Joe Biden Won’t Go Quietly, and Democrats May Regret It

President Joe Biden wanted to take a victory lap, and, arguably, he deserved the one he allowed himself on Thursday morning.

Flanked by the family members of the Americans held in Russian captivity, Biden announced that he had negotiated their loved ones’ freedom. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, onetime security contractor Paul Whelan, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, and a number of prominent Russian political dissidents are today liberated. Both Biden and America’s allies abroad deserve all the credit.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

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President Joe Biden wanted to take a victory lap, and, arguably, he deserved the one he allowed himself on Thursday morning.

Flanked by the family members of the Americans held in Russian captivity, Biden announced that he had negotiated their loved ones’ freedom. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, onetime security contractor Paul Whelan, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, and a number of prominent Russian political dissidents are today liberated. Both Biden and America’s allies abroad deserve all the credit.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.