With hundreds of invitees and a sea of flags, Joe Biden signed a large infrastructure package yesterday in the garden of the White House, which is a rare victory for an unpopular president, reports Hina.
"My message to Americans is: America will move forward and your life will change for the better," said the president, visibly in good spirits. In front of him were parliamentary representatives, members of his government and trade unionists.
Joe Biden, faced with bad economic indicators and disastrous polls, wanted this ceremony held with great fanfare to be a reflection of his vision of America, a country of "possibility", which is able to reach a consensus.
On the basis of this law, which ten days ago was accepted with great difficulty in the House of Representatives, 1200 billion dollars are allocated for the reconstruction and construction of bridges, streets, charging stations for electric cars and water supply. At the same time, the law should enable the development of public transport and fast internet.
According to Biden, he will put America in a position to "win the race" with China. The text also won the votes of the Republican opposition, much to the chagrin of Donald Trump, who also wanted to launch a large infrastructure program, but failed to do so.
The former president and billionaire criticized the 13 Republican lawmakers who voted for the bill in the House of Representatives. His loyal supporter Marjorie Taylor Green even called them "traitors" and released their office phone numbers.
In fact, few opposition officials were on the White House lawn, despite Joe Biden's repeated insistence that the bill was backed by lawmakers from both parties, in a country where partisan divisions have reached a fever pitch.
Public support is falling for Biden
Although Biden's projects are popular among Americans, public support for him has steadily declined since the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan this summer. According to the latest Washington Post and ABC network polls published on Sunday, public support for the US president is 41 percent. Only 39 percent of Americans approve of his economic policy, and 70 percent of them believe that the economic situation in the United States is bad.
Rising prices are hampering another big project of the US president, which has not reached as much agreement as the infrastructure plan: 1750 billion dollars for social allocations and energy transition assistance, which will be debated by the House of Representatives this week, and then voted on by the Senate. There he cannot count on the support of the Republicans, among whom some warn of the introduction of "socialism", which is the biggest specter in the American understanding of politics.
The signing of the law on infrastructure is not so much the end, as the beginning of a major communication offensive by the White House. This week, Joe Biden will visit the state of New Hampshire (today) and the large industrial city of Detroit (tomorrow), where he will promote his infrastructure package.
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