Joe Biden in Biden campaign vs. Biden administration
On Free Trade:
Ban trade from Xinjiang; plus diplomatic boycott of Olympics
President Biden signed a new law banning products made in China's Xinjiang region because of China's oppression of its largely Muslim Uighur minority population. The law imposes a near-blanket ban on the import to the US of goods by requiring suppliers
to first prove their products were not made with forced labour. Xinjiang is a large supplier of cotton and solar panels.UN experts have estimated that more than one million people, mainly Uighurs, have been imprisoned in recent years in a vast
system of camps in Xinjiang. The US and many rights groups have called it "genocide".
The US cited the situation in Xinjiang in a decision earlier this month to launch a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing. The Biden
administration also imposed trade sanctions last week on several Chinese companies, accusing the government in Beijing of advancing high-tech surveillance on the Uighurs. [See H.R. 6256 for details of bill]
Source: Al Jazeera "Xinjiang" on 2021 Biden Administration
Dec 23, 2021
On Civil Rights:
Defend freedom of religion and combat Islamophobia
[On H.R.8 / S.529]: "Our country's commitment to defending freedom of religion and belief goes back centuries, and the Administration strongly believes that people of all faiths and backgrounds should be treated with equal dignity and respect around the
world," a statement of support issued by the White House read. The bill comes after Republicans in Congress have targeted the three Muslim members of Congress, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, with bigoted language.
Democrats urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican leadership to discipline Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., for Islamophobic remarks last month comparing Omar to a terrorist, calling her a member of a "jihad squad."[H.R.5665, the "Combating
International Islamophobia Act," establishes within the Department of State the Office to Monitor and Combat Islamophobia; see details of H.R.8 / S.529]
Source: Spectrum News NY1.com on 2021 Biden Administration
Dec 15, 2021
On Jobs:
Strengthen union organizing rules; increase 6% unionization
The Administration strongly supports The PRO Act, Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2021, which would protect workers' right to organize a union and collectively bargain for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. America was not built by
Wall Street. It was built by the middle class, and unions built the middle class.Due to anti-union efforts by many employers for decades, lax enforcement of existing labor laws, and the failure to restore and strengthen labor laws to address the
real-world of labor-management relations, only 6.3% percent of private-sector U.S. wage and salary workers were union members in 2020. H.R. 842 would strengthen and protect workers' right to form a union by allowing the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB) to assess penalties on employers who violate workers' right to organize and ensuring that workers who suffer retaliation for exercising these rights receive immediate relief. [See details of H.R. 842]
Source: Statement of 2021 Biden Administration Policy on H.R. 842
Dec 15, 2021
On Gun Control:
Close loopholes in Federal gun background check system
Gun violence is a public health crisis. Every day, gun violence--community violence, domestic violence, suicides, and mass shootings--takes American lives and forever alters many more. Last year, we saw record levels of homicides in cities throughout
our country. The Federal gun background check system is a proven tool to reduce gun violence and save lives. This system, called the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, has kept millions of guns out of potentially dangerous hands.
The Administration encourages closing existing loopholes in this system in two bills, H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021, and H.R. 1446, the Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021. The Administration looks forward to working with the
Congress to strengthen the Federal gun background check system and take other commonsense steps to reduce gun violence. [See details of H.R.8 / S.529]
Source: White House press release by 2021 Biden Administration
Nov 4, 2021
On Health Care:
Get more people vaccinated, or prolong coronavirus pandemic
For our country, the choice is simple: get more people vaccinated, or prolong this pandemic and its impact on our country. The virus will not go away by itself: we have to act. Vaccination is the single best pathway out of this pandemic. And while
I would have much preferred that requirements not become necessary, too many people remain unvaccinated for us to get out of this pandemic for good. So I instituted requirements--and they are working. They protect our workers and have helped us reduce
the number of unvaccinated Americans over the age of 12 from approximately 100 million in late July when I began requirements to just about 60 million today.Vaccination requirements are good for the economy. They not only increase vaccination
rates but they help send people back to work--as many as 5 million American workers. They make our economy more resilient and keep our businesses open. [See H.R. 6304 for Congressional response]
Source: White House press release by 2021 Biden Administration
Nov 4, 2021
On Budget & Economy:
ARPA tackles urgent public health and economic crises
ARPA provides the tools and support critical to tackle the urgent public health and economic crises the Nation faces as a result of COVID-19. This includes funding to set up community vaccination sites nationwide, scale up testing and tracing, eliminate
supply shortage problems, invest in high quality treatments, address health disparities, and ensure workplace health and safety protections.The bill also delivers immediate relief to workers and families bearing the brunt of the public health and
economic crises, by providing eligible Americans with a $1,400 payment in addition to the $600 payment provided in December of 2020.
The bill also expands the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit on an emergency basis, extends key emergency
unemployment benefits, raises the minimum wage to $15 per hour, and stabilizes pensions for Americans who participate in multi-employer pension plans. [See details of ARPA]
Source: Statement of 2021 Biden Administration Policy on H.R. 1280
Mar 1, 2021
On Crime:
Rebuild trust between police & people they serve
[In support of H.R. 1280, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021, introduced by Rep. Bass, D-CA, and 197 cosponsors]: To make our communities safer, we must begin by rebuilding trust between law enforcement and the people they are entrusted to
serve and protect. We cannot rebuild that trust if we do not hold police officers accountable for abuses of power and tackle systemic misconduct--and systemic racism--in police departments.
President Biden has a long record of championing meaningful policing reform and previously called for the Congress to enact provisions like those in H.R. 1280, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The Administration encourages the
House to pass this legislation, and looks forward to working with the Congress to enact a landmark policing reform law. [See details of H.R.1280]
Source: Statement of 2021 Biden Administration Policy on H.R. 1280
Mar 1, 2021
On Government Reform:
Protect the fundamental right to vote, "For the People"
[On H.R.1, "For The People Act"]: In the wake of an unprecedented assault on our democracy, a never before seen effort to ignore, undermine, and undo the will of the people, and a newly aggressive attack on voting rights taking place right now all
across the country, this landmark legislation is urgently needed to protect the fundamental right to vote and the integrity of our elections, and to repair and strengthen American democracy.H.R. 1 contains a number of provisions to protect the
fundamental right to vote:- H.R. 1 would reform redistricting to curtail the gerrymandering that distorts our democracy, and would modernize our elections and make them more secure.
- H.R. 1 would also reform our campaign finance system to amplify
the voices of the public, not the powerful, and establish stronger ethics rules for all three branches of government.
[See details of H.R.1/S.1]
Source: Statement of 2021 Biden Administration Policy on H.R. 842
Mar 1, 2021
On Free Trade:
Reinstate Trump's 10% tariffs on aluminum from UAE
In one of his first trade actions, President Joe Biden reinstated a 10% duty on aluminum imports from the United Arab Emirates that Pres. Trump removed just one day before leaving office. "I consider it is necessary and appropriate in light of our
national security interests to maintain, at this time, the tariff treatment applied to aluminum article imports from the United Arab Emirates," Biden said.Why Biden acted: "The available evidence indicates that imports from the UAE may still displace
domestic production, and thereby threaten to impair our national security," Biden stated. Biden noted that US importers can apply for a waiver from tariffs on products not available from domestic suppliers. "Tellingly, there have been 33 such exclusion
requests for aluminum imported from the UAE, and the Secretary of Commerce has denied 32 of those requests," Biden said. "This indicates the large degree of overlap between imports from the UAE and what our domestic industry is capable of producing."
Source: Politico.com e-zine on 2021 Biden Administration
Feb 1, 2021
Page last updated: Jan 17, 2022