With a divided Congress and a potential presidential run in 2024, Joe Biden's year ahead could lead to gridlock. He has to work across the aisle to move his priorities, which could make him more productive on his own.
Andrew Bates, the White House's Deputy Press Secretary, said that Biden is eager to work across the aisle with Republicans. In a memo released before Christmas, Bates noted that the midterm election results showed that Republicans who supported bipartisan legislation were able to retain their seats.
According to Bates, Biden is eager to work with Republicans and is scheduled to visit Kentucky on Wednesday. He is going to meet with Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell.
Despite the election results, there are fewer opportunities for cooperation in the House, as Republican leaders struggle to secure the necessary votes to become the next speaker. Jim Manley, Harry Reid's former chief spokesperson, noted that the uphill battle that House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy is facing is a sign of the times.
Despite the Democrats' victories in last year's elections, Jim noted that it's hard to imagine them being able to achieve the same results in the House due to the Republican caucus' disarray.
Despite the lack of opportunities for cooperation in the House, Biden is still expected to sign several laws into law. Some of these include the infrastructure bill, the Children's Health Insurance Program, and the inflation reduction act.
After failing to tackle some of the issues that he ran on in 2020, Biden may have to look for another approach. He may ignore the efforts of his aides, who have been working on bipartisan initiatives.
Despite the executive orders that Biden has already issued, party activists are still calling for more action on issues such as debt relief, climate change, and marijuana reforms.
As Biden prepares to formally announce his presidential campaign for 2024, he faces increasing pressure to deliver on his campaign pledges.
According to Jim, the use of executive orders will be more important in the future as the country goes through another election cycle.
The preceding is a summary of an article that originally appeared on Washington Examiner.