President Biden’s State of the Union address was far better than previous performances I’ve seen from him. It was far more vigorous and far less gooey than I anticipated, and may have improved his chances for November. He did a good job showing how and why Donald Trump would be far worse, he stopped the GOP hecklers in their tracks, and the domestic agenda he offered was admirable.
However, when it comes to foreign policy, Biden is still stuck in full Cold War military-industrial mode, which means that, despite good intentions, guns will come before bread and the nuclear arms race will continue apace, as it currently does in our country. The humanitarian pier he proposed for Gaza leaves Netanyahu off the hook, free to do what he pleases both in Gaza and on the West Bank while America’s weapons keep coming.
And while Biden is not into family separation, he’s taken much of the GOP’s immigration program as his own. As usual, he’s trying to have it both ways at once. That won’t go well this election year with Arab Americans, large parts of the labor movement, or large numbers of young people or African Americans.
Added to the mess are recent reports that global temperatures have risen to 1.77C above pre-industrial levels, which leave the Paris Climate Accord in tatters.
John Raby
Scarborough
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