Democratic Party of Illinois Applauds President Biden’s First Year in Office
Today marks the one-year anniversary of President Biden’s inauguration as president of the United States. In response, Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Rep. Robin Kelly released the following statement highlighting the progress President Biden and Democrats have made to build back better and to help working families in Illinois over the last year.
“President Biden and congressional Democrats took office amid some of the worst crises many of us have seen in our lifetimes, and we got to work delivering results,” said Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Rep. Robin Kelly. “In just one year, we have gotten millions of vaccines in arms, saved lives, put people back to work, and made infrastructure investments that are critical to America’s future. And we made all of this progress no thanks to obstructionist Republicans in Congress. There’s no question: Illinoisans are better off now than they were a year ago – thank you, President Biden and Illinois Democrats!”
Since his inauguration on January 20, 2021, President Biden and Illinois Democrats have delivered for working people. We have:
- Got Shots in Arms & Saved Lives: President Biden set up a historic vaccination program that resulted in more than 200 million Americans fully vaccinated this year: almost 75% of all adults, including at least one dose for 85% of Illinoisans aged 18 or older. Millions of teenagers and children are now vaccinated, and tens of millions of Americans have gotten booster shots. And this month, more than 95% of schools are open in person. All these steps have and continue to save countless lives.
- Got People Back to Work: Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, the economy has grown faster than it has in decades, with an added 6.4 million jobs — more in one calendar year than ever on record. Recent average weekly unemployment claims are down near a level not seen in decades. Economic growth last year was the strongest in two generations.
- Passed Laws to Create Jobs & Rebuild Crumbling Infrastructure: President Biden and Illinois Democrats got the American Rescue Plan and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed — the most impactful legislative agenda for a first-year president. The American Rescue Plan led to what experts estimate will be the lowest child poverty rate on record and the unemployment rate is down to 3.9% nationally. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will create jobs, provide clean drinking water, upgrade our roads, airports, and rail, and is a critical first step towards a clean energy future – and for the first time in 20 years, U.S. infrastructure investments will grow faster than China’s this year. This federal legislation builds upon the investments already made through the historic Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan passed by Gov. JB Pritzker and Democrats in the Illinois General Assembly.
