Editor's Note: This column was co-authored by Pete Hoekstra.
The authors served in Congress together for more than a decade. Pete Hoekstra as a Republican from Michigan and Gil Gutknecht as a Republican from Minnesota. Mr. Hoekstra also served as the Ambassador to the Netherlands during the Trump administration.
In August of 1970 the Carpenter duet released their hit “We’ve only just begun”. 1970 coincidentally marked the year Joe Biden won his first election to the New Castle County Council. So began his long political career. Today, “We’ve only just begun” is also probably the watchword at this White House. After only seven months it has been one of the most consequential presidencies in recent history.
In a short seven months look at the major “successes” the Biden/Harris administration has accomplished. In just the first few days America was back in the Paris Climate agreement. An agreement where American and Western European taxpayers will be funding environmental efforts in developing countries like China. That’s great for China. Not so great for American workers.
The president has reopened the JPCOA with Iran following up on the deal negotiated and implemented by the Obama administration. After Iran cheated on the deal, continued its missile development programs and aggressive destabilizing efforts in the Middle East, President Trump pulled out of this terrible agreement. Now Team Biden is making a concerted effort to get back in. The Mullahs can’t believe their luck.
This president was welcomed back into the “club” at the last G-7 meeting. They were all smiles as they sipped tea in the U.K. They knew that the days of being expected to cough up for their own defense were coming to an end. At this club you get in if you pay your membership dues and those of the other members. You also need to allow them access to your markets at terms much more favorable than you receive from them. The cost of this membership is again carried on the backs of American workers.
The Biden administration has also backed off on trying to block the Nord Stream pipeline, essentially giving Germany a green light to finish this natural gas pipeline from Russia. Existing pipelines already have adequate capacity. But with Nord Stream, the gas will bypass Ukraine, thus depriving an important ally of critical revenue and potentially making Western Europe even more dependent on an unpredictable Putin. So, as we pay billions for European defense (targeted at Russia) they will pour billions into Russian coffers.
The whole world has been watching the calamity in Afghanistan. It is impossible to imagine a more disastrous disengagement. Our friends and adversaries alike must be wondering if this administration could screw up even a three-car funeral.
Then there is the growing list of domestic “accomplishments.” In seven short months they have successfully stopped the building of a major U.S. oil pipeline, putting thousands of union workers out of jobs while denying Americans access to affordable energy produced here. Just last year we were energy independent. Now we are treated to the spectacle of an American president begging OPEC princes to pump more oil. American consumers are paying the price for this fool’s errand, experiencing a 41 percent increase in the price of gasoline since inauguration.
This administration wasted no time canceling contracts for the wall on our southern border. They then opened the floodgates to illegals, many carrying viruses, drugs and other contraband. All of which will cost far more than the Trump plan of finishing the wall and enforcing the law.
Their runaway spending and foolish energy policies have lit the fuse of explosive inflation. As the president’s allies fight to defund the police, crime in our cities is out of control. Mr. Biden can’t seem to bring himself to mumble what everyone now knows to be true. This virus that has killed millions and is sapping the life blood out of Western economies originated in Wuhan China and the Chinese communists should be held accountable.
This administration has elevated politically correctness to an art form. Being woke is now so essential that the teaching of critical race theory has eclipsed the three R’s in many of our schools. Parents are rightly exasperated.
In just seven short months this administration has already left an indelible mark on our nation and the world.
Sadly, they’ve only just begun.
The authors served in Congress together for more than a decade. Pete Hoekstra as a Republican from Michigan and Gil Gutknecht a Republican from Minnesota. Mr. Hoekstra also served as the Ambassador to the Netherlands during the Trump administration.