Joe Biden Admits He Felt 'Stupid' for Not Doing One Thing Donald Trump Did: "I Also Learned..."

President Joe Biden candidly admitted on Tuesday that he regretted not putting his name on pandemic relief checks during his tenure. Speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington, Biden reflected on his decision during the rollout of the American Rescue Plan, describing it as a missed opportunity to highlight his administration’s economic achievements. “I signed the American Rescue Plan, the most significant economic recovery package in our history, and also learned something from Donald Trump,” Biden said. “He signed checks for people for 7,400 bucks...and I didn’t. Stupid,” he added, tapping his head as the audience laughed.

While Biden refrained from adding his signature to the relief checks, his administration opted to send IRS letters bearing his name to recipients. These letters emphasized the scope of the plan and its impact, stating, “On March 11, 2021, I signed into law the American Rescue Plan, a law that will help vaccinate America and deliver immediate economic relief to hundreds of millions of Americans, including you.”

According to The Independent, the American Rescue Plan, which Biden called a historic economic recovery package, sought to alleviate the devastating effects of the pandemic, which claimed over 1.2 million lives in the United States alone. In contrast, Trump’s handling of the crisis, including controversial suggestions like injecting disinfectant and promoting unproven treatments, drew widespread criticism. Yet, his decision to add his name to stimulus checks garnered attention as a personal touch many Americans associated him with direct financial aid.

According to HuffPost, former President Barack Obama also weighed in on the matter during a campaign rally, warning voters not to be misled by Trump’s tactics. “Joe Biden sent you a check during the pandemic just like I gave people relief during the Great Recession,” Obama said. “The thing is, we didn’t put our name on it because it wasn’t about feeding our egos, it wasn’t about advancing our politics, it was about helping people. That’s the difference. Don’t you give him credit for that.” 

However, the omission of Biden’s name on the relief checks became a point of critique among political commentators, including comedian Seth Meyers. “Next time, put your name on it,” Meyers quipped during a segment on Late Night. “Seriously, Joe Biden should have sent everyone $1,000 in the mail and called it Biden Bucks. You just have to make people’s lives better in a way that’s direct and easy to understand, and then aggressively take credit for it.”

Back to his remarks, Biden also urged his successor to prioritize economic stability, cautioning against proposed policies such as broad tariffs and tax cuts. Referring to Trump’s inheritance of what he called the 'strongest economy in modern history,' Biden warned, “I think the imposition of broad-based tariffs, at least of the type that have been discussed, almost all economists agree this would raise prices on American consumers.”

The incumbent president also expressed concerns about Project 2025, a policy framework linked to some of Trump’s allies, calling it a potential economic disaster. “I pray to God the president-elect throws away Project 2025,” Biden said, underscoring the risks he sees in the proposed overhaul of the federal government. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen echoed Biden’s apprehensions, suggesting that such policies could harm consumers and disrupt economic progress.