Biden Shows Strength as World Leader

I’m feeling the price of everything. The cost of my fast food yesterday was ridiculous. Who knows how much I’ll spend filling up my tank tomorrow. Thankfully, I still have the democratic right to complain about it, to make choices, and to vote.

At least for now.

The Russian invasion is challenging our liberties and Biden’s at the helm. He has a 40% approval rating. Starbuck’s joke about - not letting him lead a line for jello - was pretty funny. But let’s be fair. We call him out when he’s slow to respond; we should notice too when he does something right.

With the Russian invasion, Biden’s been spot on.

He called it.

The candidate Biden noticed the need to strengthen democracy around the world long before the invasion began.

In 2020, he advocated on behalf of stronger international alliances. During his campaign, he declared: “The next U.S. president will have to mobilize our country and our allies.” After he was elected, he reached out to world leaders with a pro-democracy summit.

Biden’s White House held The Summit for Democracy last December. His administration described the event as having “spurred dialogue and initiated concrete action toward global democratic renewal.”

Alongside complaints that the summit included nations with failing democracies; the White House boasted that the gathering “brought together more than 275 participants.”

He brought policy.

The President responded to the Russian Invasion with a solid plan. Before the invasion, he spoke with Putin on the phone. He warned Putin that Russian military action would lead to “widespread human suffering”. During the call, he mentioned the “severe costs” that would follow.

Exactly as he said, the invasion resulted in widespread human suffering. Also, the global sanctions that followed had “severe” consequences on Russia’s economy. Biden showed strength as a world leader.

He was first.

Two days before Putin’s military crossed the border, The President delivered a formal announcement. The timing of his “Response to Russian Actions” positioned the US as Russia’s main opposition. The President's words were among the strongest of them all.

Biden confronted Putin in the address. He said that he “told Putin to his face… that we (NATO) would act together.” With bold conviction, The President expressed outrage, challenging Putin’s right to invade with: “Who in the Lord’s name…”

The length and breadth of the announcement demonstrated his commitment to protecting democracy and human rights. After his bold stance, many other countries followed suit and also denounced Russia’s attack. Biden showed strength.

He led.

The President unified NATO countries and allies. As a world leader, he coordinated the sanctions that the international community implemented. Together, they delivered the “robust action” that he promised at the beginning of the war.

Recently, The President reinvigorated his position when he accused Putin of committing “war crimes”. After Putin responded, the conflict intensified. Biden got blow-back for the remark. The personal accounts and video footage of Bocha surfaced and supported his statement. In accordance with his comment, the attacks in Bocha are now referred to as a “massacre”.

Biden called it again.

His walk-back worked too.

Many agreed with The President's remark about Putin. "For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power", he said. Still, the remark created confusion about US policy. Press Secretary Jen Psaki walked back the comment, explaining, “We’re not calling for a regime change.”

In this instance, Biden voiced his opposition to Putin. Then, his administration followed up with an articulation of policy. The arrangement served the country well. Biden - the person - represented US interests abroad. His administration represented political and economic interests at home.

Like him or not, Biden's been right on Russia. He alone had the guts to stand up to Putin at the beginning of the war. He’s been consistent. He followed through. Without hesitation, Biden saw war crimes and called them war crimes. That took courage. That deserves respect. Thank you for reading. Double thanks for following me here.