Should Biden Step Aside

The First Morning Shots Newsletter Without Charlie Sykes Makes a Suggestion, and the Comment Boards Go Apeshit.

Ever since the press conference on Thursday, the idea of ditching Biden has been floated around and is gathering some steam. The logic goes 1) This Press Conference is a disaster, Biden is foggy, the Special Prosecutor reinforced the idea that he is old and losing competence, and he can’t keep facts straight, and his approval numbers are in the toilet; 2) Donald Trump is a danger to Democracy, and like him or not, he’s a shark who will eat Biden alive; 3) There is still plenty of time before the conventions and the Democratic Party can still select and rally behind someone else; 4) They should do so.

On Monday, new Morning Shots authors Bill Kristol and Andrew Eggers made the serious assertion that Biden SHOULD step aside and made some points regarding this:

1. The American public doesn’t seem on board for a 2nd Biden Term, no matter how much good he did in his first. He’s old and frail, the perception has settled into a reality and that’s that.

2. Stepping aside can showcase the next generation of Democrats, and set them up for a long term success.

3. Such a race could reinvigorate the party, give energy to an otherwise lackluster election season and formulate power brokers within the party that have been chastened by segmenting primary elections in recent cycles.

Now, I don’t necessarily agree with the idea the Dems should ditch Biden, and I think Jonathan V. Last later in the morning with his Triad Newsletter post kind of summed up where I am on the issue. I still think a foggy Biden is better than an outright insane Donald Trump and people wil come around to that now that it is clearly a two person race. I also think some of this has to do with the idea that V.P. Kamala Harris is seen as a weakness, since she excites nobody and should Biden’s health fail, she’s next up. Trump is running against a dead Biden and a live Kamala. Should Biden ditch Kamala?—No. It’s something I wrote about here and here. Whatever you think about Vice President Harris, she’s still a sane, competent and intelligent person, something that can’t be said about Trump, or whomever he eventually selects as his Vice Presidential nominee.

Nonetheless, the comment boards over at the Bulwark went absolutely bonkers. They (correctly) labeled Kristol and Eggers as diehard conservatives who don’t have the best interests of the Democrats at heart. They pointed out Biden was the consensus candidate in 2020 and is in 2024, specifically because any other candidate only appeals to various factions within the party instead of an overall party, and there is no heir apparent (other than Kamala, which excites nobody outside of California). They labeled the two as carrying Trump’s water, which I am pretty sure actually isn’t true because Kristol was one of the first voices of the old GOP warning against Trump and has been a vocal opponent of his for over 8 years now. In a very vocal and animating way, Democratic voters are defensive towards Biden, and any suggestion that he may not be up to the task or the best candidate for the job at this stage in his life is immediately met with a full court press opposed to the idea. They genuinely don’t want this meme to take root and gather steam, even though it already has.

However, there is something to the Kristol/Eggers argument here.

Since the filing deadlines for most primary states have passed, the primaries are largely a waste; Biden won them. Some of this anxiousness in the press to ditch Biden no doubt arises because of media needs something to write about and spicing up what is likely to be a boring and lackluster election season is a means to do that. But let’s walk through the hypothetical. Let’s say Biden DOES decide someone else would be better to lead the ship for 2024. What happens?

Immediately, speculation begins about WHO will lead the Democrats. Kamala, Klobuchar, Buttigieg, Whitmer, Jeffries. Pretty much every Democrat will hint at the possibility of either being a candidate or a player. They’ll all be working behind the scenes angling for position. Instead of an old and feeble Biden being the focus, it shifts to the younger and more engaged portion of the party. That alone will spark the grassroots and youthful base the Democrats want to appeal to.

At the same time the Party will in the background starting to formulate rules for the convention and selection. The press has always drooled over the possibility of a negotiated convention with the back room politicking and floor votes, this would almost certainly guarantee it. And it will play out live on every cable and news show for weeks, in the prime election time of July and August. Not to mention, the person selected will be by definition a consensus nominee, since a negotiated convention all but requires it. So long as the floor fight in the back rooms in Chicago doesn’t spill out on the convention floor and becomes a divisive war of words, the Democrats should come together for the election. Whoever comes out of the convention as the nominee is going to get a HUGE boost as we head into September and the home election stretch.

Next up, Trump is still the competitor. People averse to voting for him when Biden was the nominee will still vote for whoever is up against him. And now TRUMP becomes the old, out of touch, infirm nominee who doesn’t know what day it is. All the arguments they made about Biden, come much clearer into focus against Trump in this scenario. Not to mention, he will be in a series of trials during this entire period which will further cement his persona as a corrupt and horrible person, unfit for the White House.

And what are all the issue arguments going to be? Well, the same arguments Biden is making for his re-election ARE THE EXACT SAME WITH A DIFFERENT CANDIDATE. Democracy; protecting women’s health and the right to an abortion; the economy; health care; labor; the environment; global war and peace. The only issue working against Dems is the border, and Biden’s bill that the GOP shot down last week shows how disingenuine and false the GOP position on this is. I don’t see any Democratic candidate radically changing Dem positions on these issues.

Yeah, I know, its a long shot at best. And I still think Biden is the best option, since he is the only one who can truly unite this very fractured party. His numbers will come up once the Democrats come home, particularly the younger ones and the election and its consequeneces come more sharply into focus. But still, it’s not a horrible idea. I’ve liked Joe since the ‘90s and was glad to see he finally won the Presidency. But at some point the Democratic Party has to turn the page, and it seems ripe for that kind of generational shift.

PurpleAmerica’s Cultural Corner

There is some important precedence for this, and its one I know Joe being Catholic could appreciate.

In 2013, due to failing health, Pope Benedict XVI made the decision to be the first Pope in over 500 years to step down from the role.

As with all papal vacancies, the College of Cardinals met in the Sistine Chapel and selected the next pope; they chose the first Pope from Latin America, who was also the first Jesuit Pope. He took the name “Pope Francis I” and I can say the general consensus of both the old and new popes since then has been widely popular. Nobody wants to see someone stay too late in that role, functioning merely as a figurehead and unable to oversee the day to day operations. Pope Francis’ youthful appeal, change in demeanor and less orthodox doctrine helped open the Catholic Church to a new generation of growing Catholics in all parts of the globe.

I’m not saying Joe Biden or the Presidency is exactly like the Papacy. But the parallels between the global reach of the Church and of American hegemony is pretty broad. If a good heir to the Oval Office is selected at a convention, it could seriously do wonders for the Democratic Party in 2024 and beyond.

PurpleAmerica’s Obscure Fact of the Day

The first President who voluntarily chose not to run for a subsequent term?

That would be George Washington. I’d say in the long run that worked out well for America, setting a standard.

And any opportunity to compare Joe Biden with George Washington is one worth taking.

PurpleAmerica’s Final Word on the Subject

Vote Democrat in 2024. Up and Down the Ticket. The GOP won’t come to its senses until it experiences real genuine electoral pain.

LIKE WHAT YOU SEE? MAKE SURE TO SUBSCRIBE AND SHARE!!!

Footnotes and Fun Stuff