Biden His Time
The President's continued brooding these past four weeks exposes anew that his dropping out of the race wasn’t some grand, noble gesture. It was his only option.
Miffed. Frustrated. Hurt.
Those are some of the words that reportedly describe President Joe Biden and how he views his longtime Democratic powerhouse allies like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and Barack Obama.
He’s cold-shouldering them as he nurses the hurt feelings of knowing that they knew he should bow out but wouldn’t come right out and say so.
Or something like that, according to a Politico story on Wednesday.
I suppose these are natural feelings on a human level. But at the same time, this is about more than any old company or organization. The entire direction of the country—and the world—hangs in the balance.
It’s not about you, Joe. That’s what you said in your July 24 address to the nation, right?
Thanks for doing the right thing, even if only with great reluctance. Here's hoping you get over yourself.
Don’t you see that groundswell of support building for the newly constituted ticket of Harris-Walz? The energized party is proof positive that stepping aside was the right thing to do.
Even as Biden announced that he wouldn’t stay in the race, it was revealing that it had taken over three weeks and a series of extreme steps, such as the big donors drying up, to get his full attention: This emperor knew, finally and unequivocally, that he had no more clothes.
But his continued brooding these past four weeks is exposing more clearly that dropping out wasn’t some grand, noble gesture—it was the only practical option available to him.
Six weeks ago, I wrote my second consecutive column about Biden’s
doomed re-election campaign on the heels of his debate performance against Donald Trump.
I felt Biden’s showing was so horrendously bad that it was actually a tremendous development for the Democratic Party—its leaders would have no choice but to force him out as the candidate.
On July 7, I figured that some time on or about July 17, he’d step aside.
Turns out I was premature by four days, but, really, was there any doubt after the fundraising dollars froze up for Biden’s campaign? I’m no Nostradamus. It was only a matter of time.
For both Biden and Trump, it had long been an Emperor Has No Clothes situation. Each had a chance to win against only one other person—the other.
Trump’s outlook appeared increasingly rosy when stacked up against Biden; however, neither figured to stand much of a chance against a younger, more moderately appealing alternative.
That’s because for a long time, voters on both sides of the political center have made it abundantly clear they were pleased with neither Biden nor Trump as the United States of America’s déjà vu, you again? choices.
Enter Vice President Kamala Harris, whose VP selection, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, appears to be vastly more popular than Trump’s selection of Ohio Senator JD Vance to the GOP ticket.
The Democrats’ path to Harris has been fraught and bumpy—in sports, this is called “accidental offense.” It also brings to mind the saying that it’s better sometimes to be lucky than good.
Just the same, Harris’s emergence and the resurgence of support for the Democratic ticket confirms what I’ve been saying for over a year: the race between Biden and Trump was a race to get out—whichever one did so first would pave the way for his party to triumph in November.
Of course, it ain’t over till it’s over.
Coming up: the Democratic National Convention in Chicago—the prime-time evening action starting Monday will play out at the United Center, eight miles from my home.
Another thing that gets me and speaks to Biden's ego is that he resents that Obama urged him not to run in 2016. How can he think for one second that he would have been a viable candidate in the first place in either 2016 or 2020 if not for Obama unexpectedly tapping him to be vice president? That was a real gift from the gods, and he showed no gratitude. How much support did Biden garner on his own in 2008? Maybe 3% in Iowa? On his own, he wasn't going to get more popular with more years behind him, I can tell you that. The VP pick was, very simply, his only path to a potential presidency.
Then Biden gained cache with the Black communuty because he was Obama's VP. Before South Carolina in 2020, he didn't seem to be going anywhere, and had not at all lived up to his favorite status. He just has never really resonated with voters outside of Delaware after 1987. That was when he was "up and coming." I'm not saying he hasn't had a great career, but the man has no perspective on himself and his popularity.
Another point is that it's scary how much power the vice presidential nomination has to essentially dictate the future. The inertia of that choice, often made for so many reasons other than intrinsic qualification and appeal, does not seem to be something that our creaky democracy can overcome at this point. People indirectly vote for whom they're told to vote for, and it's frustrating to me.
The thing that absolutely disgusts me is that while calling out Trumps quite obvious lies, Biden, his team, his Vice President, and Democratic party so-called elites all knew his condition and concealed it. And that his deterioration was clearly evident to insiders but he was propped up to run for re-election is a far more significant and insidious, and devious, lie. And that Harris, while younger and more energetic, was a willing participant in the lie. As if so long as it suits the narrative and agenda it's okay. And that we as the American public have no real issue being lied to, so long as the liars align to my side, my values, as opposed to the other side is all that matters in choosing our leader. The emperor that has no clothes here is us. We accept immortality in our leaders, and thus in ourselves, so long as it suits our cause. What are we teaching our children here? By not raising our voices against indecency we create it.