I knew Biden was old when I voted for him… and I will again

By MARK RIKER

(Jan. 19, 2024) — We hear day-in and day-out that President Joe Biden is doing this wrong, he’s doing that wrong, he’s down in the approval ratings and polls, and he’s an old man. I know with absolute certainty that only one of those claims is true, the rest are opinions or subjective projections.

President Biden is an old man. That is absolutely true. And you know what? I knew that when I voted for him.

I knew that when LiUNA 223 member Marty Walsh was nominated and confirmed as Secretary of Labor, when Deb Haaland was nominated and confirmed Secretary of the Interior, and when Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was nominated and confirmed to the United States Supreme Court.

I knew that when the Infrastructure Bill was passed and signed into law, where he was introduced by our very own Heather Kurtenbach of Ironworkers Local 86 on the White House lawn. I knew that when the CHIPS Act was signed into law, as well as the Inflation Reduction Act.

I knew that when he became the first sitting President of the United States to walk a picket line supporting workers and their families during the UAW strike.

I’ve known he is an old man during every month of the record-setting employment numbers since he took office, as well as the record-breaking stock market numbers.

I’ve known he is an old man during every day of the Ukraine fight for independence and freedom and for their very right to exist as a free nation, during which he has managed to re-unite the honored alliances of old against the aggression, as well as every day of the Israeli response to the Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7 and the ensuing humanitarian tragedy occurring in Gaza upon the Palestinian people.

I’ve known that during every day of the rise and subsequent fall of inflation, which was a reaction to a booming economic recovery where measures had to be taken to actually cool the economy, while still setting hiring records.

Maybe President Biden isn’t the one doing it wrong. Maybe we are.

Maybe we should acknowledge the bad while focusing on growing the good.

As unionists, we’ve never experienced a presidential administration that has prioritized our interests so well. Maybe we need to show that same support back more openly, more aggressively, and with more appreciation.

After all, we’ve tried being angry about everything. It really sucks and that’s how you end up believing the bullshit coming from the MAGA camp.

Biden–Harris 2024!

Mark “Dut” Riker is the Executive Secretary for the Washington State Building and Construction Trades Council. Learn more at WABuildingTrades.org.