Without President Biden, we never would have had this pandemic under control and enough vaccine for Americans. The turn around started when Criminal Donald left in disgrace to Florida on Jan 20th.
President Biden celebrates pandemic victory)
President Joe Biden will celebrate America's defeat of Covid-19 with a July 4th barbecue this Sunday, but the fireworks smoke will barely clear before the Democrat has to confront maybe even tougher challenges.
About 1,000 guests -- emergency service and essential workers, military members and their families -- are set to pour into the White House grounds for the kind of party unimaginable a year ago, when the country was under lockdown.
The Independence Day bash on the South Lawn, followed by a thunderous fireworks display on the National Mall, will allow Biden to mark what he's calling "independence from this virus".
Biden's To Do list features a staggering number of crises and headaches, ranging from climate change to handling a desperately divided Congress and a vengeful Donald Trump.
At least for one humid Washington evening, though, President Biden will be able to kick back and celebrate.
After leading the world in Covid deaths -- more than 600,000 -- the United States has emerged as a model for getting the novel coronavirus under control and the economy back on track.
Much of that is down to Biden reversing Trump's chaotic response with a focused campaign to encourage mask wearing and vaccinations.
He also got Congress to approve a historic $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, super-charging economic recovery and protecting the most vulnerable.
But the global pandemic wasn't the only unprecedented test for Biden on January 20, when he became the oldest president to take office in US history.
"He faced really the most daunting challenge of an incoming first term president since Franklin Roosevelt in 1933" during the Great Depression, said American University history professor Allan Lichtman.
Biden "had an economic crisis, he had a still raging pandemic on his hands -- you've never quite had that kind of combination."
Biden retains approval ratings solidly over 50 percent, something Trump never achieved.
He's also making new ground. A Yahoo News/YouGov poll in June showed six in 10 Republicans support a $1.2 trillion version of the infrastructure spending proposals.
Numbers like these appear to be fueling Biden's ultimate bet: that Americans are hungry for big solutions -- as big as the mountainous problems facing their country.
Writing about that infrastructure plan on Yahoo! this week, Biden said the real issue was about so much more than roads and bridges.
"It is a signal to ourselves, and to the world," he said. "That American democracy can work and deliver for the people."
