But I will say that for the good of the country, Biden ought to decline the nomination at the Democratic Convention next month and let some other Democrat run for election this November.
Who that would be, I haven't the faintest idea. Pete Buttigieg is the only politician I know of who is smart enough and good enough to be the leader of the free world. He's sharp as a tack, he's got heart, and he's got balls. But Pete is still a bit too young, and needs more experience at the top of the ladder.
What about Kamala, you say. Well, what about her? She seemed like a woman who would really make a mark on Washington when she was elected Veep - but since then has largely faded into the woodwork. My impression is that Biden has kept her on the bench all this long time, and she's dutifully kept her mouth shut about it. She's a cypher to me - an unknown quantity. A fearless, outspoken woman who came out swinging just might energize the the party faithful and capture many voters' attention. But who knows.
However -- and remember, I told you Biden was too old five years ago! -- the choice before us now is to vote for a bad man who would be an incompetent president (to put it very mildly) -- or to vote for a good man who would also be an incompetent president. Both are unfit for office, albeit for very different reasons.
A terrible choice. Whichever way it turns out, we lose, and the world loses. Big time.
The stakes are too high to be indifferent about this election. God bless Joe Biden, who deserves our thanks and respect for doing all he could do -- but he should now yield the scepter to a younger and more vigorous man or woman. Someone who can pick up the baton and win the race, if there is anyone. It's not just about parties - it's about the continuation of democracy, or the hell of dictatorship. It's about the lives of millions of people all around the world. It's about Good versus Evil, and that's no joke.
There, I've said it. That's my good deed for today. Make of it what you will.
P. S. -- The more I think about it, a Harris-Kinzinger "unity" ticket might be a real humdinger. Hmm.
Update, 6/28, 11:30 p.m.: It's cold comfort, but I see the Editorial Board of the New York Times agrees with me:
“The president appeared on Thursday night as the shadow of a great public servant. He struggled to explain what he would accomplish in a second term. He struggled to respond to Mr. Trump’s provocations. He struggled to hold Mr. Trump accountable for his lies, his failures and his chilling plans. More than once, he struggled to make it to the end of a sentence,” the board wrote in an opinion piece published Friday.“The greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election. As it stands, the president is engaged in a reckless gamble. There are Democratic leaders better equipped to present clear, compelling and energetic alternatives to a second Trump presidency. There is no reason for the party to risk the stability and security of the country by forcing voters to choose between Mr. Trump’s deficiencies and those of Mr. Biden. It’s too big a bet to simply hope Americans will overlook or discount Mr. Biden’s age and infirmity that they see with their own eyes,” the Times also said.
Biden is manifestly unfit for the highest job in the world, and the most demanding. To ignore what is right in front of our eyes is utterly foolish; that's exactly what we reproach the Republicans for doing in the face of all Trump's wickedness, isn't it? It would be disloyalty to our country to pretend all is well, nothing to worry about. Do you care more about your party or your country?
The board went on to say it would still support Biden as its “unequivocal pick” if the choice remains between him and former President Donald Trump.
Well, yes - if the choice is between Hitler and Pee-wee Herman, you have to go with the latter. But that's a damn rotten shame.
Roge Karma summarizes the current state of play in the Atlantic:
As of last night, there are no plausible theories left of how Biden could win the election. Last night was the test of whether Biden was up for the job of campaigning, and he failed it. This wasn’t just a weak performance, like Ronald Reagan’s first debate in 1984 and Barack Obama’s in 2012. The man could hardly speak. To believe that things will somehow turn around come September, when the next debate is scheduled, would be delusional.
The alternative to a Biden candidacy is for the president to voluntarily drop out of the race and either handpick his preferred successor or leave it entirely up to Democratic National Convention delegates to select a new candidate in August. Both come with significant risks; neither has a high probability of working. Vice President Kamala Harris, the most natural choice, may be even less popular than Biden, and other options, such as California Governor Gavin Newsom, are totally unproven at the national level. But the notion that a younger, more energetic, more articulate candidate could defeat Trump is at least plausible. Biden turning things around is not.
Your Head Trucker says, without a new quarterback and smart, dramatic, honest game plan to turn things around, we're fucked. And I mean all of us: the country, the world, the whole human race. Remember you heard it here first.
As Elizabeth Bruenig wrote, also in the Atlantic:
The candidates said some factual things and some false things, but only one message came across as true: Our nation is shambling along the road to hell, and there doesn’t appear to be an off-ramp. “We are living in a rat’s nest,” Trump said, right for the wrong reasons. “We’re like a bunch of stupid people,” he went on; “we’re a failing nation.” Absolutely, but not because of migrants or the Chinese or the Russians: This mess is made in America, and all of us are going to suffer for it.
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5 comments:
I was hoping Biden would have bowed out of the race months ago in the interest of the Party and the country. Is it a matter of Ego? Can the Dems nominate a new candidate and get the nominee to have a real impact? I agree that Kamala has been virtually invisible for most of 3 and a half years. When she has appeared, she's been less than stellar. I would vote for Pete in a heartbeat, but the ugly anti-gay sentiment that has been growing would likely do him in. There is no charismatic, unifying person that I can think of who could salvage the Democratic Party, win over enough MAGATs and save the country. Are we doomed? If Biden is still running in November I will vote for him. At least he has competent people to shore him up.
An update:
https://www.joemygod.com/2024/06/biden-delivers-rousing-rally-speech-in-raleigh-video/
That rally is pathetic. It's a staged event. Hollywood at work. The crowd might or might not be paid performers, but they act like professional cheerleaders responding to offstage cues. It proves nothing at all about Joe's fitness for the biggest, toughest job in the world.
It other words, it's a damn big LIE - just what we condemn the other side for lapping up.
I *hope* he has competent people around him. But they're all nonentities, aren't they? How many can you name from the Cabinet or the White House office?
And even counting the Dems in Congress, how many are big enough to do the job? It's a sad day for the party and the country, very sad.
Old Joe might have to be shoved out - he won't go of his own accord. You remember Notorious R.B.G. turned a deaf ear to all pleas for her to step down while there was a Democratic president. And what did her selfishness do for us? Saddled us with a 6-3 "conservative" majority for years that has already done enormous damage to the body politic.
The powers that be in the Democratic party *should* have come up with a new game plan and new quarterback a year ago. Now it's the end of the 3rd quarter, and the outcome is anybody's guess.
God bless America.
Thanks for your thoughtful essay.
For some time now the Democrats have been perceived, correctly or not, to be primarily concerned with accusing everyone of racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia. Whatever else they may accomplish gets ignored. If Biden bows out and Harris is selected as the presidential candidate, she will lose even bigger than Biden; if she is not selected, there will be accusations of racism and sexism and a lot of people will stay home and not vote. Take your pick. The comparisons to RBG are apt, and I've been saying the same thing for years. The only hope is for the Democrats to somehow eke out a majority in the House of Representatives.
Huston
Thanks for your insightful comment, Huston
You may well be right that the only hope lies in a House vote. But that brings us right back to J6, and all that uproar - and the bad guys might be better prepared this time.
I can imagine a come-from-behind victory led by a gutsy, plain-speaking gal who, against all odds, stands up for women's rights, abortion, gun control, childcare, medicare, etc., who captures the public imagination and wins an historic victory. Would make a great screenplay. But I'm not sure Kamala is that gal. And I don't know who would be. So it's just a thought.
Having some idea of the long sweep of American history up to now, I am just dumbfounded that we have come down to a choice, as Maureen Dowd wrote in the NYT, between the "ghastly and the ghostly." It's a lousy way to end a movie - or a democracy.
But let's keep our fingers crossed.
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