On January 20, 2021 Joseph Biden will have taken office as the President of the United States. The president-elect pledged to be “a President who seeks not to divide, but to unify”. 

     “We need someone who doesn’t see Red and Blue states, but a United States. And who will work with all my heart to win the confidence of the whole people. For that is what America is about: The people.” As stated by Biden.

      The inauguration featured numerous entertainers like Lady Gaga, Garth Brooks and Jennifer Lopez and featured a virtual “Parade Across America” – the traditional presidential escort from the Capital to the White House. 

     Although the event is trying to honor the traditions, it should be noted that current President Donald Trump is breaking tradition and has chosen not to attend the event. He also opted not to invite Joe Biden for a tour of the White House before the inauguration, common courtesy of the leaving president. He also failed to attend the inauguration.

     Harford student and Sophomore, Riley Porterfeild said Trump’s behavior seemed “childish”, stating “it’s his last job as the president and he chooses not to do it out of pettiness.” 

     Beyond the Inauguration, Biden has set out a very clear plan and priorities to address important issues facing our country, including COVID and getting a plan to get the virus under control.  He plans to gather a group of leading scientists and experts as transition advisors to create the Biden-Harris COVID plan.

     In President Elect Biden’s own words, “That plan will be built on a bedrock of science. It will be constructed out of compassion, empathy, and concern. I will spare no effort — or commitment — to turn this pandemic around.”

     Once the COVID plan is clear, President Elect Biden says he intends to then address health care, climate control and environmental concerns, and foreign policy.  He’s expected to reverse a lot of President Trump’s foreign policy affairs, and is planning to partner with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the UN, and the World Trade Organization. Biden has pledged to restore U.S. leadership and to work with allies on everything from nuclear proliferation to trade to global health.

  The Biden Administration has also said he would end Trump’s ban on immigration to the U.S. from seven predominantly Muslim nations on his first day and to send a bill to Congress creating a clear road map to citizenship for so-called Dreamers, allowing those brought to the U.S. without documentation as children to remain in the country.