Heartbreak and relief
Reflections on Joe Biden's extraordinary decision.
PN is a reader-supported publication made possible by paid subscribers. Appreciate our independent journalism? Then please sign up to support us.
After a long RNC week and a Trump rally on Saturday, I went to the Twins game yesterday with my wife and kids hoping to unplug for a few hours. We had just entered the ballpark when my phone blew up with the news that President Biden was stepping aside. Whew.
It took a few seconds to process the magnitude of what I was reading, then I felt a flash of heartbreak. But before too long relief settled in. And my sense Biden did the right thing was only strengthened from there as Dems quickly united around VP Kamala Harris.
Hopes of Trump being defeated suddenly feel rejuvenated. My DMs filled with messages like the one below.
Itās definitely bittersweet. I think Biden will go down historically as an extremely underrated president. Iāll forever be grateful that he stepped up four years ago and delivered a victory when the stakes were so high. I greatly admire the dignity and decency heās restored to the White House and the team heās surrounded himself with.
It feels like a cruel twist of fate that a man who has endured so much personal tragedy and done so much good is getting nudged out by his own party like this. Biden deserves better. But I still think he made the right call.
Bidenās record is undeniable
Itās easy to forget now, but the country was an absolute shambles in January 2021, when we were fresh off Trumpās coup attempt, 80,000 Americans were dying each month from covid, and the unemployment rate was over six percent.
Bidenās first order of business was restoring a sense of social and economic normalcy, and he did this quickly. By that spring, vaccines were widely available and the American Rescue Plan was signed into law, setting the stage for a remarkable recovery that became the envy of the world.
More successes followed. Despite slim majorities in Congress, Biden made infrastructure week a reality, led a labor renaissance, and signed historic climate legislation into law. As David Lurie wrote in this newsletter last December, Biden has been āone of the most successful Democratic presidents since Franklin Delano Roosevelt, both at home and abroad, having shepherded the nation through the end of the pandemic, initiated historic changes in industrial and climate policy, and led a coalition of Western nations against the most dangerous threat to democracy in decades.ā
As the Delta variant surged and inflation took a bite out of personal budgets, Bidenās approval numbers slipped and never really bounced back. But while he may not have gotten a fair shake from an optics-obsessed press and public, thereās no doubt the country is in better shape than it was four years ago. His leadership and record will be remembered fondly, especially if Trump is defeated again.
And thatās where my sense of relief came in as I grappled with the news that Biden is not seeking another term.
Father time is undefeated
To be frank, I was becoming increasing bearish about Bidenās 2024 prospects as the reality set in that June 27 was more than just one bad night.
On Saturday, I rewatched part of Bidenās April interview with Howard Stern, and the difference between that version of Biden and what weāre seen from him in recent TV interviews is jarring. I donāt doubt Biden believed he was up for another term when he made the decision to run, but the last few months have seemed to take a hard toll on him.
Before the debate, I hadnāt noticed any obvious signs of decline and defended Biden when people claimed he was slipping. But whatever the cause, heās been presenting lately as elderly instead of just old. I was no longer confident that he was up for vigorously defending his record and making an aggressive case against Trump on the campaign trail. Biden hasnāt been on a trajectory to win the race, and it was getting increasing hard to imagine how he could change that.
Yes, Biden got a raw deal from a post-debate media feeding frenzy that was completely out of proportion and obscured the real stakes of this election. And yes, thereās no guarantee that Harris will go on to win in November. But if Trump prevails, now at least the defenders of American democracy will go down swinging hard and in unison.
Vibe shift
Following Bidenās endorsement, Democrats quickly circled the wagons around Harris in a way that didnāt seem possible had Biden stayed on the ticket.
Her ascension let to a surge of fundraising and morale. Trump, meanwhile, canāt even conceal how upset he is about Biden stepping aside, which speaks volumes in its own right.
Weāll spend plenty of time discussing Harris in the weeks and months (and hopefully years) to come. But today, I mostly want to acknowledge Joe Biden.
Biden earned the Democratic nomination. A lesser person mightāve stubbornly refused to give it up, but he sacrificed his ego and personal ambition for the greater good. Thatās a rare thing for a politician operating at the highest levels of power to do, and his decision embodies the reasons Iāve been proud to publicly support him over the past four and a half years.
So thank you, Joe ā for your service, your strength of character, for making such a tough decision in extraordinary circumstances.
Nothing is more important than Trump losing in November. We donāt know what will happen 106 days from now, but I know Iām not alone in saying that because of your willingness to take one for the team, I feel much more optimistic about the future than I did two days ago.
Letās talk about it
Iām eager to hear from readers about what theyāre thinking and feeling regarding Bidenās announcement. Do you disagree with any of my assessment? Please share in the comments and weāll chat through it.
As an active D in a rural county, reaction of some of my fellow activists was a feeling of nausea. Do the voices of those in our positions really count? Yet as a human being who gives up personal time for politics, I felt some relief, perhaps a projection of my exhaustion at only 70 years. I hope JRBiden can spend the remainder of his presidency focused on the work at hand with less reaction to the media frenzy. I hope he can find rest when he needs it not only when illness requires it. I hope he can focus on the loves of his life, his family. I am deeply grateful for his service and believe he still has lots to offer as an elder statesman. I hope he lives til 100ā¦
I am in total agreement with you. When I first heard a palpable wave of relief went through my body, but then I found myself feeling profoundly sad for the President. Heās a good man and did a good job these last 3 1/2 years, but clearly age has caught up with him. I hope that history will acknowledge the very good job he has done as well.