“Everything is riding on this. And I know people feel an urgency. I feel an urgency. But I would tell the president: slow down and take the time to make the right decision here that’s best for the country.”
— Adam Schiff
Democratic leaders, most prominently Nancy Pelosi, have offered lavish praise of the president, just before advising him to slow down and make the right decision (even though Joe Biden has repeatedly said that he has already made up his mind to run again). Representative Adam Schiff, soon to be Senator Schiff, is among the former speaker’s closest allies.
Near the beginning of the interview (quoted above) with NBC’s Kristen Welker, Schiff offers effusive praise of Joe Biden’s record over the past 3 ½ years and sums up: “He’s done more in one term than most presidents do no matter how many terms they get.” He contrasts this record with Donald Trump’s mismanagement in office and lack of character: “Someone who is … not only a pathological liar, but is immoral, indecent, and unfit for office.”
He continues:
But the performance on the debate stage, I think rightfully raised questions among the American people about whether the president has the vigor to defeat Donald Trump. And this is an existential risk.
Given Joe Biden’s incredible record, given Donald Trump’s terrible record, he should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. Joe Biden’s running against a criminal. It should not be even close. And there is only one reason it is close and that’s the president’s age.
That’s the terrible, debilitating issue that hangs like an anchor around Joe Biden’s neck. A majority of Americans think he is too old. No matter what he does, he can’t get any younger, or more vigorous, or less forgetful. So, even after he displays mastery of international relations and articulates sensible policies to advance our nation’s interests abroad (as he did yesterday following the NATO conference), he still bears the burden of old age and the nagging, persistent belief of most Americans that he is too old to run for another term as president.
Another candidate of course would be free of this burden. But only if President Biden agrees to bow out. And sooner rather than later.
Schiff goes on to recommend that the president seek out people he trusts, beyond his family, “people with some distance and objectivity. He should seek out pollsters who are not his own pollsters. He should take a moment to make the best, informed judgement …”
Later in the interview, Welker plays a clip of Schiff’s comments laying out the stakes, just before last month’s debate, of a possible second Trump term: “The only remedy really is the one in all of our hands and that is to make sure that Joe Biden wins overwhelmingly. That this is not close.”
Welker follows up with a question, “Can President Biden win overwhelmingly by any stretch at this point?”
Schiff responds: “Either he has to win overwhelmingly or he has to pass the torch to someone who can.”
We have no reason to think it is likely that President Biden can win overwhelmingly or that he will pass the torch. Mr. Biden has repeatedly dismissed the polls as inaccurate or claimed that the polls he has seen show him ahead. This is self-delusion (reminiscent of Mitt Romney’s belief – with Karl Rove – in 2012 that the polls showing him behind were wrong. And that he would defeat Barack Obama.) The image above is a counterpoint to the president’s confidence. (“I don’t think the polls are off. I think that at this moment in time all the data that we have — and again, we don’t know — but the data we have says Joe Biden is losing this race right now.” — Chris Hayes, July 9, 2024)
The Biden family and the president’s inner circle are understandably loyal to him. They are brimming with confidence. And in 2020 they proved the naysayers wrong, when Mr. Biden won the Democratic primary and then defeated the sitting president. But note: their plan to launch his 2024 campaign at the June debate blew up in their faces. We have ample reason to question their judgment at this stage. That’s why Congressional Democrats (and candidates around the country) are in a panic.
There’s still time for President Biden to do the right thing. Staying in the race, as an old man who is widely perceived to be too old for the White House, does the country a disservice.
[I was banned from dailykos.com on July 12 within minutes of putting up the above post, which was removed from the site -- all without explanation, though this was my fourth post of the week advocating that Biden bow out, so Democrats could nominate Kamala Harris or another leader to take on Trump.]