would actually add at least $8.3 trillion, increasing the U.S. debt to $28.5 trillion by 2025.2 However, the national debt may reach that figure much sooner. When President Trump took office in January 2017, the national debt stood at $19.9 trillion. In October 2020, the national debt reached a new high of $27 trillion. 

That's an increase of almost 36% in less than four years.3

The total amount that President Trump contributes to the national debt will probably be higher once the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is realized.

Key Takeaways

• During his campaign in 2016, President Trump promised to eliminate the national debt in eight years.
• Instead, it is projected that he will add at least $8.3 trillion.
• As of October 2020, the national debt reached a new high of $27 trillion, an increase of almost 36% since President Trump took office in 2017.
• The national debt and the amount President Trump contributes to it may be higher once the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is realized.

How Has the National Debt Increased Since Trump Took Office?

At first, it seemed Trump was lowering the debt. It fell $102 billion in the first six months after Trump took office. On January 20, the day Trump was inaugurated, the debt was $19.9 trillion. On July 30, it was $19.8 trillion. But it was not because of anything he did. Instead, it was because of the federal debt ceiling.

On Sept. 8, 2017, Trump signed a bill increasing the debt ceiling.4 Later that day, the debt exceeded $20 trillion for the first time in U.S. history. On Feb. 9, 2018, Trump signed a bill suspending the debt ceiling until March 1, 2019.5 By February 2019, the total national debt was at $22 trillion. In July 2019, Trump suspended the debt ceiling until after the 2020 presidential election.6 On Oct. 1, 2020, the debt hit a new record of $27 trillion.3

Trump has overseen the fastest increase in the debt of any president—almost 36% from 2017 to 2020. Trump has not fulfilled his campaign promise to cut the debt. Instead, he's done the opposite.

Will President Trump Reduce the National Debt?

Trump promised two strategies to reduce U.S. debt before taking office:

1. Increase growth by 4% to 6%
2. Eliminate wasteful federal spending

Increase Growth

While on the campaign trail, Trump promised to grow the economy by 4% to 6% annually to increase tax revenues.78

Once in office, Trump lowered his growth estimates to between 2% and 3%.9 These more realistic projections are within the 2% to 3% healthy growth rate.10 When growth is more than that, it creates inflation. Too much money chases too few good business projects. Irrational exuberance grips investors and they could create a boom-bust cycle that ends in a recession. 

President Trump had also promised to achieve between 2% and 4% growth with tax cuts. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% beginning in 2018.11 The top individual income tax rate dropped to 37%. It doubled the standard deduction and eliminated personal exemptions. The corporate cuts are permanent, while the individual changes expire at the end of 2025.12

Trump's tax cuts won't stimulate the economy enough to make up for lost tax revenue. According to the Laffer curve, tax cuts only do that when the rates were above 50%. It worked during the Reagan administration because the highest tax rate was 70%.13

Eliminate Wasteful Federal Spending

Trump’s second strategy was to eliminate waste and redundancy in federal spending.14 He demonstrated this cost-consciousness during his campaign, such as when he used his Twitter account and rallies instead of expensive television ads.

Trump was right that there is waste in federal spending. The problem isn't finding it—both Presidents Bush and Obama did that. The problem is in cutting it.15 Each program has a constituency that lobbies Congress. Eliminating these benefits may lose voters and contributors. Congressional representatives may agree to cut spending in someone else’s district, but resist doing so in their own.

Any president must cut into the biggest programs to make a real impact on the national debt.

More than two-thirds of government spending goes to mandatory obligations made by previous Acts of Congress. For FY 2021, Social Security benefits cost $1.2 trillion, Medicare cost $722 billion, and Medicaid cost $448 billion. The interest on the debt is $378 billion.

To lower the debt, military spending must also be cut because it's such a large portion of the budget. Instead, Trump increased military spending in FY 2021 to $933 billion. That includes three components:

1. $636 billion base budget for the Department of Defense
2. $69 billion in overseas contingency operations for DoD to fight the Islamic State group 
3. $229 billion to fund the other agencies that protect our nation, including the Department of Veterans Affairs ($105 billion), Homeland Security ($50 billion), the State Department ($44 billion), the National Nuclear Security Administration in the Department of Energy ($20 billion), and the FBI and Cybersecurity the Department of Justice ($10 billion)16

What's left of the $4.8 trillion budgeted for FY 2021 after mandatory and military spending? Only $595 billion to pay for everything else. That includes agencies that process Social Security and other benefits. It also includes the necessary functions performed by the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service. You'd have to eliminate it all to make a dent in the $966 billion deficit.17

You can't reduce the deficit or debt without major cuts to defense and mandated benefits programs. Cutting waste isn't enough.

Does Trump’s Business Debt Affect His Approach to U.S. Debt?

During the 2016 campaign, Trump said in an interview with CNBC that he would "borrow, knowing that if the economy crashed, you could make a deal.”18 However, sovereign debt is different from personal debt. They can't be handled the same way.

A 2016 Fortune magazine analysis revealed Trump's business was $1.11 billion in debt.19 That includes $846 million owed on five properties. These include Trump Tower, 40 Wall Street, and 1290 Avenue of the Americas in New York. It also includes the Trump Hotel in Washington D.C. and 555 California Street in San Francisco. But the income generated by these properties easily pays their annual interest payment. In the business world, Trump's debt is reasonable.

The current U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio is 136%. That's the $26.5 trillion U.S. debt as of June 2020, divided by the $19.5 trillion nominal GDP at the end of the second quarter this year.203

The World Bank compares countries based on their total debt-to-gross domestic product ratio. It considers a country to be in trouble if that ratio is greater than 77%.21

So far, the high U.S. debt-to-ratio hasn't discouraged investors. America is one of the safest economies in the world and its currency is the world's reserve currency. Even during a U.S. economic crisis, investors purchase U.S. Treasurys in a flight to safety. That's one reason why interest rates plunged to historical lows in March 2020 after the coronavirus outbreak.22 Those falling interest rates meant America's debt could increase, but interest payments remain stable. 

The U.S. also has a massive fixed pension expense and health insurance costs. A business can renege on these benefits, ask for bankruptcy, and weather the resulting lawsuits. A president and Congress can't cut back those costs without losing their jobs at the next election. As such, Trump's experience in handling business debt does not transfer to managing the U.S. debt. 

How the National Debt Affects You

The national debt doesn't affect you directly until it reaches the tipping point. Once the debt-to-GDP ratio exceeds 77% for an extended period of time, it slows economic growth. Every percentage point of debt above this level costs the country 0.017 percentage points in economic growth, according to a World Bank analysis.21

The first sign of trouble is when interest rates start to rise significantly. Investors need a higher return to offset the greater perceived risk. They start to doubt that the debt can be paid off.

The second sign is that the U.S. dollar loses value. You will notice that as inflation rises, imported goods will cost more. Gas and grocery prices will rise. Travel to other countries will also become much more expensive. 

As interest rates and inflation rise, the cost of providing benefits and paying the interest on the debt will skyrocket. That leaves less money for other services. At that point, the government will be forced to cut services or raise taxes. That will further slow economic growth. At that point, continued deficit spending will no longer work.

Ledbetterman10

Hobbes said:

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

The use of eagle was more symbolic than simply size. Had he used condor, perhaps not the same impact.

But the only thing worse than Jim Crow is actual slavery. So I think it's a stretch to say that voter suppression is even in the same ballpark. But it was Joe speaking off the cuff so a weird analogy isn't that surprising. 

mrussel1

Hobbes said:

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

The use of eagle was more symbolic than simply size. Had he used condor, perhaps not the same impact.

I interpret it as meaning... the crow is a low down, dirty creature compared to the eagle.  Therefore these laws are even worse than the Crow laws, making the crow look like an eagle.  That's not a crazy statement considering the wide berth of them across the country, rather than just the confederate states.  

Way too much over analyzing though for a throw away metaphor. 

gimmesometruth27

everyone is analyzing this like it was carved into a stone and given to moses or something.

Ledbetterman10

mrussel1 said:

Hobbes said:

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

The use of eagle was more symbolic than simply size. Had he used condor, perhaps not the same impact.

I interpret it as meaning... the crow is a low down, dirty creature compared to the eagle.  Therefore these laws are even worse than the Crow laws, making the crow look like an eagle.  That's not a crazy statement considering the wide berth of them across the country, rather than just the confederate states.  

Way too much over analyzing though for a throw away metaphor. 

lol, says the guy who just analyzed a throw away metaphor.

mrussel1

Ledbetterman10 said:

mrussel1 said:

Hobbes said:

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

The use of eagle was more symbolic than simply size. Had he used condor, perhaps not the same impact.

I interpret it as meaning... the crow is a low down, dirty creature compared to the eagle.  Therefore these laws are even worse than the Crow laws, making the crow look like an eagle.  That's not a crazy statement considering the wide berth of them across the country, rather than just the confederate states.  

Way too much over analyzing though for a throw away metaphor. 

lol, says the guy who just analyzed a throw away metaphor.

I'm definitely guilty of over -analysis often.  Although I really meant the media..

Hobbes

Actually, it got me thinking about wise guy nicknames. Jimmy Toucan. Jimmy the Condor. Flamingo Jimmy.

mcgruff10

Timing Is Everything, Biden Says, and 'Politics Is the Art of the Possible'

https://www.yahoo.com/news/timing-everything-biden-says-politics-120721081.html

WASHINGTON — He reflected on his reputation as a “nice guy” and a “decent man.” He talked about how his great-grandfather set sail on the Irish Sea to make the difficult journey to America. He observed that “politics is the art of the possible.”

In his first formal news conference since taking office, President Joe Biden offered an early glimpse of the man who inhabits the Oval Office and how he is approaching the presidency so far. Unlike President Donald Trump’s hot-tempered blowups or President Barack Obama’s extended answers of professorial cool, Biden was the sober political veteran comfortable with thinking out loud, talking personally and conversationally, and showing occasional impatience before a roomful of reporters.

When he received a question he did not like, such as whether he expected to run in 2024 against Trump, he shrugged it off with, “I don’t know where you guys come from, man.” But Biden did say he expected to run again, with Vice President Kamala Harris at his side.

After nearly four decades in politics, including eight years as vice president, he showed himself as a student of the office. “It’s a matter of timing,” he said when asked about his legislative priorities. “As you’ve all observed, the successful presidents better than me have been successful in large part because they know how to time what they’re doing. Order it. Decide priorities. What needs to be done.” To that end, he cited his $3 trillion infrastructure bill as “the next major initiative.”

And when asked why he did not push to abolish the Senate filibuster, which requires 60 votes to pass most legislation and which Biden called a relic of the Jim Crow era, he said simply that “successful electoral politics is the art of the possible” — and that he wanted to see whether he could change the filibuster first.

Biden also recalled the Senate of yore, as he has done multiple times as president: “It used to be you had to stand there and talk and talk and talk and talk until you collapsed. And guess what, people got tired of talking.”

But he joked about how outdated his own views could sometimes sound. “I believe we should go back to a position in the filibuster that existed just when I came to the United States Senate 120 years ago,” he said.

The president engaged on questions about his administration’s attempt to ramp up capacity to temporarily care for the thousands of migrant children who are arriving at the southwestern border without legal guardians. He also took aim at the zero-tolerance policies enacted by Trump, saying his administration is trying “to put in place what was dismantled.”

“I like to think it’s because I’m a nice guy,” Biden said. “But it’s not. It’s because of what’s happened.”

At times, he was equal parts off the cuff — “I guess I should be flattered,” he responded when pressed on his “moral” approach to detaining families at the border — and exasperated.

“That’s a serious question, right? Is it acceptable to me? Come on,” Biden said when asked if the state of Customs and Border Protection facilities in Texas, where children are being temporarily housed, was acceptable to him.

Other times he was solicitous of reporters. “Am I giving you too long an answer?” he asked Yamiche Alcindor of PBS NewsHour. “If you don’t want the details — I don’t know how much detail you want about immigration. Maybe I’ll stop there.”

He spoke of immigration in personal terms, as the last resort of desperate people seeking a new life in the United States. When families decide to leave Mexico or Guatemala, the president said, they do not say, “I got a great idea: let’s sell everything we have, give it to a coyote, have him take our kids across the border into a desert where they don’t speak the language, won’t that be fun?”

Biden added: “That’s not how it happens. People don’t want to leave. When my great-grandfather got in a coffin ship in the Irish Sea, expectation was he going to live long enough on that ship to get to the United States of America? They left because of what the Brits had been doing. They were in real, real trouble. They didn’t want to leave. But they had no choice. So, you’ve got — we can’t — I can’t guarantee we’re going to solve everything. But I can guarantee we can make everything better. We can make it better.”

The president’s appearance came after weeks of requests from reporters and speculation about why the White House was delaying the decision to have him hold a news conference. Biden’s advisers had said that the plan had been to pass the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package into law before holding one.

As he took questions for over an hour, the president also did little to fuel the narrative being crafted by conservative news media that he is lacking in his mental facilities. He appeared well prepared and sure of his facts, although he did refer to the “North China Sea,” which does not exist.

During the news conference, a limited number of journalists were allowed in the room. Those who attended wore masks and sat 6 feet apart to comply with social-distancing rules. Biden called on reporters by their first names, from a list drawn up beforehand by his staff.

In that sense, it was another return to normalcy, after four years of Trump’s free-for-all, fact-challenged news conferences. At one, Trump mocked a reporter for wearing what he called “the largest mask I think I’ve ever seen” and at another claimed that injecting disinfectants into the human body could help combat the coronavirus. Reporters shouted to be heard, and Trump appeared to relish the chaos.

Biden’s performance, in contrast, was relatively sedate.

“It’s a really big relief after four years, when every presidential news conference was a cataclysmic event,” said Lis Smith, a Democratic strategist. She said Biden had stayed on message and “has woven in empathy into everything he does.”

“Biden did what he needed to do,” said David Axelrod, a former top adviser to Obama. “He drove the progress on the virus at the top, parried difficult questions on the border and filibuster, and generally refrained from making unwelcome news.”

It is unclear where Biden will fall in terms of regularly addressing the news media in a formal setting. Trump gave 44 formal news conferences during his presidency, though he regularly had lengthy question-and-answer sessions with reporters during Oval Office events or before crossing the White House lawn to board Marine One. Obama held 65 news conferences, according to data compiled by The American Presidency Project, which tracks such solo appearances.

Biden also left a series of open questions about some of the most politically contentious problems facing his administration. He would not say how soon he planned to allow reporters to see the conditions at migrant detention facilities along the U.S.-Mexico border. He did not commit to a timeline for pulling U.S. troops out of Afghanistan. And he declined multiple times to say whether he would try to change how the Senate functions.

In those moments, Biden, a politician who has only recently embraced the art of restraint, seemed aware of the perils of making promises to a room full of reporters.

“I’m not going to lay out a strategy in front of the whole world,” he said, “and you, now.”

OnWis97

Hobbes said:

Actually, it got me thinking about wise guy nicknames. Jimmy Toucan. Jimmy the Condor. Flamingo Jimmy.

"Frankly, I would have expected better from Jimmy the Scumbag."
-Chief Clancy Wiggum

mace1229

Ledbetterman10 said:

My few takeaways from this are...

1) The "Jim Eagle" thing was weird as hell. I actually began searching the term "Jim Eagle" thinking maybe there was some bigoted 1800's Senator with that name. But nope, it's just a bigger bird than a crow. So what's he saying? That voter suppression (Jim Eagle) is a bigger problem than public lynchings/hangings (Jim Crow)?

2) I actually like his idea of going back to the "old school" way of filibusters where the guy has to stand there and talk without stopping. It's funny in an "old man yelling at the clouds" sort of way. 

3) Come on, take a question from the Fox News guy. 

4) Strangely, no questions on Covid. 

Jim eagle was funny, because it made me think what you just said. Made me scratch my head.
Not surprised he didn't take a question from Fox, and I'm okay with that. The odd thing to me was the people he did call on looked scripted. He just read a name from a list and looked around to see where he/she was. Reminds me of taking attendance on the first day of school. Is that normal, I don't remember others doing that. Which made me wonder if you had to submit your question to get approved to be on the list some how? Which would be incredibly dumb and pointless if that was the case. But why else just call questions from a list of names that you don't know who they are?