Van Jones on Biden: ‘It seems kind of corny,’ but he’s doing pretty well

CNN commentator Van Jones said President Biden’s approach to politics “seems kind of corny” but the White House reaching a debt ceiling deal with Republicans shows the president has been largely successful.

After Biden delivered an address from the Oval Office praising House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for his role in securing the deal, Jones said Biden has stuck to his approach and continued to be triumphant. 

“Joe Biden just keeps being Joe Biden. He just does the same Joe Biden thing, and he keeps winning,” he said. “It is kind of strange, because he says, ‘Yeah, I like everybody. We can all get along, and Americans can always do great things, and you guys have a good night.'”

“And it seems kind of corny, but then you look at the record of all the bills that he’s passed,” Jones added, referencing legislative accomplishments from the Biden administration including the bipartisan infrastructure bill, the climate investment provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act. 

Biden touted his latest deal, which will raise the debt ceiling until January 2025, during his remarks. The deal received some strong criticism from lawmakers from the far right or progressive liberals but passed comfortably with bipartisan support in both houses of Congress. 

“I think for those of us who expect something new or dramatic or exciting or interesting or different, he’s just like that old slugger,” Jones said. “He goes up there every time and hits a triple, and then goes back to the dugout and hits another triple. And you look at the scoreboard, and he’s doing pretty well.”

He added that various other issues that need to be tackled they will be addressed through the “mode of a Joe Biden,” where a bipartisan consensus is reached after ignoring the “nonsense.” 

“Everybody gets a little bit of love. Everybody gets to go home with a cookie and a pat on the head from grandpa,” Jones said. “We do it all again next week.”