United States President Joe Biden gives an ice cream cone to a girl with the American public in the background.President Biden was not the country’s greatest president, but his redeeming quality was his devotion to his country. “Does that count for everything? Absolutely not. But does it count for something? At the very least, it should,” Editor-in-Chief Wyatt Meyer wrote. Illustration by Sylvia Robinson
Editor-in-Chief Wyatt Meyer writes an open letter to President Joe Biden as he leaves office.
Dear President Biden,
As history looks back on your presidency, it will come to this conclusion: you were not a great president.
You stumbled and stuttered in press conferences, debates and speeches. You failed to either distance the nation from or resolve conflicts in Ukraine and Palestine. You did not convince the public that the Democratic country was fit to lead the country again.
For the past three years of your presidency, your approval rating was consistently lower than almost every other American president in the past 80 years.
But, regardless of the marks against you (and there were many), you were a good man.
“Officials at every level of government ought to take notes – not on your policies, programs, or your plans, but on your unwavering service to this country. ”
Your belief in equality of opportunity made an imprint on this country. In 2021, you rescinded a ban on transgender servicemen and women in the U.S. Armed Forces, and then signed into law the Respect for Marriage Act, ensuring the legality of same-sex and interracial marriages throughout the nation.
Your administration focused on the issues most important to the nation. Amid rising suicides nationwide – 49,000 in 2022; one every 11 minutes – you established the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention to help reduce minors’ access to firearms nationwide. Additionally, your administration devoted more than $350 million for community violence intervention to reduce gun crimes.
Finally, you made one of the most selfless decisions of any president in the last century. As the American public showed you they thought you were too old, too slow, too ineffective – in essence, not fit to lead the country for four more years – you decided to step aside. Your choice allowed Vice President Harris, in whom the country had more confidence, to take the reins of the Democratic party in the 2024 election.
Even in defeat, you showed the country time and time again that you cared.
Does that count for everything? Absolutely not. But does it count for something? At the very least, it should.
As the nation looks toward a hazy next four years, citizens of this country need one thing: unity. You exemplified that ideal.
Throughout your time in the Oval Office, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, nationwide protest movements and increasing global tensions, you were a voice of strength and togetherness. You cared more for the country than for yourself, and that will always be your greatest legacy.
No matter what happens in the next four years under President-elect Donald Trump, officials at every level of government ought to take notes – not on your policies, programs, or your plans, but on your unwavering service to this country.
In that way, if in no other, you were one of the greatest presidents in American history.
Sincerely,
Wyatt
