President Biden is halfway through term, but not halfway through his promises, PolitiFact analysis concludes

Chart by PolitiFact, The Poynter Institute

Promises, promises. As President Biden hit the two-year mark, PolitiFact measures how well he is doing at his job "by examining what he’s accomplished so far: PolitiFact’s Biden Promise Tracker monitors 99 promises Biden made on the campaign trail," amy Sherman writes. "Our latest review shows Biden was able to implement some promises on his own, such as nominating a Black woman for the U.S. Supreme Court. But many promises stalled in Congress because of slim Democratic majorities or, in the case of forgiving some student debt, setbacks in the courts."

Sometimes Biden can't "make good" without Congress. John P. Frendreis, a Loyola University emeritus professor of political science, told PolitiFact, "The change in House control makes it impossible to move any promise forward if it requires congressional action."

PolitiFact's evaluation is "based on outcomes, not intentions. Only full enactment of a promise qualifies for a Promise Kept; partial enactment merits a Compromise rating," PolitiFact says.

 

"So far, Biden earned a Promise Kept rating for about one-quarter of his promises, and a handful of promises received a Compromise rating. About one-third of his promises are rated In the Works, and almost one-third are Stalled. Biden received a Promise Broken rating on his pledge to block hydraulic fracturing on federal land."

Highlights from the findings of PolitiFact, whichn is a service of The Poynter Institute:

• Biden made progress on job creation and the economy, but not on raising the minimum wage
• He got Covid-19 under control and scored wins on health care
• He has struggled to deliver primises on immigration
• He made progress on some foreign policy promises and got big win on climate