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Liberal filmmaker Michael Moore once quipped that Bill Clinton was one of the best Republican presidents of his lifetime.
Fast forward, and that humorous insight easily applies to President Biden.
In his first three years in office, Biden’s moderate, pragmatic style of governing is closer to that of traditional Republicans – from Presidents Eisenhower to Reagan and Bush.
Looking at Biden from the left side of the political divide, the Democrat in the White House is clearly a far cry from today’s best-known progressive politicians — Senator Bernie Sanders, the Vermont socialist, and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). ,
Take a look at Biden’s record abroad, where he has fiercely displayed American strength against Russian aggression. In fact, he is facing criticism from liberals in Israel for his staunch support for the far-right Netanyahu government.
Protests against his steadfast support for Israel’s response to a terrorist attack – due to the ever-increasing number of Palestinians killed – have even come from his own White House staff.
Washington Post columnist Max Boot recently called Biden “Israel’s best friend.”
Next, take a look at Biden’s domestic record and ask yourself if the liberal tag fits.
First, US oil production reached an all-time high last year under Biden. Second, he successfully championed big spending bills in Congress to prevent a post-Covid recession. His economic policies have increased employment and generated investment.
Under Biden, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a record high last month.
Inflation is now out of control – it has halved. With interest rates falling, consumer confidence is up 13 percent last month, continuing the upward trend.
The latest jobs report showed unemployment at a nearly 50-year low of 3.7 percent.
Biden’s success has come without doing anything close to the radical right, regressive tax cuts for the rich under Trump.
Ever the moderate, as Biden negotiates with House Republicans on a $79 billion tax bill that would expand the child tax credit, he is pushing for the bill to roll back some of the corporate tax breaks favored by Republicans as the cost of doing business. Giving permission.
Again, these are the types of economic policies and deals we traditionally associate with Republican presidents.
Third, Biden agreed to sign a strict immigration bill backed by the US Chamber of Commerce and Border Patrol agents to increase security at the southern border.
It allowed asylum claims to be processed faster and gave it the power to close the border in the event of an unmanageable surge.
Biden’s willingness to act on those conservative priorities has alienated many Democrats intent on dealing with “Dreamers,” children brought to the U.S. at an early age and the 12 million immigrants already in the country without legal status. Gave.
But even though he disappointed some in his own party, Biden’s centrist approach has exposed Republicans — particularly former President Trump — who would rather blame Biden for the border crisis than fix the shabby immigration system. More interested in accommodation.
The GOP House majority had pushed to tie immigration reform to aid to allies facing threats from dictators and terrorists. But when he was handed the bill he had loudly demanded, the House GOP protested.
All political signs indicate that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) opposes the bill because Trump and his followers in the House prefer to make immigration an election year issue rather than solving the problem.
“Republicans must decide whom they serve: Donald Trump or the American people?”. Biden said the GOP has defeated its own wish list on immigration.
“Every day between now and November, the American people are learning that the only reason the border is not secure is because of Donald Trump and his MAGA Republican friends,” Biden said.
It is a matter of record that, although President Trump talked about “building the wall” and “making Mexico pay for it”, he did not do it. And there was never bipartisan legislation.
Biden’s focus on striking a deal that is in the country’s best interest on immigration makes him sound like President Ronald Reagan, who passed a bipartisan immigration bill.
Abroad, Biden again fits in with traditional Republicans by consistently standing with U.S. allies and democracies against radical Islamic terrorists like Hamas and expansionist regimes like Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Starting in March 2022, Biden took a tough stance against Russian aggression in Ukraine, which made even the most conservative supporters nod in agreement. There are no boots on the ground, but there is also no question about US military weapons and the leadership of the international coalition against Putin’s aggression.
Biden’s moderate policies domestically and abroad give me hope that Democrats and fair-minded Republicans can do business and move beyond Trump. With Biden’s record, it’s easy to imagine a parade of Republican stalwarts lining up on the stage supporting Biden on the first night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this summer.
Let’s start with President George W. Bush and his Vice President Dick Cheney.
How about a parade of Republicans for Biden featuring Mitt Romney, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchison, David Jolley, Michael Steele, Cindy McCain and Christine Todd Wittman?
Just as the Reagan Democrats planned the election for Gipper in 1980, the Biden Republicans may do the same for Biden in 2024.
Juan Williams is a writer and political analyst for Fox News Channel.
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Source: thehill.com
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