Independence Day
Happy 4th of July! I hope that you are spending the holiday with family and friends.
What a time in America. Every day comes with new figures calling for President Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee.
I said on the podcast Monday with Zach that I believe Joe Biden will indeed step aside. And I think it will happen fairly quickly. The first Democratic member of Congress, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, has called for it and I don’t detect any professional repercussions. Dozens of swing-state officeholders are poised to follow him. The tone of Jim Clyburn, Nancy Pelosi and others has shifted from their earlier declarations of support to allowing for a mini-primary if Joe isn’t the nominee and saying concerns are legitimate.
Watching the press jump on this like a dog tearing at a bone has been fascinating. I have gotten requests from a dozen outlets. We should thank our lucky stars that Joe Biden’s team called for this early debate ahead of the convention, else there would have been a tank job in the Fall with no recourse.
Zach and others have floated a theory that someone on the Biden team knew he would have a terrible debate and this was their way of swapping him out. I don’t buy it. His team actually thought that he would reassure voters – the internal gaslighting is strong. Instead, the debate debacle will end with Joe stepping aside as the nominee while likely staying in office.
So what next? The major question is whom Joe decides to throw his weight behind. The vast majority of DNC delegates are pledged to Joe and, though they aren’t obligated to do what he says, would be inclined to follow his lead. I don’t think Vice President Harris will inherit the mantle unopposed, and we are in for a hurried mini-primary with various contenders raising their hand and being winnowed down via televised debates and votes/polling ahead of the convention. The convention is in mid-August, so we are talking about perhaps the most action-packed 5 weeks that any of us can recall if this comes to pass. The other most likely scenario is that Joe and the party consolidate behind Kamala to try and keep things together. I’d prefer the mini-primary as I think it would energize people and be more open.
It would be stressful and uncertain, but a sprint with any hope is vastly preferable to a futile death march, which is what President Biden now represents.
The press is inflamed because they feel they were lied to by President Biden and his handlers about Joe’s condition and health. It’s truly wild how every major Democrat had been parroting the “Joe’s sharp as a tack in meetings!” talking point until the debate laid the truth bare. I appreciate Dean Phillips so much as the one Democratic officeholder willing to say that the emperor had no clothes on. If only more had listened 6 months ago.
I am sad for President Biden as anyone would be for an 81-year old who is losing his energy and clarity. But we should be angry at the Democratic Party for enabling him for so long and putting us in position to give the reins of government back to Donald Trump.
Buried among the headlines this week was a new Gallup poll that has Independents as a majority – 51% - of Americans for the first time in decades. More and more of us have been staring at the dysfunction of our two major parties with chagrin. Not coincidentally, Forward has received an influx of interest and support this week. This 4th of July, let’s start declaring our independence from the two major parties that are clearly less concerned about us and more about who can avoid a race to the bottom and cling to power.
You know who else has called for Joe Biden to step aside? Adam Frisch, the Forward-endorsed Congressional candidate in Colorado. See him and the other Forward-aligned candidates here. John Curtis won his primary in Utah and John Avlon did the same in New York.
Let’s hope a certain 81-year old officeholder makes the right decision soon. Have a great Independence Day.
