On the first anniversary of his appointment, Biden held a two-hour press conference for the first time, what did he say?

On the afternoon of the 19th local time, on the occasion of the first anniversary of taking office, Biden held a "marathon" press conference at the White House. The press conference lasted 112 minutes, supposedly the longest in the history of a U.S. president. At the meeting, Biden not only emphasized the achievements made in the past year, but also talked about international issues such as the situation in Ukraine. Why did Biden, who was criticized for "not loving press conferences", change the normal this time? On the first anniversary of his administration, how can Biden defend himself on the occasion of the rebound of the epidemic in the United States, the obstruction of the domestic agenda, and the continued decline in support?

"My performance exceeded expectations"

"It's been a challenging year, but it's also a year of tremendous progress over the years." Before answering reporters' questions, Biden's opening remarks were positive and optimistic. He summed up the achievements he has made in fighting the epidemic, reducing unemployment and passing infrastructure bills in the past year in office.

However, the first question thrown to Biden by American journalists is: Do you think you are over-committed to the American people for what you have achieved in the past year?

Biden defended himself this way: I wasn't overpromised, I was outperformed.

On the fight against the epidemic and the economic recovery, Although Biden admitted that "our work is not yet complete", the government should do more in the new crown testing. But he also boasted about what he had achieved, including 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccination and the lowest unemployment rate in many states.

He said the United States is moving toward an era where "COVID-19 will not affect everyday life" and that "it will be achieved." He also optimistically said: "The best days in this country are still ahead, not ahead." ”

On the domestic political agenda, Biden acknowledged that aspirations to pass the "Rebuild a Better Future" bill have been dashed due to the "defection" of Democratic Congressman Manchin. Biden added to himself: "I've been working on public policy for a long time, and not much has happened overnight. ”

Biden also said the bill is expected to be split, with much of it passed before the November midterm elections. He also said that this year he will change his strategy: walk out of the White House and talk directly to the American people to win their support.

Also declaring "difficult childbirth" is the US Reform Voting Rights Act. Speaking about the administration's inability to act, Biden said he underestimated republicans' "staunch" opposition to him. He said Senate Republican Leader McConnell's goal was clear: "Stop Biden from succeeding at all costs."

"So far, there's one thing I haven't been able to do, and that's getting my Republican friends into the game and making this country a better place." Biden complained, "What did they (Republicans) support? Can you name one thing they supported? ”

Biden also worries that Republicans will "go bad" in the midterm elections. He argues that without pushing for voting rights reform, Republicans are likely to undermine the legitimacy of the midterm elections.

"Putin may take action against Ukraine"

Speaking of internal affairs, Biden also talked about a number of international issues. Biden is astonishing about ukraine's most concerned issues. He predicted that Putin could "take action" against Ukraine.

"I'm not quite sure if (Putin) decides what he's going to do. I guess he's going to take action against Ukraine, and he's going to have to do something. ”

Biden said Putin asked him to give assurances on two issues: Ukraine will never join NATO, "strategic" or nuclear weapons will never be stationed on Ukrainian soil, and "the second point we can talk about." ”

Biden also called a "small invasion" one thing and a full-scale invasion another. Although he said harshly: "invading Ukraine" will lead to a "heavy and expensive price", Reuters pointed out that Biden also hinted that if it was a "small invasion", the cost would be smaller.

Recently, the United States and Ukraine have continued to play up the threat of Russia's "invasion" of Ukraine, and the Russian side has emphasized that the situation continues to deteriorate because NATO continues to squeeze Russia's security space. In the middle of this month, the United States and NATO held talks with Russia, but no progress was made on major issues.

As soon as Biden said this, Ukraine could not sit still. CNN quoted Ukrainian officials as saying the government was shocked: "This is equivalent to giving Putin a green light to enter Ukraine." ”

The White House couldn't sit still. Shortly after the registration meeting ended, the White House responded urgently, saying that any Russian military action against Ukraine would invite a tough response. "If Russian troops cross the border into Ukraine, it will be a new invasion, and the United States and allies will respond quickly, harshly and unanimously." White House press secretary Psaki said.

When it comes to the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, Biden is back in "defense" mode.

"I'm not going to apologize for what I did." Biden blamed previous administrations: "After 20 years in Afghanistan, we are unlikely to withdraw our troops from Afghanistan easily." ”

When it comes to whether the tariffs imposed on China will be lifted, Biden said that U.S. Trade Representative Dai Qi is working on this, but "it is not yet time."

33% support? "I don't believe polls"

At the nearly two-hour press conference, there was no shortage of questions that embarrassed Biden.

The US right-wing media Newsmax has thrown out a "sensitive issue": The recent poll shows that 49% of the Americans surveyed do not approve of the "Biden mental health" statement. You know, when he took office last January, Biden, born in November 1942, was the oldest president in U.S. history.

Biden first laughed and then said to the reporter, "I don't have a thought. ”

He then reiterated his determination to be re-elected in 2024, making it clear that Vice President Harris would remain his number one running mate.

In this regard, some media said that the press conference that was originally scheduled for 1 hour was finally extended to nearly two hours, which may have proved Biden's physical strength and "mental health".

The "marathon" press conference is "groundbreaking" for Biden. Compared with previous US presidents, Biden has often been criticized for not loving press conferences.

CNN said biden held only nine press conferences in his first year in office, three of which were held jointly with foreign leaders. Held on the 19th was his second White House personal press conference.

In contrast, former US President Trump held 21 press conferences in his first year in office, and Clinton held 38 press conferences in his first year in office.

Although Biden frequently defended himself at this press conference, the effect may be limited. When the US media took stock of the first anniversary of Biden's administration, it still believed that Biden was not satisfactory in terms of anti-epidemic, inflation suppression, policy legislation and other aspects.

The Associated Press said Biden was in a "dangerous time": Another wave of new crown was sweeping across the United States, and inflation was at a 40-year high. If Biden fails to turn things around, Democrats will face a crushing defeat in the midterm elections.

Recent poll data has also sounded the alarm bell for Biden. A poll released by Quinnipiac University on the 13th showed that only 33% of voters among respondents supported Biden, even lower than the 38% support rate during the first anniversary of Trump's administration.

American reporters asked Biden on the 19th: Polls show that many voters who supported you at the beginning are not satisfied with your work.

In the face of this "heart-wrenching" question, Biden replied: "I don't believe in polls. ”

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Column Editor-in-Chief: Yang Liqun Text Editor: Yang Liqun Caption Source: Xinhua News Agency Photo Editor: Cao Liyuan

Source: Author: Qiu Wenhan