Politics
The One Thing Americans Remember About Biden
We surveyed more than 2,000 Americans this month and asked for their most prominent memory of Mr. Biden’s time in office. Here’s what they said, in their own words.
“Economy wrecker”
Trump voter in 2024
“The economy improved”
Harris voter
“Giving money to Israel and Ukraine”
Harris voter “Allowing migrants illegally”
Did not vote
“Very high border crossings”
Trump voter
“His declining cognitive abilities”
Harris voter
“Trying to help the common people”
Harris voter
“He was a total disaster”
Trump voter “A return to normal presidential responsibility and decency”
Harris voter
What one thing do you remember most about Joe Biden’s presidency?
President Joe Biden will leave office on Monday with a dismal approval rating and a complicated legacy.
Unsurprisingly, Americans’ positive and negative memories of Mr. Biden in a poll conducted by The New York Times and Ipsos this month largely split along partisan lines. Respondents who voted for Donald J. Trump were unsparing in their criticism of Mr. Biden, while those who voted for Kamala Harris had mostly positive views, though some also disapproved.
What they said about Mr. Biden in these open-ended responses offers an early look at his legacy in the public’s mind.
Republicans, in particular, pointed to Mr. Biden’s mental state and age as the top thing they remember. Many Democrats relayed memories of Mr. Biden’s kindness and empathy, while others cited the economy, at times in a positive light and other times negatively. A quarter of respondents could not think of a memory at all or declined to share one.
Based on a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Top 10 categories shown, excluding “don’t know” or blank responses.
Thinking back on Joe Biden’s presidency, what one thing do you remember most about his time in office?
In a separate question, nearly half of Americans said that Mr. Biden left the country worse off than when he took office, just one quarter felt he left it better off, and another 25 percent said things were the same as before he became president.
There was a partisan split on this question, too, but Black and Hispanic Americans were more likely to say Mr. Biden made things worse than better, and Americans 18 to 29 were twice as likely to say Mr. Biden left the country worse off than better off.
Memories of presidents are often not static, and can grow rosier over time, a phenomenon that played out after Mr. Trump’s first term. Here’s a closer look at Americans’ current views of Mr. Biden’s time in office.
“He usually didn’t have a clue what was going on around him”
Trump voter in 2024
“His declining health and confusion”
Trump voter “His dementia”
Trump voter
“He’s old”
Harris voter
“His performance in the debate was shocking”
Harris voter
“I think Joe Biden has a good heart, but he’s too old to be effective”
Harris voter
“He’s just not all there”
Did not vote Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was Biden’s age
Many Americans remember Mr. Biden more for his personal characteristics than his policies. Fourteen percent cited his age or perceived mental decline as their most prominent memory, a greater share than any specific policy. Another 4 percent mentioned memories related to his empathy and kindness.
Concern about Mr. Biden’s cognition primarily came from Republicans, though some Democrats and independents also shared misgivings. Many specifically cited his debate performance, which proved to be a turning point in his aborted campaign, as their key memory of his time in office.
“Gas prices skyrocketing”
Did not vote in 2024
“Out of control spending, reduced energy creation and inflation”
Trump voter “He worked hard for the middle class and added protections and laws to help most Americans”
Harris voter
“High gas prices”
Trump voter
“I honestly don’t know much of what Joe Biden did, but I know the economy has suffered”
Harris voter
“Inflation, inflation, inflation”
Trump voter
“Better economy”
Harris voter “Prices have gone way up”
Harris voter
Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was the economy
During the campaign, voters consistently cited the economy as their most important issue. As Americans look back on Mr. Biden’s time in office, many mentioned economic conditions as their principal recollection.
Republicans pointed to rising prices as the main impact of his presidency, while Democrats were largely more positive, citing the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Still, many Democrats and independents had concerns about the cost of living.
“Open border”
Trump voter in 2024 “The huge numbers of illegal immigrants that have entered the country”
Trump voter
“Unsafe borders, terrible economic policies, weak leadership”
Harris voter
“So many immigrants living on welfare”
Trump voter
“Immigration ran amok for several years and now it is too late to try and curtail the problem”
Harris voter
“His indifference to open borders”
Harris voter “Skyrocketing illegal immigration”
Did not vote
Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted from Jan. 2-10.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was immigration
Mr. Trump made Mr. Biden’s immigration policy a core issue in his campaign to return to the White House. Border crossings rose during Mr. Biden’s presidency, creating the largest immigration surge in U.S. history (though crossings plummeted late in his term after he tightened enforcement).
Among Republicans, Mr. Biden’s immigration policies were among the most mentioned memories. These recollections were often expressed with evident frustration, and were frequently intertwined with economic concerns.
“Getting out of Afghanistan. It was horrible”
Trump voter in 2024 “His epic debate failure and his retreat from Afghanistan, sacrificing troops’ lives doing it”
Harris voter
“Continuing to send weapons overseas during the Israel and Palestine conflict and not allowing Ukraine to use them against Russia”
Harris voter
“His inability to tell Israel that genocide is wrong, no matter the provocation”
Did not vote
“More interested in foreign aid than the American people”
Trump voter
“Helping a lot outside the country”
Harris voter “War”
Harris voter
“Supporting war with billions”
Harris voter
Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was foreign policy
Americans who mentioned foreign policy mostly looked back on the Biden years as a time of war. Democrats and Republicans alike expressed concern about spending on foreign conflicts that they believed starved domestic spending. Overall, 60 percent of Americans in the survey said the United States was too focused on helping other countries and needed to focus more on problems at home.
Many cited the wars in Ukraine and Gaza as their main memory of Mr. Biden’s time in office. Democrats were especially likely to cite concerns about the deaths of Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was pandemic recovery or legislative accomplishments
-
“Coming out of Covid, avoiding recession, dealing with global supply issues”
Harris voter in 2024
-
“He got us through the pandemic, he probably saved many people from dying of Covid”
Harris voter
-
“Covid stimulus and rebuilding the economy after Covid”
Harris voter
-
“He fixed us from Covid mess”
Did not vote
-
“Build back better”
Harris voter
-
“Getting the bipartisan jobs act passed”
Harris voter
-
“Infrastructure”
Harris voter
-
“Forgiving student debt, Covid lockdowns”
Trump voter
-
“His attempt to unburden some of us with student loans”
Harris voter
-
“He forgave my loan”
Trump voter
Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Few Americans mentioned memories of the pandemic, but those who did remembered Mr. Biden’s work to help pull the country out of it. Many cited his work on the economic recovery after the pandemic and his efforts to avoid a recession.
Some, particularly Democrats, also cited key pieces of post-pandemic legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act and infrastructure spending.
And for a handful, Mr. Biden’s student loan forgiveness was their key memory, including some who had firsthand experience.
“Corrupt”
Trump voter in 2024 “Corruption to enrich him and his family”
Trump voter
“Endless scandals and fraud”
Trump voter
“He is a criminal”
Trump voter
“Pardoned his son, bad policies”
Did not vote
“Pardoning his son”
Did not vote “The lies and corruption”
Did not vote
Selected responses from a poll by The New York Times and Ipsos of 2,128 U.S. adults conducted Jan. 2-10.
Comments from Americans who said what they remembered most was corruption
A small but significant share of Republicans mentioned corruption, with many citing Mr. Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter Biden, as evidence.
Taken all together, these responses offer a snapshot in time as Mr. Biden leaves office. History shows that many former presidents later get a reputational boost. This was the case for George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter. Time will tell if Mr. Biden will follow a similar path.
Politics
Trump renews bridge, power plant threat against Iran in push for deal, mocks ‘tough guy’ IRGC
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
President Donald Trump mocked the Islamic Revolutionary Guard on Sunday morning for staking claim to a Strait of Hormuz “blockade” the U.S. military had already put in place.
“Iran recently announced that they were closing the Strait, which is strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “They’re helping us without knowing, and they are the ones that lose with the closed passage, $500 Million Dollars a day! The United States loses nothing.
“In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be ‘the tough guy!’”
Trump declared Saturday’s IRGC fire was “a total violation” of the ceasefire.
“Iran decided to fire bullets yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz — A Total Violation of our Ceasefire Agreement!” his post began.
“Many of them were aimed at a French Ship, and a Freighter from the United Kingdom. That wasn’t nice, was it? My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations.”
Trump remains hopeful about diplomacy, but is not ruling out a return to force, where he once warned about ending “civilation” in Iran as they know it.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran,” Trump’s stern warning continued.
“NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!
“They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!”
Judge Troy Nunley was fed up.
Federal immigration officials had once again flouted his authority by keeping a man locked up in a California City detention center after Nunley ordered him released. When he was finally set free, the man was booted onto the street with no passport, driver’s license or other personal effects. The judge’s demand that the items be returned were met with silence.
And so on Tuesday, Nunley, the chief judge of the Eastern District of California, slapped Department of Justice attorney Jonathan Yu with an official sanction and a $250 fine.
In a scathing order, Nunley laid out why he was compelled to take such a rare step. The fine may have been less than some traffic tickets, but it’s nearly unheard for a judge to formally admonish a government lawyer.
By Yu’s own admission, he was drowning in work. In his order, Nunley recounted the attorney’s claim he’d been assigned more than 300 nearly identical cases in the last three months, all of immigrants in detention who argued they were being held without cause.
Court filings show many California cases involve longtime U.S. residents unexpectedly hauled off to jail after routine check-ins with immigration officials. One was an Afghan who’d helped the American war effort. Another a Cambodian grandmother of eight who fled Pol Pot’s killing fields as a girl nearly 50 years ago.
Until last year, most would have fought deportation on bond after a brief hearing with an immigration judge. Now, their only hope of release is to file a petition for writ of habeas corpus — a legal maneuver once typically reserved for death row inmates and suspected terrorists — inundating the country’s busiest federal courts with thousands of emergency suits.
The Trump administration attorney said he was trying to “triage” the situation, but Nunley found he repeatedly failed to comply, leaving people with the right to walk free stuck behind bars.
“The Court is not persuaded,” he wrote, issuing the sanctions.
The order came days after Nunley took the unusual step of announcing a “judicial emergency” in the district, which covers nearly half of California, stretching from the Oregon border to the Mojave Desert in the inland part of the state, including Fresno, Bakersfield and Sacramento.
In the last year, the Eastern District has received more petitions from immigration detainees than almost any other jurisdiction in the United States: More than 2,700 since January, compared to fewer than 500 last year and just 18 in 2024. Similar crises are playing out elsewhere, with federal courts in Minnesota briefly paralyzed amid the Trump administration’s enforcement blitz there last winter.
People detained are seen behind fences at an ICE detention facility in Adelanto, California on July 10, 2025.
(Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
In an interview with The Times, Nunley said dealing with the surge of activity since last summer has been “like being hit over the head with a bat.”
“We’re up all night doing these cases,” he said.
So far this year, the Eastern District’s six active judges have ordered almost people 2,000 freed.
“The majority of the cases that we see are cases where people should not be detained,” Nunley said. “They should be receiving hearings to determine whether or not they are to remain in this country, and until they receive those hearings, they should be free.”
Since last July, the Department of Homeland Security has ordered that all immigrants it arrests are subject to “mandatory detention” — a policy that had previously only applied to those caught at the border.
The change came four days after President Trump signed a spending bill that earmarked $45 billion to expand the federal network of immigrant lockups.
“This has been a sea change in the way the government has read the law,” said My Khanh Ngo, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “Almost every judge who has looked at this has agreed these people should get bond, and yet thousands of people are still sitting in detention.”
Elizabeth Vega, 15, right, and Darlene Rumualdo, 15, from Torres High School join labor organizers, clergy leaders and immigrant rights groups to protest immigration raids nationwide at La Placita Olvera in downtown Los Angeles on January 23, 2026.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Longtime U.S. residents who might once have fought removal from home — where they can more easily gather evidence to support their case and confer with lawyers — are instead being held indefinitely.
Many have no criminal record. Some have been in the U.S. so long that the countries they came from no longer exist.
“People are locked up in the same facilities as people accused of crimes, people who’ve been convicted of crimes … and then you’re telling people, you have no shot of getting out,” Ngo said. “Detaining people and not giving them the chance to get out of detention is a way of coercing people to give up their claims.”
The habeas process can take weeks or months depending on the judge and the district.
“When the immigration cases dropped on our district, we got hit harder than any other outside West Texas,” Nunley said. “Initially we had more cases than anyone else.”
Today, data compiled by ProPublica and legal activist groups including the Immigration Justice Transparency Initiative show almost a quarter of the roughly 30,000 active habeas petitions in the United States are in California courts. Nunley’s own tabulations show half the California cases are in his district, where a perfect storm of stepped-up enforcement, a large population of immigrant workers and a concentration of detention centers produced a flash flood of habeas petitions.
The cases rely on the Constitution’s guarantee of due process before being deprived of life, liberty or property. But according to court filings, in some instances the government has argued “the Fifth Amendment does not apply” to detained immigrants.
DOJ lawyers responding to the bids for freedom now regularly complain they’re being crushed under paperwork.
Judges accustomed to having government lawyers comply with their orders have been left fuming.
In California’s Central District, which includes L.A. and surrounding areas, Judge Sunshine Sykes wrote a fiery decision earlier this year that said the Trump administration is inflicting “terror against noncitizens.”
Sykes is one of several federal judges across the country that have tried to compel the government to resume bond hearings. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked that decision in March, leaving the habeas system in place for now. But with challenges or recent decisions across multiple circuits, experts say the fight is fated for the Supreme Court.
“ICE has the law and the facts on its side, and it adheres to all court decisions until it ultimately gets them shot down by the highest court in the land,” a Homeland Security spokesperson said in an email to The Times.
A woman holds a “ICE not welcome here!” sign at a vigil in San Pedro in January.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
The lawyers fighting to free those jailed under the Trump administration’s mandatory detention policy say they were not initially equipped for these legal battles because they used to be exceedingly rare.
Most federal judges had only seen a handful of habeas petitions before last summer — then suddenly they had hundreds of requests for urgent relief, according to Jean Reisz, co-director of the USC Immigration Clinic.
Reisz said there are efforts to get pro bono law groups trained on how to effectively argue habeas cases, “but it takes a while to get up to speed.”
A federal agent asks residents to move back after a shooting during an immigration enforcement operation in Willowbrook on January 21, 2026.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
At the same time, Reisz said, lawyers are pushing judges who oversee the cases to act swiftly, since interminable procedural delays ensure people remain incarcerated.
“Most of the habeas petitions include a motion for temporary restraining orders, and that requires emergency decisions from the courts, which requires the courts to act very fast,” Reisz said.
In California’s federal district courts, the backlog remains thousands deep. Nunley said the system is struggling to keep up with the crush of cases.
“There’s nothing that says that noncitizens should not be entitled to due process,” Nunley said. “These are our people, they reside in our district. They’re entitled to the same due process that you and I are entitled to.”
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Saturday that the Trump administration is sanctioning a senior Nicaraguan official over alleged human rights violations.
Rubio said the U.S. is designating Vice Minister of the Interior Luis Roberto Cañas Novoa for his role in “gross violations of human rights” under the government of President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo, marking what he said was the latest effort to hold the regime accountable.
“The Trump administration continues to hold the Murillo-Ortega dictatorship accountable for brutal human rights violations against Nicaraguans,” Rubio said in a post on X. “I’m designating Nicaraguan Vice Minister of the Interior Luis Roberto Cañas Novoa for his role in human rights violations.”
RUBIO TESTIFIES IN TRIAL OF EX-FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN ALLEGEDLY HIRED BY MADURO GOVERNMENT TO LOBBY FOR VENEZUELA
Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks at the State Department, April 14, 2026. The U.S. announced sanctions on a Nicaraguan official tied to alleged human rights abuses under the Ortega-Murillo government. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
The designation was made under Section 7031(c), which allows the State Department to bar foreign officials and their immediate family members from entering the United States due to involvement in significant corruption or human rights abuses.
The State Department has said the Ortega-Murillo government has engaged in arbitrary arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings following mass protests that began in April 2018.
“Nearly eight years ago, the Rosario Murillo and Daniel Ortega dictatorship unleashed a brutal wave of repression against Nicaraguans who courageously stood against the regime’s increased tyranny, corruption, and abuse,” the statement reads.
The State Department said that the sanction marked the anniversary of the 2018 protests, after which more than 325 protesters were murdered in the aftermath.
A panel of U.N.-backed human rights experts previously accused Nicaragua’s government of systematic abuses “tantamount to crimes against humanity,” following an investigation into the country’s crackdown on political dissent, according to The Associated Press.
The experts said the repression intensified after mass protests in 2018 and has since expanded across large parts of society, targeting perceived opponents of the government.
TRUMP ADMIN ANNOUNCES EXPANSION OF VISA RESTRICTION POLICY IN WESTERN HEMISPHERE
Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the 199th Independence Day anniversary, in Managua, Nicaragua Sept. 15, 2020. (Nicaragua’s Presidency/Cesar Perez/Handout via Reuters)
Nicaragua’s government has rejected those findings.
The designation follows a series of recent U.S. actions targeting the Ortega-Murillo government. In February, the State Department sanctioned five senior Nicaraguan officials tied to repression, citing arbitrary detention, torture, killings and the targeting of clergy, media and civil society.
Earlier this week, the department also announced sanctions on individuals and companies linked to Nicaragua’s gold sector, including two of Ortega and Murillo’s sons, accusing the regime of using the industry to generate foreign currency, launder assets and consolidate power within the ruling family.
The State Department said the move is part of ongoing efforts to hold the Nicaraguan government accountable for its actions.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Nicaraguan government and its embassy in Washington for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
A man waves a Nicaraguan flag during a demonstration to commemorate Nicaragua’s national Day of Peace, which is celebrated in the country on April 19, and to protest against the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega in San Jose, Costa Rica on April 16, 2023. (Jose Cordero/AFP)
The Trump administration has taken an increasingly aggressive posture in the Western Hemisphere in recent months, including a Jan. 3, 2026, operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
The U.S. has also carried out a series of strikes targeting suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the region, part of a broader crackdown tied to regional security and narcotics enforcement efforts.
-
Texas4 minutes agoTexas needs at least $174 billion to avoid water crisis, state says
-
Utah10 minutes agoMultiple earthquakes detected near Kanosh
-
Vermont16 minutes agoWrong-way driver stopped on I-89, charged with DUI
-
Virginia22 minutes agoParachutist Slams into Jumbotron at Virginia Tech Spring Game
-
Wisconsin34 minutes agoUS animal rights activists clash with police over Wisconsin dog breeder
-
West Virginia40 minutes agoThe 2026 WVU Tommy Nickolich Award Goes to a Parkersburg Native
-
Wyoming46 minutes agoWyoming Gov. Mark Gordon won’t seek a third term. He won’t rule out running for other offices, either
-
Crypto52 minutes ago1 Cryptocurrency to Buy While It’s Under $80,000