Joe Biden’s IKEA Effect
After a bit more than 100 days in office, Joe Biden has demonstrated an impressive political ability: the willingness to change course quickly without making a big deal about it.
On April 16, for instance, the administration announced that it would be keeping Donald Trump’s historically low cap of 15,000 refugees permitted to enter the country in 2021. This was very specifically the president’s decision, made over the objections of his secretary of state.
This was, of course, wildly unpopular with his base. Within days, the White House promised a new, higher cap by May 15, without committing to his initial promise of 62,500 by September. This was slightly less unpopular, so by the beginning of May the administration not only lifted the cap to 62,500 (while saying it was unlikely to actually resettle that many migrants) and reemphasized its aim for 125,000 in the next fiscal year.
Or, more recently, the administration acquiesced to pressure at home and abroad to waive intellectual property protections on coronavirus vaccines — a significant shift, done quickly, or at least without an endless stream of deliberations leaked to the press over weeks. This came on the heels of its decision, under pressure, to ship FDA-unapproved AstraZeneca doses overseas. Those decisions sandwiched the administration’s pivot to further aid India, under pressure:
