U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he had underestimated the extent of Republican opposition to his programs and acknowledged Americans’ frustration at the slow pace of COVID-19 testing, but said the United States was on track to meet considerable challenges from the pandemic and inflation.

Marking the near-one-year anniversary of his presidency, the Democratic president faced a flurry of questions on the country’s bumpy COVID-19 response, relations with Russia and the future of American democracy during a rare formal news conference.

Promising to confront what he called the unexpectedly “stalwart” opposition of Republicans, Biden promised to take his case for action directly