US: Biden says he 'didn't anticipate' Republican obstruction
January 19, 2022
US president Joe Biden said in a Wednesday press briefing that that he "didn't anticipate" the level of Republican obstruction to his legislation during his first year in office.
Biden slammed Republicans for blocking his legislative agenda, accusing them of being more interested in defeating his presidency than doing things for the American people.
"Name one thing they're for," Biden said of the opposition party.
The United States Senate has recently been debating two voting rights bills championed by Joe Biden, which had previously been stalled by Republican senators.
The Build Back Better Act, a major package of infrastructure and social spending plans, is also being renegotiated after a conservative Democratic senator pulled his support in December, meaning that it could no longer clear the upper chamber of Congress. Biden said that he expected to get "big chunks" of the bill to pass, even if it won't be passed in its original form.
Biden said that he did not promise too much with his agenda, but did underestimate the extent of Republican opposition.
What about the coronavirus pandemic?
Discussing the state of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, he said the United States could have done more COVID-19 testing at an earlier stage.
"Should we have done more testing earlier? Yes," Biden said.
He also pledged not to return to lockdowns, saying that the highly transmissible but also comparatively mild omicron variant of the coronavirus was not a cause for panic.
Biden also urged citizens to get their booster vaccinations if eligible.
What about tensions with Russia?
Referring to tensions around Russia's military buildup along Ukraine's eastern border, Biden said that he and Putin "have no problem understanding each other," but also that Russia's banks won't be able to deal in dollars if it invades Ukraine.
He also warned of "heavy human losses" that would be incurred in the event of an invasion.
When asked what Russia would have to do to be met with sanctions, Biden said that any action taken to "split NATO" would be a "big mistake."
"It's very important that we keep everyone in NATO on the same page," he added.
"There are differences within NATO as to what countries are willing to do depending on what happens."
Biden's Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on another tour of Europe this week. He held meetings in Kyiv on Wednesday, moves on to Berlin on Thursday and then travels to Moscow on Friday.
sdi/msh (AP, AFP, Reuters)