The past few weeks, I have been having the feeling that the entire field of journalism has reached its “Jon Stewart Moment.” The entire gestalt around the question of whether or not President Biden should step aside is not grounded in reality. If any of the leading media outlets had spent just a few hours researching the mechanics of our electoral system, they would realize that it simply is not possible for Joe Biden to step aside. IF they had, they would know that Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin only let the elected candidate be replaced on the ballot by death. I would think that is taking “falling on one’s sword” just a bit too literally. Additionally, twenty-six states have a Republican serving as Secretary of State. What do you think the probabilities are that some significant number would try to prevent a replacement candidate on the ballot? Earlier this year, the Republican Secretary of State was making noises about keeping the Biden/Harris ticket off the ballot because the Democratic Convention was occurring after the date for placing names on the ballot in Ohio. Do you honestly think that he is the only Republican Secretary of State out to create chaos in the system? And waiting in the wings is the Heritage Foundation, with legal teams in every state to challenge every aspect of the election. Imagine they're drooling over the prospect of an autumn filled with legal challenges to a replacement candidate on the ballot that rise all the way up to the Supreme court… which I am sure everyone agrees cannot be trusted to make a fair and impartial judgement on a parking ticket, much less being offered the chance to make sure that it is impossible for a Democrat to be on the ballot of every state. So now explain to me why Joe Biden, who is a smart man, would send our nation into such chaos and guarantee a victory for Trump by stepping aside.
IF The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, et. al., who are breathlessly covering the machinations behind replacing Biden are unaware of this, then they are so incompetent as to be useless. And don’t think for a moment that somehow an “open convention” would be some godsend… well, it would be for media outlets. Think of the clicks and views! The new subscribers! The advertising dollars! Their complete avoidance of the legal issues in order to keep open the possibility of President Biden stepping aside opens the possibility that yes, indeed, they have all reached that place Jon Stewart so forcefully described back in 2004; they are no longer journalists, they are entertainers. And they are hurting America. They are keeping open the prospect of an impossibility so that they have content. It matters not that the reasoning is as close to reality as that on an episode of “Survivor.” It is breathless, it is fraught with danger and gossip and stars and billionaire donors! The fourth estate has become yet another The Boeing Company— once run by engineers devoted to building the best aircraft, now run by MBA’s out to make the greatest profit at the lowest cost — and now major media outlets appear to be more concerned with their business models than their responsibility to the society they work for. This work is so vital to a democracy, it was the only one granted specific protections in The Constitution of the United States. And what they have done the past few months has me expecting to read of their door plugs flying off mid-flight.
So let’s turn to the question of Joe Biden’s fitness for office. First, past performance is indeed a good indicator of future outcomes. If not, job interviews would be very short. You would never be asked about your employment history or education. If you are concerned about if those skills are eroding, go back and listen to the detailed and nuanced answers he gave in his press conference regarding Russia and China. Remember, it is the job of a President to make decisions; it is not his responsibility to enforce them. That is why we have an Executive Branch and Armed Forces and all that “stuff.” How have his decisions worked out? He guided us through the Covid disaster left behind by his predecessor. I will grant Trump one thing… he did listen to medical authorities initially so that the vaccine research occurred on an accelerated schedule. But when he felt that covid was hurting him politically, he switched to “It’ll all go away by summer” and did nothing to help us through that crisis. When Joe came in, he accelerated vaccine and test kit deployment and kept the economy from crashing. The list of positive legislation is long, though he admits there is much more to do.
But what about his health? A few thoughts. 1. He is surrounded by the best medical care anyone on the planet can receive. 2. His stamina far exceeds that of many people 30 years younger than he. Check his daily schedule. Could YOU keep up with that? That “disastrous performance” at the fundraiser came after a 15 hour flight across 9 time zones. How would you have done? 3. The stammer and the gaffes? I remember both from his time chairing the Judicial Committee during the Clarence Thomas hearings. This is nothing new. More frequent? Perhaps, but I would have to go back and view lots of old video tapes to confirm that. What I do know is that any increase in frequency has nothing to do with his decision making process, and that is what a president does. 4. He could die! Sure. That is a fact of life. That’s why we have Vice-Presidents, and he has a damn fine one. Aside from being extremely smart and having a strong ethical core, Kamala Harris has been included in every substantive discussion and decision-making process and I suspect she is a wonderful student. If she had to step in, she would find herself surrounded by one of the most competent staffs and cabinets that I have seen in my 55 years of political awareness. Name me one cabinet official who has made the news for anything but the right reasons. It would be a seamless transition.
Look at the alternative. Any attempt to replace Joe, even of his own volition, would cause such chaos it would insure a Trump victory. You don’t think so? Then ask yourself why are Republicans so quiet right now. They want him to step down so that the legal chaos can begin. After all, how has Trump ever “won” anything? By manipulating and perverting our legal system. And if Trump sees the inside of the White House again, you can kiss the American Experiment goodbye. It hasn't been perfect, but we have had some good runs at making it better. And Joe has been part of that the last four years. And when he says, “I need to finish the job,” I believe he has earned that opportunity.