On Labor Day last year, President Biden delivered a speech highlighting his accomplishments on infrastructure and criticizing former President Trump for not making any progress in this area. According to Steve Benen, Fox News had a ready-made explanation for why Trump couldn’t pass infrastructure bills, with Brian Kilmeade attributing it to distractions like fake Russian leads. Marco Rubio also blamed the pandemic for hindering Trump’s ability to make progress on infrastructure projects, despite the fact that the pandemic only started in the last year of Trump’s presidency.
The media has a responsibility to be balanced and provide accurate information. However, sometimes Republican viewpoints like Rubio’s are given ample space in mainstream reports, even if they are not based on accurate information. For example, an Associated Press report on Biden’s visit to Wisconsin initially praised him before quoting Republican officials and mentioning Trump’s activities that day.
While Whatley’s claim that manufacturing has stalled and family farms are closing under Biden’s leadership may be true in some cases, it ignores the fact that manufacturing jobs have actually increased under his administration. The decline of family farms is a long-standing issue, with corporate agribusiness lobbying playing a significant role in this trend. Therefore, it is essential to evaluate Biden’s infrastructure progress on its merits rather than unfairly blaming him for issues beyond his control.
