What lame duck president Joe Biden can still do before he leaves office

Biden only has a few months left in the White House before Trump returns - but how much can he achieve in that time?

In two and a half months, President-Elect Donald Trump will enter the Oval Office as the 47th president of the US.

The Biden Administration is now in a mad dash to Trump-proof their accomplishments and enact any reforms they may wish to make a reality.

But how much can Joe Biden realistically achieve in this short window, particularly when his successor is likely to make sweeping changes to government when he returns to the White House? s

Below we look at some of the subjects Biden could tackle before his time is up:

Marijuana

Biden began a review of the status of cannabis as a Schedule I drug earlier this year, despite having long opposed legalizing the drug. Other Schedule I drugs include heroin, LSD, and ecstasy.

While it’s up for debate how much power a president has to change the status of a Schedule I drug, Biden could very well end his administration’s review process and issue an official recommendation to federal agencies that the drug be de-scheduled, The Nation noted. 

Biden could also pardon those behind bars in federal prisons for nonviolent drug offenses, a disproportionally Black group.

“Five percent of illicit drug users are African American, yet African Americans represent 29 percent of those arrested and 33 percent of those incarcerated for drug offenses,” the NAACP states on its site. 

Biden, speaking at the White House after Kamala Harris’s election loss, could take action on several issues before the second Trump presidency begins (AP)

Normalizing relations with Cuba

Building on the Obama administration’s work on the issue, the Biden White House could normalize relations with the island nation by restoring diplomatic connections, removing the country from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism, and adhering to the 22 bilateral agreements signed by the Obama administration and ended by the first Trump White House.

Normalizing relations would also include the lifting of sanctions that have hampered the Cuban economy, providing aid to those affected by fuel shortages and food rationing, and possibly closing down the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.

Biden could allow the private sector to begin making investments on the island, making it more difficult for a second Trump White House to roll back any diplomatic achievements.

Israel, Gaza, and Lebanon

While an Israeli official has told NPR that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may take steps to end the wars in Gaza and Lebanon as a gesture of goodwill to the new Trump administration, Biden still has time to place tougher conditions on weapons shipments or end them altogether.

Israel’s wars with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon mean that it’s unlikely to be able to weather delays in shipments of arms and other resources, Foreign Policy noted. Iran has also threatened to launch a third missile attack on Israel. Biden could push for an end to the war in Gaza by increasing the pressure for a hostage deal and for Israel to leave the area where Gaza borders Egypt.

Then-President Barack Obama chose not to veto a UN Security Council resolution opposing settlements in the West Bank during his final days in office, something Israel is still grappling with.

Biden could use the upcoming meeting of the council to discuss the war, where he can choose not to veto a resolution calling for sanctions on Israel if it doesn’t accept a ceasefire deal.

Iran

Biden could impose further sanctions on Iran, which backs both Hamas and Hezbollah and has exchanged direct strikes with Israel.

No longer having to worry about gas prices, Biden could once again put the squeeze on Iran, with the Eurasia Group estimating that he could put in place measures that could decrease Iranian oil exports by 150,000 barrels a day to 700,000 barrels a day.

Biden may use tighter sanctions on Iran to try to convince Israel to not take further military action against the country.

Russia

Several allies of Ukraine have called for the price cap on Russian oil to be set as low as $30, which could cause a supply shortfall that could increase prices at the pump for Americans. That would now be easier to do with the election no longer a factor.

Some Biden officials have also called for fresh sanctions to make it more difficult for Russia to ship oil, Yahoo Finance noted.

Biden with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky (Getty Images)

Ukraine

The last large aid package sent to Ukraine was a $61bn program passed by Congress in April, and more aid that requires congressional approval may be difficult since Republicans look likely to retain the House and take the Senate.

But Ukraine’s allies on Capitol Hill have called for further aid anyway, and there are things Biden could do without Congress, such as removing restrictions on how American weapons are used in the war against Russia and allowing strikes on military targets inside the country.

Many analysts believe Russia may begin to run low on resources next year, meaning that continued Western support will be vital for Ukraine to hang on.

Trump, for his part, has promised to end the war quickly, which would likely mean sustained Russian control of Ukrainian territory.

Immigration

Biden could attempt to get ahead of Trump’s severe immigration policies, which include deporting millions of undocumented immigrants and once again separating families at the southern border, by speeding up citizenship applications, handing out more work permits, or reversing an executive order limiting asylum.

Appointing judges

Biden could avoid an even further rightward shift of the judiciary by filling the 47 vacancies in the federal courts.

Climate

Biden could declare a climate emergency since about 3.2 million Americans have moved because of the increasing risk of flooding, according to a First Street Foundation report. 

The president said last year that he has “practically” declared a climate emergency, but no official declaration has been made. Doing so would allow him to go around Congress and allocate more funding to the issue.

Biden could also put in place multiple executive orders, such as instituting a ban on offshore drilling.