All in Politics

Immigration Under President Biden: Expectations, Reality, and Everything In Between

Joe Biden ran as an antithesis to his predecessor, but what does what mean now that he is in office for those most affected by his decisions? As a candidate, Biden promised to not only reverse the unjust immigration policies of the previous administration but to prioritize protecting immigrant families who are essential to our country. Since Inauguration Day, most of Biden’s immigration actions have been centered around reversing Trump’s policies. Biden ran on promises to go beyond rolling back Trump administration policies, but his time in office has not exactly mirrored those campaign promises.

Using Canada as a future indicator for the US

Republicans and Democrats can both agree on the fact that the coronavirus is costing the US economy a substantial amount of money. Stimulus is nearly entirely funded through government issued debt, or bonds. Debt has been a gargantuan issue for the US government for the last decade, which leaves Democrats and Republicans fighting over the size of stimulus bills. Canada’s rationale and commentary behind their recent stimulus measures may prove insightful to the United States in deciding how to proceed. The stakes are rising as countries get deeper into debt and the economic horizon is still uncertain. One strategist commented, “Canada could come off as heroic if this spending is done right…If Canada fails, all the emergency spending might have been done in vain because we won’t have the capacity to power the post-vaccine recovery” (Vieira and Mackrael, 2020). As the United States legislature debates another stimulus bill, lawmakers should consider the reasons behind Canada’s recent economic actions.

The Pandemic Brings Racism in Healthcare to the Forefront

As this year slowly comes to an end, we look back on the historic importance of 2020. The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade and too many others at the hands of the police and the national response have forced a reckoning of the role of racism within American life. As the U.S. is unable to control the spread of COVID-19, the pandemic continues to change the way we live. The Coronavirus has highlighted the failures of the American healthcare system, specifically the disproportionate negative effects for Black people of color. Racism plays a critical role in determining individual health outcomes and the healthcare system can no longer be complicit through inaction.