President Joe Biden is intensifying his efforts to shore up support among progressive Democrats ahead of the 2024 election. The president has spent the entire month of July working to reassure voters he remains fit to serve, despite testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday. Simultaneously, the White House has announced a series of policy decisions catering to progressive demands.
According to Democratic strategists and the Biden campaign, the president’s actions are a continuation of his long-standing positions, rather than an attempt to appease progressive voters. “President Biden isn’t the same man he was during his time in the Senate or vice presidency,” said a Democratic strategist. “He listens to what his voters want, and because of MAGA Republican obstruction, he’s outlining his plan for accomplishing things he couldn’t get done in his first term.”
The White House has proposed 5% rent caps for corporate landlords with at least 50 properties, a move hailed by progressives as a step towards addressing soaring rent prices. Additionally, Biden is reportedly considering reforms to the Supreme Court, including term limits for justices and a new code of ethics.
The president has also committed to advancing new gun control legislation, including reinstating his 1994 ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Other campaign promises include erasing medical debt for “pennies on the dollar” and aligning himself with top labor unions in battleground states.
Notably, these progressive bucket list items have little chance of being enacted in the immediate future, given Republican control of the House of Representatives. However, some of Biden’s strongest Democratic backers, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, have expressed their support for the president.
“I spoke with the president extensively this weekend,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “He has made abundantly clear that he is in this race. He has made abundantly clear that he is not leaving the race.”
