The punt presidency

Although every leader comes to a decision he or she would rather not make, delay has become a signature tactic of this presidency. Biden is currently juggling the end of several COVID-inspired policies, and either extending them or ending them could create political difficulties. On border control, student debt, and masking on airplanes, the White House has opted to punt rather than making final decisions—either delaying the choice or leaving it to another part of the government.

A president facing a divisive dilemma can take a few different paths, as exemplified by recent presidents. One path is exemplified by the “Sister Souljah” episode, when then-candidate Bill Clinton attacked the rapper for comments on race, knowing that it would infuriate some Democratic voters—especially Black ones—but calculating that it would gain him support from moderates and centrists. Another path is the one chosen by Donald Trump, who repeatedly played to his base at the expense of winning over swing voters. (It’s worth noting that Clinton won reelection, and Trump did not.) Barack Obama tended to seek compromise, even when it was a bitter pill. That got him the biggest overhaul of the health-insurance system in generations, but also a flawed and fragile law.

Biden has preferred not to take any of these paths, an approach exemplified by his handling of student-loan repayments.