It was evident nearly a year ago that President Joe Biden should reconsider running for a second term. An August poll by the Associated Press revealed that 77 percent of the public and 69 percent of Democrats believed he was too old to be effective for another four years. Despite these concerns, Biden and his inner circle pressed on, culminating in Thursday’s disastrous televised debate, which starkly highlighted the failings the country had already perceived.
The question arises: How did this happen? What combination of moral conviction, personal confidence, and perhaps selfishness drove Biden to seek another term despite the risks? I have a unique perspective on Biden’s journey toward this precarious decision. In September, I penned a column titled “President Biden should not run again in 2024.” It echoed the sentiments many Democrats were contemplating last summer. However, my call for him to step aside garnered significant attention, possibly because I had been a staunch supporter of most of Biden’s foreign and domestic policies.
In the months since, I have had regular conversations with people close to Biden about why he remained in the race. Their insights shed light on the path to Thursday night and underscore how crucial Biden’s inner circle will be in encouraging him to step aside and let someone else take on former President Donald Trump.
Biden’s primary reason for running again was his gut feeling that he could win. He harbors a deep loathing for Trump, evident in his otherwise frail demeanor during the debate. It has been his political mission to stop Trump and his MAGA rebellion, a mission he accomplished in the 2020 election and the 2022 midterms. He believed he could do it again and that no one else could do it better.
Biden might have considered withdrawing if Vice President Kamala Harris had been more popular, perhaps running 10 points ahead of him in polls. However, Harris hasn’t gained traction as vice president, and Biden is aware of this. Some argue that Biden deliberately sidelined Harris, but her shortcomings likely reflect her own political weaknesses. The fact remains that Biden had no obvious heir.
Paradoxically, Biden might have stepped aside if Trump hadn’t run. He could have claimed victory in his political quest to vanquish Trump and paved the way for a younger generation of leaders. However, Trump’s successful primary campaign almost guaranteed that Biden would stay in the race.
Biden’s family, especially his wife Jill, has played a central role in his decision. When my column appeared last September, I was informed by those close to the Bidens that the president was angry, but the first lady was irate. She is his protector and advocate. His children, Hunter and Ashley, might have been comfortable with him stepping aside. Yet, even after Thursday night’s performance, Jill Biden was onstage at a “victory” party, clapping and leading a chant of “Four more years!”
Loyalty is admirable, except when it disserves those we love. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s wife, Lady Bird, knew the strains he was suffering in office and his fragile health. She discussed with him the possibility of not seeking another term as he was being inaugurated in 1965. He confided to her in 1967 that he had decided against running the next year, though he wavered until his announcement in March 1968.
Biden’s inner circle of aides has also been protective, perhaps to a fault. Biden is a stubborn and sometimes irascible man. He has maintained a remarkably disciplined White House, with few leaks and minimal backbiting. However, loyalty and discipline can come at a cost. In the days following my column, I heard rumblings of agreement among insiders, but they were quickly squelched. Discipline prevailed.
What’s particularly painful about Biden’s story is that he has been, in many ways, a very good president. The biggest lie Trump told during the debate was his portrayal of the country as a ruined mess. The economy is strong, the United States is working seamlessly with an ever-closer set of allies in Europe and Asia, and our global financial, military, and intelligence dominance has rarely been clearer. Biden has been effective despite the obvious signs of stress. He has also remained a decent man.
That’s his valedictory if he could accept it. I noted in September that Biden should understand that he has achieved what he described in his 2021 inaugural speech: “When our days are through, our children and our children’s children will say of us: They gave their best, they did their duty, they healed a broken land.” Biden did just that.
Biden’s closest counselors, including political adviser Mike Donilon, former chief of staff Ron Klain, and the first lady, have an obligation to be honest with him now. If he has the strength and wisdom to step aside, the Democrats will have two months to choose another candidate. It will be a wide-open and noisy race, but that will be invigorating for the country. It’s never too late to do the right thing.
Thursday night had the sense of an ending. There was something Shakespearean about the gaunt, haunted face of Biden on stage, squinting as if to see in a dwindling light, struggling for words even as the nobility of his purpose remained. I was reminded of a passage in “King Lear,” when Edgar advises his struggling father, the Duke of Gloucester, “Men must endure their going hence, even as their coming hither; Ripeness is all.”
But an ending is also a new beginning. That’s what Biden, with the wisdom of his age, can give to the country.
Source: Associated Press
