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The most unfortunate, and, honestly, unlikely, outcome of the 2020 elections has come to pass. Somehow, despite a roaring economy and four solid years under the Trump Administration, Republicans have lost control of the Senate and White House in one fell swoop. This is beyond bizarre: one party rarely loses two branches of government in such short order. This, hot on the heels of 2018’s blue wave that overtook the Republican majority in the House of Representatives has left the GOP reeling.
Many of former president Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters have been left feeling betrayed and leaderless following the January 6 attack on the capitol. An impeachment trial for Donald Trump is looming in the Senate even as President Joe Biden begins governing in earnest. Already, he’s made swift moves to roll back the Trump Administration’s legacy.
After four years of battling with the media, Democrats and often, even, his own party, Donald Trump’s legislative agenda was largely compromised. While he campaigned on promises to drain the swamp, this never materialized in any real way. The former president’s most lasting legacy, then, revolved around two major projects: the Keystone oil pipeline and his signature border wall.
The Keystone XL pipeline, while controversial, was a major win for the Trump White House. The pipeline promised to keep gas prices low as it pumped oil in from far to the north. Meanwhile, the border wall, a major campaign promise of Trump’s, was intended to stop the flow of immigrants and drugs from Mexico.
Biden wasted no time undoing both of these initiatives with a pair of executive actions. Construction on the wall was halted effective immediately, and the Keystone pipeline’s authorization has been revoked.
While Donald Trump focused on putting America first, Biden’s agenda so far seems to put America… somewhere? They’re on the list, for sure. Already, Biden has had the US rejoin the Paris Climate Accords and has begun the process of rejoining the World Health Organization. Trump had the US leave these organizations out of a desire to stop foreign meddling in American affairs.
Unfortunately, Biden doesn’t seem to share Trump’s enthusiasm for putting America first. Instead, he’d sooner see politicians in Brussels make decisions for Americans living in rural areas that couldn’t be more distinct from Europe.
While Biden’s time in office has only just started, he’s already hard at work eliminating the legacy of the man who occupied the position before him.
