Defiant Biden touts first year, vows to reconnect with voters

Biden marks one year in office: Top three points he said

Joe Biden sought to reset his presidency in a marathon first year press conference Wednesday, vowing to reconnect with voters and touting successes, while delivering blunt assessments of the "disaster" facing Russia if it attacks Ukraine.

"Can you think of any other president that's done as much in one year?" Biden asked, ticking off the epic struggle against Covid-19 and trillions of dollars in government funding to save the US economy from pandemic fallout.

Speaking on the eve of the anniversary of his inauguration on January 20, 2021, Biden held only the second White House press conference of his presidency -- then surprised many by staying at the podium for one hour and 52 minutes.

At various times combative, joking and meandering, Biden rejected criticism over his handling of the pandemic and soaring inflation.

"I don't believe the polls," he said.

These included that he "didn't anticipate" the ferocity of Republican obstruction to his agenda in Congress. 

Biden likewise said he understood "frustration" over steadily rising prices, which he blamed on Covid-related supply chain issues.

"It's going to be painful for a lot of people," he said, noting that high prices were being felt "at the gas pump, the grocery stores and elsewhere."

On one of the most traumatic episodes of his presidency -- the chaotic and rushed final withdrawal from the 20-year long Afghanistan war -- Biden said flatly: "I make no apologies."

The press conference, which defied the widely shared image of Biden as shrinking from contact with the media, focused especially heavily on the looming crisis in Ukraine, where the United States is leading Western efforts to find a diplomatic solution to Russia's military posturing on the border.

However, Biden raised eyebrows when he appeared to suggest that a small-scale attack by the Russians would prompt much less pushback from the West. 

Powerful Republican Senator Lindsey Graham described Biden's comment as "unnerving."

With a State of the Union speech to Congress set for March 1, Biden faces a diminishing period to engineer a strategy to fight off a Republican comeback at midterm congressional elections this November.

That risks bringing two years of complete obstruction from Congress, likely including threats of impeachment and a slew of aggressive committee probes. 

Biden confirmed he would keep Kamala Harris as his vice presidential running mate in a re-election bid. 

A reminder of that failure came later Wednesday evening when Democrats in the Senate were unable to pass a raft of voting rights reforms in the face of a Republican blockade.

Above all, Biden in his press conference emphasized his desire to leave the confines of the White House after a year featuring a decidedly light travel schedule.

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