Origins
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was born on November 20, 1942, in Scranton, Pennsylvania, the eldest of four children in a Catholic family of Irish descent. His father, Joseph Biden Sr., had experienced financial difficulties, and the family relocated to Claymont, Delaware, when Biden was ten years old. Biden attended the University of Delaware, graduating in 1965 with a double major in history and political science, before earning his law degree from Syracuse University College of Law in 1968. A defining characteristic of Biden’s early life was his struggle with stuttering, which he worked diligently to overcome. In 1966, he married Neilia Hunter, with whom he had three children: Beau, Hunter, and Naomi.
Biden’s political career began remarkably early when he won election to the New Castle County Council in 1970 and then, at age twenty-nine, defeated incumbent Republican J. Caleb Boggs for a United States Senate seat in 1972. Tragedy struck weeks after this victory when his wife and infant daughter died in an automobile accident, leaving his two sons injured. Biden was sworn into office at his sons’ hospital bedsides and famously commuted daily by Amtrak from Wilmington to Washington throughout his Senate career. He remarried in 1977 to Jill Jacobs, a teacher, with whom he had a daughter, Ashley. Over thirty-six years in the Senate, Biden served as chairman of both the Judiciary and Foreign Relations Committees, developing expertise in criminal justice and international affairs. After unsuccessful presidential campaigns in 1988 and 2008, he served as Vice President under Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017 before winning the presidency in 2020 at age seventy-seven, defeating incumbent Donald Trump amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presidency
Biden’s domestic agenda centered on economic recovery and infrastructure investment. The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 provided $1.9 trillion in pandemic relief, while the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act allocated $1.2 trillion for transportation, broadband, and utilities improvements. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 represented the largest climate investment in American history while also addressing prescription drug costs. His administration oversaw significant job growth and declining unemployment, though persistent inflation became a major political liability. Biden appointed Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. His administration also navigated the aftermath of the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack and subsequent investigations into his predecessor.
In foreign affairs, Biden executed the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan in August 2021, ending the nation’s longest war in chaotic circumstances that drew substantial criticism. His administration prioritized alliance-building, particularly through NATO, which proved consequential when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The United States subsequently provided extensive military and economic assistance to Ukraine while coordinating international sanctions against Russia. Biden also managed escalating tensions with China over Taiwan, technology competition, and trade. The administration brokered diplomatic normalization between Israel and several Arab states while later confronting the crisis following Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel and the subsequent Gaza conflict.
Historical Significance
Biden’s presidency will be evaluated in context of the multiple crises he inherited and those that emerged during his tenure. He entered office amid a pandemic, economic disruption, and deep political polarization following contested claims about the 2020 election. His legislative achievements in infrastructure and climate policy represented substantial governmental investments not seen in decades. However, in July 2024, Biden made the historically unusual decision to withdraw from seeking reelection, citing the need for new leadership, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee. His advanced age and concerns about cognitive fitness had become central issues in political discourse.
Historians will likely debate Biden’s presidency through multiple lenses: his role as a transitional figure following the Trump administration, his ambitious domestic spending programs, and his management of renewed great-power competition. His career arc—from young senator to elder statesman to president—spans transformations in American politics from the Cold War through the digital age. Assessment of his historical standing remains preliminary, as the long-term effects of his policies and the political realignment of his era continue to unfold.
Key Developments
- November 20, 1942: Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania
- 1966: Married Neilia Hunter
- November 1972: Elected to U.S. Senate from Delaware at age twenty-nine
- December 18, 1972: Wife Neilia and daughter Naomi killed in automobile accident
- June 17, 1977: Married Jill Tracy Jacobs
- January 20, 2009: Inaugurated as Vice President under Barack Obama
- January 20, 2021: Inaugurated as forty-sixth President
- March 11, 2021: Signed American Rescue Plan Act
- August 30, 2021: Completed U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan
- November 15, 2021: Signed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
- August 16, 2022: Signed Inflation Reduction Act
- July 21, 2024: Announced withdrawal from 2024 presidential race