Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter

After recent mass shootings, gun-control activists called on Joe Biden to impose new regulations on firearms. And like past presidents who have sought to address US gun violence, Biden confronts a hard reality.

There are not enough votes in Congress to enact even modest new gun laws. And the steps a president can take unilaterally are limited in scope.

Biden promised that he would do something about gun control, however, so on Thursday he gathered a sympathetic audience in the Rose Garden and unveiled a grab-bag of new actions.

He nominated a head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - a vacancy Donald Trump never bothered to fill. He instructed his Justice Department to come up with new rules for homemade guns and more heavily regulate an attachment that makes handguns more accurate. He called for new gun-violence studies and draft legislation that states could pass.

In a tacit acknowledgement that the scope of these actions are limited, Biden assured his audience that "this is just a start".

To go much further, however, the political dynamic in Congress will have to change - and Biden, currently more focused on passing his infrastructure package, will have to expend more political capital.

The Biden White House has been blunt in its critique of China before - mindful of Donald Trump's attacks that they would be weak on America's main geopolitical competitor.

"In my discussion with [China's] President Xi, I told him that we welcome the competition – and that we are not looking for conflict. But I made absolutely clear that I will defend American interests across the board," Biden says.

"America will stand up to unfair trade practices that undercut American workers and industries, like subsidies for state-owned enterprises and the theft of American technologies and intellectual property."

Relations between the two nations are at their most strained in years.

In March, ahead of the first high-level talks between China and the US, Biden's Secretary of State Antony Blinken described China as "the only country with the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to seriously challenge the stable and open international system".

Read our correspondent Barbara Plett-Usher's analysis here.

Joe Biden built his career as a moderate, but as president, he has changed his tone.

The president breaks down his proposed tax code for Congress and tells lawmakers it is time to crack down on tax evasion and those who take advantage of tax loopholes.

"It’s time for corporate America and the wealthiest 1% of Americans to pay their fair share. Just pay their fair share," he says.

He adds: "Look, I’m not out to punish anyone. But I will not add to the tax burden of the middle class of this country.

"They’re already paying enough. What I’ve proposed is fair."

Image source, Getty Images

Biden calls on lawmakers to fix Medicare - the federal health insurance programme for older Americans.

"Let’s do what we’ve always talked about for all the years I was down here in this body - let’s give Medicare the power to save hundreds of billions of dollars by negotiating lower prices for prescription drugs," Biden says.

"That won’t just help people on Medicare – it will lower prescription drug costs for everyone."

But his American Families Plan at the moment does not include these items.

It does feature some cuts to monthly insurance costs, but despite calls from dozens of his fellow Democrats to include these Medicare fixes to the plan, it has been excluded thus far.

First Lady Jill Biden, who still teaches at a local community college, will lead work on public education, says the president.

Her efforts will feature in the rollout of the $1.8tn American Families Plan, a proposal to expand access to education and health care.

The president says the package "guarantees four additional years of public education for every person in America" and "will increase Pell Grants and investment in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal colleges, and minority-serving institutions".

Rallying lawmakers to the cause, Biden says his wife told him: "Any country that out-educates us is going to outcompete us."

Tara McKelvey
BBC News, Washington

Chicago gangster Al Capone was nabbed by IRS agents, and convicted of tax evasion in the 1930s.

The president says tracking down new tax evaders, ones who hide income in secretive businesses, will generate money for the government.

It’s a tantalising prospect. IRS investigations have fallen by 40% in the past 10 years, as Penn Law’s Natasha Sarin wrote in Tax Notes Federal.

She’s now working for the White House, in the US Treasury Department, and has pushed for more IRS funding, so agents can pursue tax dodgers.

Republicans say Biden’s economic policies are flawed, however, and that tax investigations, however rigorous, cannot plug the gaps in the Biden economic plan.

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter

Donald Trump developed a well-earned reputation for veering off-script during many of his speeches.

Joe Biden, on the other hand, usually sticks closely to his written text.

If the document provided by the White House is any indication, however, Biden is adding plenty of flourishes to his address to Congress.

He’s added an aside about talking in the Senate, a note about education studies, a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping and a few extra lines about his wife, Jill, and his late son Beau.

Biden has given hundreds of speeches in Congress over his long Senate career. It seems he may feel he's back in his element.

"No one should have to choose between a job and paycheck or taking care of themselves and a loved one – a parent, spouse, or child," says Biden.

He's selling his American Families Plan to lawmakers. It comes with a price tag of $1.8tn, and aims to provide free pre-school for children aged three to four, paid family leave and free community college.

It would also extend a child tax credit that was expanded during the pandemic, offering monthly payments to lower-income parents of around $300 per child. Democrats reportedly hope to establish these payments as a permanent government programme.

"With two parents, two kids, that’s up to $7,200 in your pocket to help take care of your family," Biden says. "This will help more than 65 million children and help cut child poverty in half this year."

The White House says this would all be funded by almost doubling the capital gains tax rate on incomes above $1m and hiking the top income tax bracket for households earning more than $400,000 to the same level.

Tucked between the president's signature proposals has been a delicate, albeit sometimes vocal, effort to implement a national minimum wage of $15 per hour.

The fight for a $15 wage floor has been a top priority of progressives, who are wary of how hard President Biden - often considered a moderate - will push for the reform.

"Let’s pass the $15 minimum wage," Biden tells Congress tonight. "No one working 40 hours a week should still live below the poverty line."

The line draws a standing ovation, but it is unclear what action lawmakers in Congress will take to raise the federal minimum from $7.25 per hour, the rate it has been stuck at for more than a decade.

An effort to raise the minimum as part of President Biden's American Rescue Plan was quietly put aside during negotiations earlier this year.

On Tuesday, the president signed an executive order to raise the minimum wage paid by federal contractors to the vaunted $15 an hour threshold.

Biden says he welcomes Republican input into his sweeping legislative plans, but makes clear he won't stand for stonewalling.

"Vice-President Harris and I meet regularly in the Oval Office with Democrats and Republicans to discuss the American Jobs Plan," he says.

"And I applaud a group of Republican senators who just put forward their proposal. So, let’s get to work. We welcome ideas.

"But, the rest of the world isn’t waiting for us. From my perspective, doing nothing is not an option.

"We can’t be so busy competing with each other that we forget the competition is with the rest of the world to win the 21st Century."

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter

The president is only 99 days into his presidency, but he’s already taking a victory lap.

In his address to Congress, he has boasted about the progress the nation is making with its vaccination programme.

He touted an economy that was creating jobs at a faster pace in his first 100 days than during a similar point in any previous presidency.

Of course, much of that is momentum that carried over from the Trump presidency, set in place well before his legislative efforts have had a chance to take effect.

It was all set up for this pivot, however, towards what he wants to do next: “America is moving, moving forward. And we can’t stop now.”

He wants Congress to pass massive new spending, and this speech is his sales pitch.

Tara McKelvey
BBC News, Washington

The president’s plans for new infrastructure and coronavirus relief, through stimulus checks and other means, have been popular among progressives and conservatives, too.

But his proposals on taxes and social programmes are seen in a darker light, at least among many of the Republicans I know in the Midwest.

The tax plan benefits wealthy people in Democratic states such as New York and New Jersey, these Midwest conservatives tell me, and childcare credits are just free money for families.

Overall, these Midwesterners are worried about the president and what he will do, describing him as “far too socialistic and liberal”, just as they’d feared.

Biden's first big legislative push as president was the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9tn spending package to boost the economic recovery from the pandemic.

One of its critical elements was an expansion of economic support for low-income parents, through tax credits that have been projected to lift more than five million children out of poverty.

"Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, we are on track to cut child poverty in America in half this year," says Biden to an ovation from lawmakers.

The president goes on to say the spending plan will help boost America's global competitiveness.

"We have to do more than just build back. We have to build back better," he says, echoing the mantra of his 2020 campaign.

Image source, Getty Images

Biden says his American Jobs Plan is "a once-in-a-generation investment in America itself. The largest jobs plan since World War II."

He says it will create jobs to upgrade infrastructure, modernising roads, bridges, highways, building ports and airports, transit lines, water pipes and electric car charging stations.

"Today, up to 10 million homes and more than 400,000 schools and child care centers have pipes with lead in them, including for drinking water," Biden says.

"The American Jobs Plan creates jobs replacing 100% of the nation’s lead pipes and service lines so every American, so every child – can turn on the faucet and be certain to drink clean water."

He adds that the plan will create jobs to ensure all Americans have access to high-speed internet, including the 35% in rural areas who are currently without."This will help our kids and businesses succeed in a 21st Century economy."

This plan comes with a price tag of $2.3tn (£1.7tn).

Reality Check

President Biden has repeatedly criticised the previous administration's vaccine rollout - but he was wrong to say the US "did not have a plan" under Donald Trump.

The Trump administration published a vaccination plan in Septembe, externalr, focusing on its strategy to distribute the vaccine to states.

However, as we've reported previously, there were complaints about a lack of funding from the federal government, which led to logistical problems at the local level once vaccines had been delivered, and some states appealed for more supplies.

When it comes to whether there were "enough" vaccines - the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were approved in the US before Biden took office, with the initial 400 million doses secured by the Trump administration set to be delivered by July.

And while these doses alone are not enough to fully vaccinate the entire US population (both vaccines require two doses), the orders allowed the US to ramp up its vaccination programme faster than many other developed countries.

When Trump left office, in January, the US had vaccinated more than 16 million people - the fourth-highest per capita after Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the UK.

Read the full fact-check of President Biden’s first 100 days by BBC Reality Check here.

"After I promised 100 million Covid-19 vaccine shots in 100 days – we will have provided over 220 million Covid shots in 100 days," Biden says.

He adds: "Go and get vaccinated, America," to applause from lawmakers.

The pandemic is undoubtedly still the biggest issue the country is facing. Here's a look at the US situation, in numbers:

• 575,000 Americans have died, the most of any country in the world
• Over 32m infections have been recorded in the US - about as many as second-highest India and third-highest Brazil combined
• The 220m vaccine jabs administered are also more than any other country
• About 96 million Americans are now fully vaccinated
• Seven hundred Americans are still dying every day, down from about 3,000 daily when Biden took office

Image source, Getty Images

"In America, we always get up," says Biden."And today, that’s what we’re doing: America is rising anew. Choosing hope over fear. Truth over lies. Light over darkness. After 100 Days of rescue and renewal, America is ready for takeoff."

"We are working again. Dreaming again. Discovering again. Leading the world again. We have shown each other and the world: There is no quit in America."

The president says, 100 days ago, the "house was on fire".

"We had to act. And thanks to the extraordinary leadership of Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Schumer... we did act."

Tara McKelvey
BBC News, Washington

Secret Service is in charge of security at tonight’s event, and they’re on high alert. A security fence has been built around the Capitol, streets in the area are blocked off, and National Guard troops are nearby.

The agents who protect the president always look calm – at least when I’ve seen them – but the extra precautions reflect a new reality.

The Capitol was besieged on 6 January, as Trump supporters rushed into the building.

The agents and other security officials are now taking additional steps to ensure that nothing like the Capitol siege will ever happen again, and especially not tonight.

Image source, Getty Images

"Thank you, thank you thank you," says Biden as the applause continues. "It's good to be back!"

Half a century after he entered Congress as a freshman senator, the 46th president greets Kamala Harris and Nancy Pelosi as Madam Vice-President and Madam Speaker.

"No president has ever said those words from this podium - no president has ever said those words, and it's about time!"

Biden has just entered the House chamber to a standing ovation, fist-bumping politicians as he heads down the aisle.

Pelosi says she has "the distinct honour" to present the president of the United States.