President Trump’s recent trip to the Middle East was all about making deals. He returned with promises of trillions of dollars of future purchases and investments in the United States. He also was given a gift by Qatar, a Boeing 747 luxury jetliner that he hopes to use as Air Force One, after which it will be housed at his presidential library. Of course, modifying the airplane to meet the safety and security standards of Air Force One will likely take several years, costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, making the gift rather costly.
Any time a negotiation or event works out well, Trump is quick to take credit for it. Yet when things go sour, it appears that the kneejerk reaction is to blame it on former President Biden.
President Trump has been in office since Jan. 20, 2025 — four months. This is fast approaching 10 percent of his second term next month. He has issued an unprecedented number of executive orders covering a swath of issues, including energy, immigration, climate and DEI, to name just a few. Those garnering the most attention have focused around tariffs on goods imported into the nation, with the intent to reduce the trade deficit by encouraging more domestic production. Yet whenever unfavorable news comes in, the first response has been to blame his predecessor.
This has become the theme of the administration.
For example, when Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was asked about overspending her budget during a Senate Appropriation Committee meeting, her answer was that it was Biden’s fault. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins blamed Biden for the rising agriculture trade deficit, even though the dollar value of agriculture exports from 2021-2024 were the highest ever recorded. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blamed Biden for the recent U.S. credit rating downgrade by Moody’s, even though every president since Herbert Hoover has contributed to the growing national debt.
When Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy held a press conference to announce sweeping changes in the air traffic control system, he blamed Biden for the travel delays at Newark Liberty International airport. Yet problems in the air traffic control system and its infrastructure have persisted across several administrations, as Duffy also noted, including Trump’s first term, from 2017-2021.
When a new president takes office, he must accept and address the current challenges, whatever they may be. This is the case with Trump, as it was with Joe Biden in 2021 and Trump back in 2017. Such initial conditions are not a new phenomenon and are a reflection of complex societal issues that transcend administrations. They have been faced by every new president when implementing his agenda and setting up his administration.
Blaming the previous president may appease the president’s most committed supporters. However, it demonstrates weakness. Whining about the “hand that you have been dealt” does not change the cards. As Harry Truman said, “the buck stops here.”
Given that the president has been in office for well over 100 days, the initial conditions on many issues have begun to dampen and fade. For example, the impact of the president’s tariffs on the economy are quickly washing out economic policies instituted by Biden. If the tariffs turn the economy sour and push the nation into a recession, there is no one to blame but Trump.
As long as the president continues to blame Biden for anything that goes awry or what he cannot fix, he is figurately allowing Biden to live rent-free in the White House. Using an aging man who is battling prostate cancer as his whipping boy and default excuse is unbecoming of the person who holds the most powerful position in the world.
No president has all the answers to every issue they must confront and every problem they must address. That is why presidents who surround themselves with intelligent and thoughtful advisers, who can help him execute an agenda that serves the best interests of the people and the nation, are a good predictor of his success. A review of Trump’s choices for his Cabinet and inner circle demonstrates his emphasis on loyalty rather than experience.
Not everyone may agree with Trump’s agenda and how he is attempting to reshape America. However, blaming the former president when things go astray is, shall we say, unpresidential.
Sheldon H. Jacobson, Ph.D., is a professor in the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. A data scientist, he uses his expertise in risk-based analytics to address problems in public policy.
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