# What has the Biden administration done that's so awful? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 7, 2022, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060 "2022-02-07T17:52:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2022, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/101 "2022-02-12T23:23:34Z")
If anyone is interested… > [@Virginia election-talk me down off the ledge](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virginia-election-talk-me-down-off-the-ledge/953496/288): > > What’s the worst thing she said in the last six months? The thing that muddled Democratic Party messaging the most. > [@I'm starting to get the feeling that the conservative right is winning](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-starting-to-get-the-feeling-that-the-conservative-right-is-winning/945477/484): > > What was the most damaging thing to Democratic Party messaging that AOC said in the last six months? @bump really wants AOC to stop talking. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2022, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/102 "2022-02-12T23:53:55Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > @bump really wants AOC to stop talking. I don’t know what party it is that he is trying to fix, but I don’t want to be in that party if it goes in the direction he wants. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/103 "2022-02-13T00:03:43Z")
AOC is just an example of a vocal congresswoman whose personal policies don’t sync up with the party as a whole. It’s supposedly a center-left party, but she’s very vocal and pretty far from the center. That’s my point- she needs to sing the party line more than grandstand for her own personal politics. So does Ilhan Omar, and for that matter, Joe Manchin and John Bel Edwards, to name a couple from the other side of the party. Publicly all of them should be supporting and pushing policies that are roughly in the Biden, Buttigieg, Booker, Pelosi and Schumer center-left area, not going rogue and saying whatever they want. The ONLY reason Democrats won in 2020 is because Trump was SO bad. It wasn’t votes for Biden or any kind of Democratic mandate, it was specifically votes AGAINST Trump. But without decisive governance and a firm response to Jan 6 and the voting rights issues, those dipshits out there are going to vote Trump and his ilk back into office later this year. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/104 "2022-02-13T00:06:53Z")
We’ll make sure to start goose-stepping in synchronized fashion for your pleasure moving forward. Apologies for not doing so sooner. ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/105 "2022-02-13T00:45:10Z")
> [@bump](#): > > AOC is just an example of a vocal congresswoman whose personal policies don’t sync up with the party as a whole. Is she vocal? Can you give me an example of something she vocalized in the last six months that didn’t sync up with the party as a whole. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/106 "2022-02-13T01:06:00Z")
> [@bump](#): > > …are you going to want to vote for the party that is organized and everyone’s on the same page, or the one where everyone just says and does whatever they want,… I don’t want a political party that marches in lockstep to one idea or one person. I want different people to share different ideas, and then some means to select the good ideas and shelve the bad ones. In 2016, a lot of people were disenchanted that Hillary Clinton was getting support from superdelegates, giving her the nomination over populist Bernie Sanders. They’d have done better to have a true competition, rather than let the party establishment enforce a “unified” choice. There’s nothing admirable about being on the same page, if it’s a page from the _National Enquirer_. ---
**Author:** ![lum\_s\_husband](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lum_s_husband/32/3698_2.png) [@lum\_s\_husband](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lum_s_husband)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/107 "2022-02-13T01:52:56Z")
You just don’t get it. The Left is illegitimate everywhere and always. It is as simple as that. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/108 "2022-02-13T02:36:08Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > We’ll make sure to start goose-stepping in synchronized fashion for your pleasure moving forward. Apologies for not doing so sooner. This bit of snark is **so** not the point. Given the slim majority, it should be every Democrat’s mission to make Biden a success in his first term, thus making a second Democratic presidential term possible, either his or someone else’s. What good are their “principles” when Biden fails because this own party undermined him, and trump is back in the White House? ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/109 "2022-02-13T02:42:03Z")
So I should take advice from a Republican whose party left him behind and wants the Democrats to move towards him? Naw, I’m good. I consider the fact that the Democratic tent has a large range of opinions on various topics a feature. I am capable of understanding why the presidential candidate had to be Biden even though Sanders and AOC bring many great ideas to the table. I also know that the future of the Democratic party is better off in the hands of the AOCs of the world than the Mitt Romneys. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/110 "2022-02-13T03:18:24Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > I consider the fact that the Democratic tent has a large range of opinions on various topics a feature… Ideally, it would be. These days the fact that they can’t get all their oars pulling in the same direction will be their downfall. When the Republicans reclaim the White House and both houses of Congress, there will be no more Democratic party. Ya good with that? Good. 👍🏼 ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/111 "2022-02-13T03:19:40Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Given the slim majority, it should be every Democrat’s mission to make Biden a success in his first term, thus making a second Democratic presidential term possible, either his or someone else’s. What good are their “principles” when Biden fails because this own party undermined him, and trump is back in the White House? Sure, but it’s not the progressives who have been throwing monkey wrenches into Biden’s plans, it’s been the centrists. ---
**Author:** ![lum\_s\_husband](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lum_s_husband/32/3698_2.png) [@lum\_s\_husband](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lum_s_husband)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/112 "2022-02-13T03:41:02Z")
But the Left is always forcing the Centrists’ hand, so the Left is to blame. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/113 "2022-02-13T03:41:46Z")
Whoever is doing it needs to STOP. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/114 "2022-02-13T04:10:00Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Ya good with that? Good. If my other option is getting in bed with racists and bigots, yeah, I’m good with that. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/115 "2022-02-13T04:31:45Z")
Exactly! ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/116 "2022-02-13T04:34:17Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > I consider the fact that the Democratic tent has a large range of opinions on various topics a feature. It IS a feature. But there comes a point when the party decides which of those opinions are “official” and unites behind them, rather than pulling in a whole bunch of different ways at the same time. I mean, AOC and Bernie do have a lot of good ideas. And some bad ones as well, same as all politicians. But at some point, it’s not productive for party members to decry one another, or call each other out- a bit of unity would be a good thing once in a while. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/117 "2022-02-13T04:50:41Z")
> [@bump](#): > > It IS a feature. But there comes a point when the party decides which of those opinions are “official” and unites behind them, rather than pulling in a whole bunch of different ways at the same time. Not really. I’m fine with the direction my party is going, even if it’s heading there slowly and with a variety of people steering it, nudging it this way and that. If you happen to need help fixing **your** party, let me know, but pulling the Democratic party to the right of Biden just because your party went to shit is not the answer. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/118 "2022-02-13T06:44:11Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > Not really. I’m fine with the direction my party is going, even if it’s heading there slowly and with a variety of people steering it, nudging it this way and that. If you happen to need help fixing **your** party, let me know, but pulling the Democratic party to the right of Biden just because your party went to shit is not the answer. “Exactly”! ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/119 "2022-02-13T16:19:36Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I mean, AOC and Bernie do have a lot of good ideas. And some bad ones as well, same as all politicians. But at some point, it’s not productive for party members to decry one another, or call each other out- a bit of unity would be a good thing once in a while. Do you ever wonder why you struggle to come with examples of AOC engaging in the behavior you oppose? I’m in a good mood this morning so I’m going to help you crack this puzzle. The real AOC is actually behaving in the way you think she should be behaving almost all the time. It’s the caricature of AOC that exists in your imagination that’s “mouthing off on Twitter” who members of her own party “need to slap a muzzle on”. This is not a Democratic Party problem it’s a @bump problem. Also the dehumanizing “muzzle” language is pretty gross. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060/120 "2022-02-13T16:53:33Z")
Frankly, I think AOC has done a remarkable job of maintaining her reputation as being a provocateur within her party while also being a Democratic team player. She endorsed Bernie early and enthusiastically during the presidential primaries but was careful never to be so extreme in her rhetoric that she couldn’t switch tracks and back Biden when he sewed up the nomination. She’s made some trouble for party leadership, but she’s up front about her disagreements and isn’t plotting against them. She’s voted to keep Nancy Pelosi in the Speakership. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-the-biden-administration-done-thats-so-awful/959060.md?page=7)