As more Democrats and left-wing political pundits join the movement to persuade Joe Biden to give up his bid for a second term as commander-in-chief, the man in the Oval Office – or at least sometimes in the Oval Office – isn't making any plans to pass the torch. On July 8, Biden wrote a letter to congressional Democrats, urging, if not demanding, that they disregard speculation of his replacement by an alternative candidate for the 2024 election. In part, he wrote, “I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump.”
It was appropriate that Trump's name appeared in the first paragraph of the two-page letter. Those Democrats who are standing firm behind Joe Biden are probably confident that he can still beat Trump in November. Those who are calling for him to step aside are terrified that he cannot.
As always seems to be the case in national politics these days, this is all about Trump. It is fair to speculate that most Democrats are not at all concerned about whether Biden is physically and mentally capable of leading the country. They want to hold on to the White House, and they want to keep Trump out of it. In fact, it is entirely likely that the latter goal is, to them, more important than the former.
In fact, Trump's name appeared no fewer than 11 times in Biden's letter. One might say the 45th president is the only former chief executive in history to continue living rent-free at the White House after he left office.
On the same day, Biden called in to MSNBC’s Morning Joe program to defiantly announce that he was "the best candidate to beat Donald Trump” and he was "not going anywhere."
Joe Biden Reads the Riot Act
It should be observed that Joe Biden did make one very good point. After all, he did take the lion's share of the votes and delegates in the Democratic Party primaries -- and this is the party that claims ad nauseam to be the defenders of democracy. After reminding his colleagues of the scale of his primary victory, Biden continued in the letter:
“This was a process open to anyone who wanted to run. Only three people chose to challenge me. One fared so badly that he left the primaries to run as an Independent. Another attacked me for being too old and was soundly defeated. The voters of the Democratic Party have voted. They have chosen me to be the nominee of the party.
“Do we now just say this process didn't matter? That the voters don't have a say?”
He finished with a warning to those within his party who do not feel he should run for re-election. “Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us,” he wrote. “It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump.”
Meanwhile, some big-name Democratic Party donors have been threatening to keep their wallets and purses closed until Joe Biden steps aside in favor of someone else. Establishment media organizations that have spent the last couple of years covering for Biden and insisting that he's at his peak are now feigning indignation and pretending they had no idea about his physical and cognitive decline. Yet, that decline has, for some time now, been obvious for all to see.
The White House is on the defensive as Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre fields a daily barrage of questions from reporters about the president's mental and physical health.
Perhaps for many Democrats and the party’s supporters, last month's presidential debate was a light at the end of the metaphorical tunnel. For many months, the polls have suggested Biden's path to victory in November is narrow indeed. Factor in the faltering economy, the lawlessness many blue states are experiencing, and the overrunning of the southern border by millions of illegals, and the future was not looking bright at all for the Democratic Party. But then, Biden's dreadful performance against Trump in the debate triggered what many may have been secretly hoping for – a concerted effort to get Joe Biden to make way for a younger and more vigorous candidate, whoever that may have been.
Suddenly, it seemed that all was not lost. If it could just gently nudge Biden aside and bring in someone to face Trump who did not have to answer for the 46th president's record, the Democratic Party might deny Trump the White House once again.
Joe Biden himself appears to have dashed that hope. Clinging stubbornly to power – even as many of his erstwhile supporters and defenders urge him to go – the incumbent has set himself and his party up to face the music in November. All the signs seem to indicate that they will not like the tune, once it begins to play.
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