Inauguration administered by
Chief Justice John Roberts at
the Capitol, on January 20, 2021.|alt=Photo of Biden raising his right hand, with his left hand placed on a thick Bible Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States on January 20, 2021. At 78, he was then the oldest person to assume the office up to that point. Biden was the second
Catholic U.S. president, after
John F. Kennedy, and the first president elected from the state of
Delaware. He was also the first person since
George H. W. Bush to have been both vice president and president, and the only president to date from the
Silent Generation. Biden's inauguration was "a muted affair unlike any previous inauguration" due to COVID-19 precautions as well as massively increased security measures because of the
January 6 United States Capitol attack.
First 100 days In his first two days as president, Biden signed 17executive orders. By his third day, orders had included rejoining the
Paris Climate Agreement, ending the state of national emergency at the
border with Mexico, directing the government to rejoin the
World Health Organization,
face mask requirements on
federal property, measures to combat
hunger in the United States, and revoking permits for the construction of the
Keystone XL pipeline. , July 2021|alt=Group photo of Biden, Harris and cabinet members standing outdoors On March 11, Biden signed into law the
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion
economic stimulus and relief package that he had proposed to support the United States' recovery from the
economic and health effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic. The package included direct payments to most Americans, an extension of increased unemployment benefits, funds for vaccine distribution and school reopenings, and expansions of health insurance subsidies and the
child tax credit. Biden's initial proposal included an increase of the
federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, but after the
Senate parliamentarian determined that including the increase in a
budget reconciliation bill would violate Senate rules, Democrats removed it. Also in March, amid
a rise in migrants entering the U.S. from Mexico, Biden said migrant adults were "being sent back", in reference to the continuation of the Trump administration's Title 42 policy for quick deportations. He earlier announced that his administration would not deport unaccompanied migrant children; the rise in arrivals of such children exceeded the capacity of facilities meant to shelter them, leading the Biden administration in March to direct the
Federal Emergency Management Agency to help. On April 14, Biden announced that the United States
would delay the withdrawal of all troops from the
war in Afghanistan until September 11, signaling an end to the country's direct military involvement in Afghanistan after nearly 20 years. In February 2020, the Trump administration had
made a deal with the Taliban to completely withdraw U.S. forces by May 1, 2021. Biden's decision met with a range of reactions, from support and relief to trepidation at the possible collapse of the Afghan government without American support. On April 22–23, Biden held an
international climate summit at which he announced that the U.S. would cut its
greenhouse gas emissions by 50%–52% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. On April 28, the eve of his 100th day in office, Biden delivered his
first address to a joint session of Congress.
Domestic policy with Vice President
Kamala Harris and
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on April 28, 2021.|alt=Photo of Biden giving a speech to Congress, with Pelosi and Harris clapping behind him On June 17, Biden signed the
Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, which officially declared
Juneteenth a
federal holiday. In July 2021, amid a slowing of
the COVID-19 vaccination rate in the country and the spread of the
SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant, Biden said that it was "gigantically important" for Americans to be vaccinated. In 2022, Biden endorsed a change to the
Senate filibuster to allow for the passing of the
Freedom to Vote Act and
John Lewis Voting Rights Act. The rules change failed when two Democratic senators joined Senate Republicans in opposing it. In April 2022, Biden signed into law the bipartisan
Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 to revamp the finances and operations of the
United States Postal Service agency. Biden supported the
Bipartisan Safer Communities Act aimed to address gun reform issues following the
Robb Elementary School shooting in
Uvalde, Texas; he signed the bill on June 25, 2022. The
Honoring our PACT Act of 2022 was introduced in 2021 and signed into law by Biden on August 10, 2022. The act intended to significantly improve healthcare access and funding for veterans who were exposed to toxic substances, including
burn pits, during military service. In 2022, Biden signed the
Respect for Marriage Act, which repealed the
Defense of Marriage Act and requires the federal government to recognize the validity of
same-sex and
interracial marriages. In June 2024, Biden issued an executive action offering amnesty to unauthorized immigrants married to American citizens. The program included a pathway to U.S. residency and citizenship and was expected to initially affect about 500,000 people. It was later struck down due to a lack of legislation empowering the president to enact the program. In January 2025, Biden declared the lapsed
Equal Rights Amendment ratified as the "28th Amendment" to the
constitution. The declaration has no formal effect and the
National Archives has said it does not intend to certify the amendment as part of the constitution due to "established legal, judicial, and procedural decisions".
Economic policy Biden entered office nine months into a recovery from the
COVID-19 recession and his first year in office was characterized by robust growth in real GDP, employment, wages, and stock market returns, amid
significantly elevated inflation. Real GDP grew 5.9%, the fastest rate in 37 years. Amid record job creation, the unemployment rate fell at the fastest pace on record. By the end of 2021, inflation rates measured by the consumer price index (CPI) reached a nearly 40-year high of 7.1%, which was partially offset by the highest nominal wage and salary growth in at least 20 years. The inflation rate peaked at 9% in June 2022. The inflation rate reached 2.9% and core inflation rate reached 3.2% on an annual basis in December 2024, the last full month of Biden's term. Between December 2020 and December 2024, CPI rose 21.3% overall, with an annualized inflation rate of 5.3% throughout Biden's term in office. The inflation rate remained above the Federal Reserve's 2% target every month since March 2021, resulting in elevated interest rates to combat inflation. Average wages increased 19% throughout Biden's presidency, falling behind inflation. The unemployment rate declined by over 2% and real GDP grew 11% during Biden's term. Total household net worth increased by 28%, largely driven by stocks and real estate. The national debt grew to $36.2 trillion, with a debt to GDP ratio of 123% and a deficit to GDP ratio of 6% in FY 2024. In February 2023, the unemployment rate fell to 3.4%, a 53-year low. Amid a surge in
inflation and
high gas prices, Biden's approval ratings declined, with his disapproval rating surpassing his approval rating in early 2022. After 5.9% growth in 2021, real GDP growth cooled in 2022 to 2.1%, after slightly negative growth in the first half spurred recession concerns. Job creation and consumer spending remained strong, as the unemployment rate fell to match a 53-year low of 3.5% in December. Inflation peaked at 9.1% in June before easing to 3.2% by October 2023. Stocks had had their worst year since 2008 before recovering. Widespread predictions of an imminent recession did not materialize in 2022 or 2023, and by late 2023 indicators showed sharply lower inflation with economic acceleration. GDP growth hit 4.9% in the third quarter of 2023 and the year ended with stocks near record highs, with robust holiday spending. Biden signed numerous major pieces of economic legislation in the
117th Congress, including the
American Rescue Plan,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,
CHIPS and Science Act, and the
Inflation Reduction Act. He signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law on August 9, 2022. It provided billions of dollars in new funding to boost domestic research on and manufacture of
semiconductors, to
compete economically with China. In his third month in office, Biden also signed an executive order to increase the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour. The order went into effect for 390,000 workers in January 2022. His administration rigorously enforced
antitrust law. In 2022, Biden blocked a
national railroad strike planned by multiple labor unions. During the
United Auto Workers strike, he expressed support for the workers. Biden joined striking UAW workers'
picket line in Michigan, becoming the first president to join a picket line. He refused to block a
port strike from the
International Longshoremen's Association in October 2024. Over the course of five days in March 2023,
three small- to mid-size U.S. banks failed, triggering a sharp decline in global bank stock prices and swift response by regulators to prevent potential global
contagion. After
Silicon Valley Bank collapsed, the first to do so, Biden expressed opposition to a bailout by taxpayers. He claimed that the
partial rollback of
Dodd-Frank regulations contributed to the bank's failure. At the beginning of the
118th Congress, Biden and congressional Republicans
engaged in a standoff after the U.S. hit its
debt limit, which raised the risk that the U.S. would
default on its debt. Biden and House speaker
Kevin McCarthy struck a deal to raise the debt limit, the
Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, which suspended the debt limit until January 2025. Biden signed it on June 3, averting a default. The deal was generally seen as favorable to Biden. Biden extended the COVID-19 student loan pause through September 2023, with an "on ramp" period that extended some of the pause's protections against credit reporting, collection efforts, and late payment fees through September 30, 2024. The Biden administration's attempts to implement student loan forgiveness and relief programs have faced legal challenges from a coalition of Republican-led states. Biden's plans to forgive student loan debt were estimated to cost over $519 billion, and some critics called them a "disaster".
Judiciary watching the
U.S. Senate vote on her confirmation, April 2022|alt=Photo of Biden and Jackson looking at an off-camera television screen By the end of 2021, 40 of his nominees to the federal judiciary had been confirmed, more than any president in his first year in office since
Ronald Reagan. Biden prioritized diversity in his judicial appointments more than any president in U.S. history, with most of his appointees being women and people of color. In January 2022, Supreme Court justice
Stephen Breyer announced his intention to retire. During his 2020 campaign, Biden vowed to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court if a vacancy occurred, a promise he reiterated after Breyer announced his retirement. On February 25,
Biden nominated federal judge
Ketanji Brown Jackson. She was sworn in on June 30. By the end of his presidency, Biden had appointed 235 judges, more appointments in a single term than any other president in at least 50 years. 63% of Biden's judges were women and 60% were non-white. Biden expressed interest in judicial
term limits and a binding ethics code for Supreme Court justices. Notably, President Biden declined to select a nominee for a judicial vacancy on the
Third Circuit in his home state of
Delaware even though the vacancy was announced eight months before his term ended. Biden's decision not to fill the vacancy in his home state of Delaware on the
Third Circuit and unsuccessful nomination of
Adeel A. Mangi to another
Third Circuit vacancy allowed President Trump to fill both seats in 2025 and flip the Third Circuit to a conservative majority.
Infrastructure and climate and UN secretary-general
António Guterres at the opening ceremony of the
COP26 climate summit in
Glasgow on November 1, 2021|alt=Phot of Biden, Johnson and Guterres standing onstage As part of Biden's Build Back Better agenda, in late March 2021, he proposed the
American Jobs Plan, a $2 trillion package addressing issues including transport infrastructure, utilities infrastructure, broadband infrastructure, housing, schools, manufacturing, research and workforce development. After months of negotiations among Biden and lawmakers, in August 2021 the Senate passed a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill called the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, while the House, also in a bipartisan manner, approved that bill in early November 2021, covering infrastructure related to transport, utilities, and broadband. Biden signed the bill into law in mid-November 2021. The other core part of the Build Back Better agenda was the
Build Back Better Act, a $3.5 trillion social spending bill that expands the
social safety net and includes major provisions on climate change. Democrats attempted to pass it on a
party-line vote through
budget reconciliation, but struggled to win the support of Senator
Joe Manchin, even as the price was lowered to $2.2 trillion. After Manchin rejected the bill, it was comprehensively reworked into the
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, covering deficit reduction, climate change, healthcare, and tax reform. The
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 was introduced by Manchin and Senator
Chuck Schumer. The package aimed to raise $739 billion and authorize $370 billion in spending on energy and
climate change, $300 billion in deficit reduction, three years of
Affordable Care Act subsidies, prescription drug reform to lower prices, and
tax reform. According to an analysis by the Rhodium Group, the bill will lower
U.S. greenhouse gas emissions between 31 percent and 44 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. On August 7, 2022, the Senate passed the bill (as amended) on a 51–50 vote, with all Democrats voting in favor, all Republicans opposed, and Vice President
Kamala Harris breaking the tie. Biden signed the bill on August 16. Before and during the
2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), Biden promoted an agreement that the U.S. and the
European Union cut methane emissions by a third by 2030 and tried to add dozens of other countries to the effort. Biden pledged to double climate funding to developing countries by 2024. Also at COP26, the U.S. and China reached a deal on greenhouse gas emission reduction. The two countries are responsible for 40 percent of global emissions. In July 2023, when
heat waves hit the United States, Biden announced measures to protect the population and said the heat waves were linked to climate change. In April 2024, he unveiled a plan to protect and restore natural water sources (3.2 million hectares of
wetlands and 161,000 km of waterways). Biden protected 674 million acres of land and ocean from natural resource exploitation, more than any other president. The vast majority of the conservation came from a ban on offshore drilling in 625 million acres of ocean.
Immigration On taking office, Biden unveiled the
U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 and moved to dismantle several policies implemented under
Donald Trump, halting construction of the
Mexico–United States border wall, ending Trump's
travel ban on countries with predominantly Muslim populations, and signing an executive order to reaffirm protections for
DACA recipients. The
Department of Homeland Security narrowed the scope of interior immigration enforcement, directing
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to prioritize national security and violent crime concerns.
Illegal border crossings at the
Mexico–United States border began to surge in 2021 when Biden assumed office, reaching an all-time monthly high in December 2023. Throughout 2024, crossings began to significantly decline from the December record, after Biden implemented restrictions on
asylum claims from migrants who cross the border between ports of entry and urged Mexico to crack down on migrants. Deportations from October 2023 to September 2024 reached the highest level since 2014. Biden used
humanitarian parole to mitigate illegal border crossings, allowing migrants to fly into the U.S. or schedule their entries through official entry points in the U.S.-Mexico border. Over a million migrants had been admitted to the U.S. under humanitarian parole as of January 2024. Between January 2021 and January 2024, US Border Patrol confirmed more than 7.2 million illegal migrants trying to cross the
US-Mexico border, not counting
gotaways. 2023 was a record year with over 2.5 million encounters. In response to sustained high levels of migration and growing political pressure, the administration implemented stricter measures beginning in 2023. Biden faced criticism from immigration advocates for extending
Title 42, a Trump administration border restriction that arose due to the
COVID-19 pandemic, as well as restarting the use of "expedited removal" of certain Central American families. In May 2023, the Biden Administration approved sending 1,500
more troops to the U.S.-Mexico border following Title 42's expiration. In January 2024, Biden expressed support for a proposed bipartisan immigration deal led by Senators
Kyrsten Sinema and
James Lankford. The proposed bipartisan bill would have allowed
DHS to close the border when encounters reach a seven-day average of 5,000 or exceed 8,500 in a single day. In addition, the bill would have mandated the detention of migrants seeking asylum and undergoing asylum interviews, with those failing the process repatriated to their home countries. While not addressing the status of "
Dreamers", it would have changed immigration law to allow the children of those with
H-1B visas to get work authorizations and freeze their legal ages while waiting for green cards, rather than face deportation once they turn 21, and provide additional funding for immigration judges. Former president Donald Trump announced his opposition to the legislation, calling on Congressional Republicans to oppose it; subsequently, leaders such as
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson announced their opposition, halting further legislative action. As a result of continued high immigration levels throughout his tenure, some lawmakers and pundits have criticized Biden's handling of the southern border. Criticism of the bill and broader immigration policy continued to be expressed by both sides, with some liberals considering his policies too harsh while some conservatives considered them too lax. On January 17, 2024, a Republican-led non-binding resolution denouncing the Biden-Harris administration's handling of the U.S. southern border passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 225–187, with 211 Republicans and 14 Democrats supporting it. In the final year of his presidency, the Biden administration worked to extend at least 14 contracts with private prison companies to run immigrant detention centers, despite his 2020 campaign promise to end the practice. In June 2024, Biden issued an
executive order allowing the president to restrict the Mexico–U.S. border. In December 2023, he pardoned Americans for cannabis use or possession on federal lands regardless of whether they had been charged or prosecuted. In December 2024, in the largest single-day clemency act in history, Biden granted clemency to about 1,500 nonviolent felons in
home confinement who had previously been released from prison. The act generated controversy, as it included felons such as
Michael Conahan, a judge involved in the
kids for cash kickback scandal, and
Rita Crundwell, a comptroller responsible for the single largest municipal fraud in U.S. history. The Biden administration said the offenders who received clemency "deserve a second chance" and were selected based on meeting certain criteria in a uniform decision. Also in December 2024, Biden commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal
death row inmates. On his last day in office, Biden commuted the sentence of
Leonard Peltier to house arrest. Peltier had been convicted of murdering two FBI agents in 1975 and had served almost 50 years in prison. Biden also pardoned two Democratic officials: Ernest William Cromartie, who had served his prison sentence for
tax evasion, and
Gerald G. Lundergan, convicted of a scheme to funnel money to his daughter's Senate campaign and released in 2023. On December 1, 2024, Biden
issued a "full and unconditional" pardon to his son
Hunter that covered all federal offenses between that day and 2014, breaking his June 2024 pledge not to do so. In a statement announcing the pardon, Biden said he believed his son was "selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted". On his last day in office, Biden pardoned five family members, including
his brother James, and others targeted for retribution by his successor. They included former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Mark Milley, former
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director
Anthony Fauci, and members and participants in the
House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack. Biden said the pardons were preemptive, to protect the individuals against the
incoming Trump administration's politically motivated vengeance, and should not be seen as an acknowledgment of wrongdoing.
2022 elections in
Maryland for gubernatorial candidate
Wes Moore, November 7, 2022|alt=Photo of Biden holding a microphone at a campaign rally, with his jacket off and sleeves rolled up On September 2, 2022, in a nationally broadcast
Philadelphia speech, Biden called for a "battle for the soul of the nation". Off camera, he called Trump supporters "semi-fascists", which Republican commentators denounced. A predicted Republican
wave election did not materialize and the race for
U.S. Congress control was much closer than expected, with Republicans securing a slim majority of
222seats in the House of Representatives, and the Democratic caucus keeping control of the
U.S. Senate. It was the first midterm election since
1986 in which the incumbent president's party achieved a net gain in governorships, and the first since
1934 in which the president's party lost no state legislative chambers. Democrats credited Biden for their unexpectedly strong performance, but they likely overperformed for other reasons, including
the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and poor Republican candidate quality in many races.
Foreign policy In June 2021, Biden took his first trip abroad as president, visiting Belgium, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. He attended
a G7 summit,
a NATO summit, and an EU summit, and held
one-on-one talks with Russian president
Vladimir Putin. In September 2021, Biden announced
AUKUS, a
security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, to ensure "peace and stability in the
Indo-Pacific". In February 2021, the Biden administration announced that the United States was ending its
support for the Saudi-led bombing campaign in Yemen and revoked the designation of Yemen's
Houthis as terrorists. In early February 2022, Biden ordered the counterterrorism raid in northern Syria that resulted in the
death of Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, the second leader of the
Islamic State. In late July, Biden approved the
drone strike that
killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, the second leader of
Al-Qaeda, and an integral member in the planning of the
September 11 attacks. The
2022 OPEC+ oil production cut caused a diplomatic spat with Saudi Arabia, threatening a longstanding
alliance. In August 2024, Biden negotiated and oversaw the
2024 Ankara prisoner exchange, the largest
prisoner exchange since the end of the
Cold War. It involved the release of 26 people, including journalist
Evan Gershkovich and former Marine
Paul Whelan. In November 2024, the Biden administration announced that it had helped broker a
ceasefire agreement in the
Israel–Hezbollah conflict.
Withdrawal from Afghanistan and the
U.S. National Security team, discussing the
Fall of Kabul on August 15, 2021|alt=Photo of Biden seated alone at a table, looking at a videoconference screen American forces had begun withdrawing from Afghanistan in 2020, under the provisions of a
February 2020 US-Taliban agreement that set a May 1, 2021, deadline. The Taliban began
an offensive on May 1. By early July, most American troops in Afghanistan had withdrawn. Biden reacted by ordering 6,000 American troops to assist with evacuating American personnel and Afghan allies. He faced bipartisan criticism for the manner of the withdrawal, with the evacuations described as chaotic and botched. On August 16, Biden addressed the "messy" situation, taking responsibility for it, and admitting that the situation "unfolded more quickly than we had anticipated". He defended his decision to withdraw, saying that Americans should not be "dying in a war that Afghan forces are not willing to fight for themselves". On August 26, a
suicide bombing at the Kabul airport killed 13 U.S. service members and 169 Afghans. On August 27, an American drone strike killed two ISIS-K targets, who were "planners and facilitators", according to a U.S. Army general. The U.S. military completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan on August 30. Biden called the extraction of over 120,000 Americans, Afghans, and other allies "an extraordinary success". He acknowledged that up to 200 Americans who wanted to leave did not, despite his August 18 pledge to keep troops in Afghanistan until all Americans who wanted to leave had left. After the withdrawal, the U.S. continued to send aid to Afghanistan, remaining its biggest aid donor as of August 2024 and spending at least $20.7 billion post-withdrawal. U.S. funding has helped support the Taliban government and stabilize Afghanistan's economy. On September 25, 2024, the
United States House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning the Biden administration for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, with ten Democrats and all Republicans voting in favor.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine in
Warsaw, Poland, March 2022|alt=Photo of a smiling Biden holding a child, with a mask lowered onto his chin In February 2022, the
Russian Armed Forces under President
Vladimir Putin launched
an invasion of Ukraine. After warning for several weeks that an attack was imminent, Biden responded by imposing severe
sanctions on Russia and authorizing over $8 billion in
weapons shipments to Ukraine. On April 29, he asked Congress for $33 billion for Ukraine, but lawmakers later increased it to about $40 billion. Biden blamed Putin for the emerging
energy and
food crises. In 2022, Congress approved about $113 billion in aid to Ukraine. In October 2023, the Biden administration requested an additional $61.4 billion in aid for Ukraine for the year ahead, but delays in the passage of further aid by the
House of Representatives inhibited progress, with the additional $61 billion in aid to Ukraine added in April 2024. Actually delivered aid often differed from announced levels and was also often delayed. The
Government Accountability Office and
Pentagon Inspector General found that the Biden administration seemed unaware of the pace of weapons deliveries. Throughout the conflict, Biden consistently refused Ukrainian requests to allow them to utilize weapons against Russian military targets inside
Russia. An exception was granted in May 2024 for targets in the vicinity of
Kharkiv for "counter-fire" purposes. Biden also blocked access for some weapons systems altogether, typically citing fears of escalation, only to permit deliveries for some weapons later on.
China affairs during the
G20 summit in Bali, November 14, 2022 The
Solomon Islands-China security pact caused alarm in late 2022, as China could build military bases across the South Pacific. Biden sought to strengthen ties with Australia and New Zealand in the wake of the deal. In a September 2022 interview with
60 Minutes, Biden said that U.S. forces would defend Taiwan in the event of "an unprecedented attack" by the Chinese, which is in contrast to the long-standing U.S. policy of "
strategic ambiguity" toward China and Taiwan. The September comments came after three previous comments by Biden that the U.S. would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. Amid increasing tension with China, Biden's administration has repeatedly walked back his statements and asserted that U.S. policy toward Taiwan has not changed. On February 4, 2023, Biden ordered the United States Air Force to shoot down a
suspected Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of
South Carolina. The
Chinese government denied that the balloon was a surveillance device, instead claiming it was a civilian
airship that had blown off course. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken postponed his planned visit to China as the incident further damaged U.S.-China relations. In May 2024, the Biden administration doubled
tariffs on
solar cells imported from China and more than tripled tariffs on
lithium-ion electric vehicle batteries imported from China. It also raised tariffs on imports of Chinese steel, aluminum, and medical materials.
Gaza war and prime minister
Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 18, 2023 In October 2023, Hamas
launched a surprise attack on Israel that
devolved into an intensified conflict, jeopardizing the administration's push to normalize relations
between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Biden stated
his unequivocal support for Israel and condemned the attack by Hamas, but discouraged Israel from initiating a ground invasion of Gaza. and called for an additional $14 billion in military aid to Israel. He later began pressuring Israel to address the growing
humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. Biden rejected calls for a ceasefire but said he supported "humanitarian pauses" to deliver aid to the
Gaza Strip. He asked Israel to pause its invasion of Gaza for at least three days to allow for hostage negotiations; Israel agreed to daily four-hour pauses. He also directed the U.S. military to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza. Biden has said he is a
Zionist. He has faced criticism for his unwavering support for Israel. Officials have urged him to take a harder stance against Israel, criticizing his administration's leniency and support despite the Israeli government's contentious offensive, which has led to significant civilian casualties and
humanitarian crises. Following the
killing of Palestinian civilians receiving food aid on February 29, 2024, Biden said the current level of aid flowing into Gaza was insufficient. On March 3, the U.S. military began airdropping food aid into Gaza. Several experts called the U.S. airdrops performative and said they would do little to alleviate the
famine in Gaza. Biden continued to support Israel during the course of the war despite significant domestic opposition to American involvement in it and subsequent widespread
protests. A March 2024 Gallup poll found that a strong majority of Americans disapproved of Israeli conduct during the war. Beginning in April 2024, widespread
Gaza war protests emerged on university campuses, denouncing Biden. On May 31, 2024, Biden announced his support for an Israeli
ceasefire proposal, saying that Hamas was "no longer capable" of another large-scale attack. The proposal, which was intended to establish a permanent ceasefire, bring about the release of all hostages, and lead to the reconstruction of the
Gaza Strip, was supported by Hamas officials after mediation by
Egypt and
Qatar. The Netanyahu administration responded that Israel's goals regarding "the destruction of Hamas military and governing capabilities" had not changed and that conditions would need to be met before it would agree to a ceasefire. In the first year of the war, it was estimated that the Biden administration had sent Israel at least $17.9 billion in military aid, a record. In about the same period, it sent Palestinians $1.2 billion in humanitarian aid. Biden was reported by journalist
Bob Woodward to have clashed throughout the war with Netanyahu regarding his war strategy and lack of a post-war plan for Gaza. In the last week of Biden's presidency, Qatari officials announced that Hamas had accepted the ceasefire deal; Biden hailed the deal.
NATO enlargement Following the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Biden expressed support for expanding
NATO to cover
Sweden and
Finland. On August 9, 2022, he signed the instruments of ratification stipulating U.S. support for the two countries' entry into NATO.
Finnish ascension occurred on April 4, 2023, but opposition by
Turkey and
Hungary to
Swedish entry led to a stalemate. Biden led diplomatic talks resulting in formal Swedish ascension into NATO on March 7, 2024. He has also expressed openness to
Ukrainian entry into NATO following the end of the conflict, supporting an expedited timetable in its ascension and the removal of steps such as the
Membership Action Plan typically required for NATO entry.
Investigations Retention of classified documents In November 2022, Biden's attorneys found classified documents dating from his vice presidency in a "locked closet" at the
Penn Biden Center. According to the White House, the documents were reported to the
U.S. National Archives, which recovered them the next day. On December 20, a second batch of classified documents was discovered in the garage of Biden's
Wilmington residence. On January 12, 2023, Garland appointed
Robert K. Hur as special counsel to investigate "possible unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents or other records". On January 20, after a 13-hour
consensual search by FBI investigators, six more items with classified markings were recovered from Biden's Wilmington residence. FBI agents searched Biden's home in
Rehoboth Beach on February 1 and collected papers from his time as vice president, but did not find any classified information. On February 8, 2024, Hur announced that no charges would be brought against Biden.
Business activities On January 11, 2023, the
House of Representatives launched
an investigative committee into the foreign business activities of Biden's son,
Hunter, and brother,
James. The committee's chair, Representative
James Comer, simultaneously investigated alleged corruption related to the
Hunter Biden laptop controversy. On September 12, House speaker
Kevin McCarthy initiated a formal impeachment inquiry against Biden, saying that the House investigations "paint a picture of corruption" by Biden and his family. Congressional investigations, including
by the House Oversight committee, have discovered no evidence of wrongdoing by Biden as of December 2023. On December 13, 2023, the
House of Representatives voted 221–212 to formalize an
impeachment inquiry into Biden. In February 2024,
Alexander Smirnov, a former intelligence
informant who was prominent in the bribery allegations against Biden, was charged with
making false statements. Smirnov admitted he had publicized a false story given to him by Russian intelligence officials with the goal of damaging Biden's reelection campaign.
Age and health concerns As of 2025, Biden was the oldest sitting president in U.S. history. His cognitive health was perceived to have declined by Republicans and some media figures, The media widely covered public concern about Biden's mental acuity after a weak performance in a June 2024 presidential debate, but gave it limited coverage beforehand, in part due to harsh pushback from White House officials. Biden initially deemed himself fit to serve two terms as president, but after the 2024 election said that he may have been too old to serve a second term. As part of the
investigation into Biden's handling of classified documents, special counsel
Robert Hur said that Biden did not remember when he was vice president ("if it was 2013—when did I stop being vice president?") or when his son Beau died. Hur wrote that his memory "appeared to have significant limitations". On July 21, 2022, Biden tested positive for
COVID-19 with reportedly mild symptoms. According to the White House, he was treated with
Paxlovid. He worked in isolation in the White House for five days and returned to isolation when he tested positive again on July 30. On July 17, 2024, Biden again tested positive for COVID-19. == 2024 presidential campaign ==