Biden's not a political 'Humpty Dumpty' 

Just as Republican Kevin McCarthy was losing yet another vote for speaker of the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C., President Joe Biden and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell were doing a victory lap in Kentucky touting a new bridge across the Ohio River that was made possible by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill.

The appearance highlights a series of legislative triumphs for the Biden administration, including bipartisan victories on infrastructure, gun background checks, and manufacturing of computer chips. Not surprisingly, 2022 midterm election voters opted to keep the Senate in the hands of the Democrats as well as flopping two governor seats and four state legislatures to the Democrats. Biden, in comparison to his predecessor, has produced real results for the American people.

These include ongoing job creation because of the Infrastructure Bill and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, subsidies to those who wish to transition to zero-emission vehicles, a reduction in prescription drug prices, lower health care costs for Americans using the Affordable Care Act, continued support of the democratically elected government in Ukraine, and crackdowns on wealthy tax cheats with an influx of funding for the IRS.

In contrast, President Donald Trump had his chances to produce bipartisan solutions to the nation's problems during his four years in office. Unfortunately, he spent most of his time waging Twitter battles, turning a blind eye to white supremacists, and persecuting immigrants.

Instead, he could have cut a deal with Democrats on health care—he consistently said he had a plan that was better than Obamacare. He never produced it. He also could have negotiated immigration reform legislation. Democrats were ready to concede money for his wall if he had allowed for DACA and a path to citizenship for some 20 million undocumented workers who live in the U.S.

In addition, Trump announced several "Infrastructure Days," which produced nothing. In fact, Trump's only legislative achievement was a huge tax cut for the wealthiest Americans. It added nearly $2 billion to the federal deficit and allowed Trump to pay zero federal income taxes in his last year as president. It's no wonder he lost the 2020 election by 7 million votes.

Biden has done a solid job as president. He is not the political "Humpty Dumpty" he has been labeled as. Before World War II, the British wrote off Winston Churchill as feeble and an alcoholic. He proved otherwise.

Michael Smith

Santa Maria