Joseph Biden
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| Joseph Biden | |
|---|---|
| Name | Joseph Biden |
| Birth date | November 20, 1942 |
| Birth place | Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Jill Biden |
| Children | Beau Biden, Hunter Biden, Naomi Biden |
| Alma mater | University of Delaware; Syracuse University College of Law |
Joseph Biden is an American politician and lawyer who has served as the 46th President of the United States since 2021. His long public career spans service as a U.S. Senator from Delaware, two terms as Vice President, and earlier roles in local politics and law. Known for work on foreign policy, criminal justice, and judicial nominations, he has been a prominent figure in the Democratic Party for decades.
Early life and education
Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania and raised partly in Wilmington, Delaware, he attended Archmere Academy before enrolling at the University of Delaware, where he studied history and Political science. He played on the University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team briefly and graduated in 1965. Afterward he attended Syracuse University College of Law, earning a Juris Doctor in 1968, and then worked as an attorney and taught at the University of Delaware.
Legal and political career in Delaware
After admission to the bar, he served on the New Castle County Council beginning in 1970, building a local political base that led to his 1972 U.S. Senate campaign. During this period he practiced law at firms in Wilmington, Delaware and engaged with civic organizations. His early political network included figures from the Delaware Democratic Party and contacts in regional institutions such as the DuPont Company and local media outlets.
U.S. Senate (1973–2009)
Elected to the United States Senate in 1972, he became one of the youngest senators in U.S. history and served six terms representing Delaware. He chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee during the 1980s and again in the 1990s, overseeing confirmation hearings for nominees to the Supreme Court of the United States, including hearings related to Robert Bork and later deliberations involving Clarence Thomas and other federal judges. He also chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, shaping legislation on matters involving NATO, Iraq War, Kosovo, and U.S. relations with Russia and China. His legislative record includes co-sponsoring the Violence Against Women Act and supporting criminal justice measures that later drew scrutiny and reassessment during his presidential campaigns. He ran for the Democratic Party presidential primaries in 1988 and 2008, the latter campaign preceding his selection as running mate.
Vice Presidency (2009–2017)
Selected as running mate to Barack Obama in the 2008 election, he served two terms as Vice President of the United States from 2009 to 2017. His vice presidential portfolio involved chairing task forces on economic recovery after the 2008 financial crisis, coordinating initiatives on gun violence, and leading diplomatic missions to Iraq, Afghanistan, and countries in Europe. He worked closely with administrations' officials at institutions such as the Department of State, Department of Defense, and National Security Council, and played a role in advancing the Affordable Care Act implementation and nomination processes for federal judges and administrators.
2020 presidential campaign and election
Announcing a candidacy in the 2020 United States presidential election cycle, he ran in a crowded Democratic Party presidential primaries field and secured the nomination, defeating primary opponents including Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar. His campaign emphasized pandemic response, economic recovery, and restoring alliances with partners in NATO and the European Union. He selected Kamala Harris as his running mate. In the general election he faced incumbent Donald Trump and ran a campaign featuring debates, advertising in battleground states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, and litigation over voting procedures. The election result awarded him the majority in the Electoral College and the popular vote plurality, with certification culminating in inauguration after proceedings in the United States Congress.
Presidency (2021–present)
As President, he has focused on pandemic response including vaccination campaigns in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and federal agencies, passage of major spending bills through the United States Congress such as the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, and infrastructure legislation negotiated with bipartisan leadership resulting in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. His administration has addressed foreign policy challenges involving Russia's actions toward Ukraine, diplomatic engagement with China, and rejoining multilateral agreements such as the Paris Agreement on climate change. On domestic policy, initiatives have targeted supply chains, climate action through executive measures and regulations involving the Environmental Protection Agency, and judicial appointments to the Federal judiciary. His tenure has included interactions with the Supreme Court of the United States over major legal questions and responses to crises at the U.S.–Mexico border. The administration's legislative and executive priorities continue to evolve amid debates with the United States Congress, state governments including California and Texas, and stakeholders in the private sector such as major technology companies.