8 years ago I wrote a post about the 2016 and 2000 elections and unfortunately I feel inspired to follow up on it today.
I don’t know what President Biden is thinking, I don’t know what the “people close to him” are thinking, and I don’t what the large donor base is thinking.
But I do know about the passive voice.
President Biden would not be replaced as the nominee. The Democratic party would replace President Biden with X as the nominee.
If you cannot tell me who is the person X that would replace him, the mechanism how they would replace him, and how they would increase sporadic voter turnout or have greater appeal to swing voters in strategic states; then I have a very hard time believing that you have adequately thought this through. And if you have not thought it through, then you probably just panicking. This weakness and panic is like catnip for the media, and as we saw in the last two election cycles the press is easily amplified. I am quite sure that the opposing party has attack strategies ready for most of the obvious alternatives. None of them defeated President Biden in the 2020 primary when they had the chance, or chose to challenge him less than a year ago.
I have come to be really embarrassed by the Democratic party in the last several decades. I have rarely seen any group less comfortable wielding power. That isn’t to say I’d like them to abuse power. But understanding when you have strength and leverage, and effectively using those to achieve your goals is something Republicans have consistently done better. This is a pivotal moment, and it would be a great time to fix this.
My advice to Biden? Don’t step down. If your would-be replacement doesn’t have the conviction, skill, and strategy to defeat you in Chicago, then they don’t have what it takes to win in November.