Biden’s first 50 days: Where he stands on key promises

WASHINGTON (AP):

President Joe Biden laid out an ambitious agenda for his first 100 days in office, promising swift action on everything from climate change to immigration reform to the coronavirus pandemic.

He hits his 50th day in office on Wednesday as his administration eyes a major milestone: final congressional passage of his massive $1.9-trillion coronavirus aid package. The bill includes direct payments to millions of Americans and money to help the White House deliver on a number of Biden’s biggest campaign promises, like reopening schools and getting more Americans vaccinated.

Fifty days in, Biden has made major strides on a number of key campaign pledges for his earliest days in office, while others are still awaiting action. Where he stands on some of his major promises:

Biden prioritised addressing the coronavirus pandemic during his first weeks in office, and the focus has paid off. He’s on pace to hit his goal of 100 million vaccine doses administered in his first 100 days as soon as the end of next week. The daily rate of vaccinations now averages more than two million shots, and more than 75 million doses have been administered since Biden was sworn in.

Biden also took took several early actions that fulfilled pledges on climate policy. He signed an executive order on Inauguration Day that revoked the permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, halted development of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and ordered the review of Trump-era rules on the environment, public health and science. A January 27 executive order halted new oil and gas leases on federal lands and offshore waters.

Biden also easily delivered on top campaign pledges that involved rolling back Trump administration moves on everything from climate change to immigration. Early on, the Biden administration rejoined the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Accord, halted construction of the border wall, ended travel restrictions on people from a variety of Muslim-majority countries and created a task force to reunite families separated at the US-Mexico border.

On immigration, Biden pledged to deliver a comprehensive reform bill to Congress within his first 100 days, and it was unveiled last month, although Biden already has signalled an openness to a piece-by-piece approach if necessary. Biden also issued an executive order directing the Homeland Security secretary to “preserve and fortify” protections for young immigrants brought to the US by their parents.