Notice how all calls by Dem politicians and celebrities asking Biden to drop out are not accompanied by endorsing Kamala Harris 🗳️
@pratik Here's the math I don't understand people not getting about the Kamala thing....
Want Kamala because you think Biden to old and losing it? Great! Since replacing Biden is not an option unless he decides to do it, your best choice is to vote for him and figure that he won't make it another four years and you'll get Kamala.
If Biden does make it four years, Kamala is basically shoe-in for 2028 which has been the case for every VP that has wanted it.
And, if Biden does step aside (unlikely) Kamala would be the natural replacement and he'd likely endorse that and only do so knowing that was the direction it'd go.
So, no matter what, it's Kamala anyway/eventually if you just do the right thing and eat the pie so you can survive long enough to get her.
@pratik I assume the "They" you mean here is the establishment Dems because, her name is about all I'm hearing now as an option from most pundits in the media.
@patrickrhone Everyone. Coz if he does want to step aside, there’s no one else who has more of a right than Kamala. Regardless of what they think about her or her chances
@patrickrhone This is not an unreasonable perspective, and a positive to sticking with the President.
@pratik If we were talking about”rights,” wouldn’t the rights of the party’s electorate—who did vote for their candidate—also matter?
@patrickrhone @pratik Some of us did this math when we were casting our vote in the primaries. I thought everyone else already realized this, so I am scratching my head at all of these supposed freakouts that adult democrats are having.
@billharrison Strongly agree; hence, I've been insisting that it's Joe's decision to make. If he says he wants to be in, drop all quibbling and fall in line with the nominee that 14 million primary voters cast their ballot for. But if for some reason, he chooses to drop out, then even he is supposed to first offer it to Kamala since she was on the primary ticket.
@fgtech You would think that common sense is more common, right? But then, I think it's mostly the press whipping up sentiments.
@pratik @fgtech I agree, this is the press generating clicks. If the numbers are to be believed, the debate did not change the numbers much (and generally never do).
@patrickrhone The reality, of course, is that despite any age-related diminishment over the past four years and the next four Biden is and will still be a more capable and qualified president than Trump.
Notice how all calls by Dem politicians and celebrities asking Biden to drop out are not accompanied by endorsing Kamala Harris
For those of us who believe Biden should drop out, there is very little reason to say at this point who his replacement should be.
Personally, I believe Harris is the only one it could/should be. I'm sure some would disagree with me and make a case for someone else. There are complex issues with campaign finance law that could factor in. That has to be worked out, but I suspect given the urgency it would be worked out very quickly if Biden were to stand down.
Want Kamala because you think Biden to old and losing it? Great! Since replacing Biden is not an option unless he decides to do it, your best choice is to vote for him and figure that he won't make it another four years and you'll get Kamala.
It seems to me that you are conflating two different arguments in your response here. Argument #1 is whether or not Biden should step down and release his delegates. Argument #2 is whether Harris supporters should vote for him anyway, assuming he refuses to step down.
For argument #1, I am becoming more convinced every day that Biden should step down. I am becoming more convinced that Harris has a better chance of beating Trump than Biden. I like Biden, but nothing is more important than defeating Trump. As the Biden administration continues to fumble its way through the post-debate damage control, I think that the best chance of denying Trump another term is with Harris.
For argument #2, I am with you: Assuming that Biden does not step down, I will vote for him. And I believe that every anti-Trump citizen should do the same. This is going to be a close election no matter what, and we need every possible anti-Trump vote to coalesce behind a single candidate come November. I believe that Biden, Harris, or whoever else might be representing the Democratic party on election day, should be that single candidate.
Some of us did this math when we were casting our vote in the primaries. I thought everyone else already realized this, so I am scratching my head at all of these supposed freakouts that adult democrats are having.
The freakouts are because Biden's decline appears to be more rapid and more obvious than ever before. Even my 90-year-old mother-in-law, who is currently watching up close as her husband lives through a similar pattern of decline, says it has become obvious than ever in the past year that Biden is struggling more than ever.
Strongly agree; hence, I've been insisting that it's Joe's decision to make. If he says he wants to be in, drop all quibbling and fall in line with the nominee that 14 million primary voters cast their ballot for.
Yes, but only to a certain extent. People at an advanced age who have begun to see cognitive decline are typically unaware of how much they have declined. It's why so many of us with elderly parents struggle to get our parents to give up driving, to accept help with things that they could previously do on their own, and to allow others to make decisions on their behalf.
@dynamitemoth 2 is the main message of the point and I agree with you. If Biden steps aside and is replaced with a Pet Rock, I'll happily vote for Pet Rock.
President Rock has a nice ring to it in fact.
1 is simply my way of wrapping in the point that Kamala is an inevitability if, and only if, we defeat Trump so... Eat the pie!
You would think that common sense is more common, right? But then, I think it's mostly the press whipping up sentiments.
I agree, this is the press generating clicks.
I think it is mistake to blame the media for the growing sentiment that Biden is too old. Sure, the horse-race mentality of the media is counter-productive and places way too much emphasis on the wrong things. But the media attention isn't why the concern has skyrocketed.
The concern about Biden's age and the cognitive decline that often comes with it is real, and it is valid. While we can't possibly know how much decline is real in this case, it is obvious to anyone watching that Biden's ability to define his positions and to communicate them effectively has gotten worse in the 3+ years since he took office.
It isn't the media that is making my 90-year old in-laws think Biden is too old. It isn't the click-craving press who is making my teenage children unenthusiastic about voting for Biden. These concerns are real, they are valid, and we hurt our long-term credibility if we continue to dismiss those concerns by blaming media.
@dynamitemoth that all may be true, but this is also true and this is what I am saying.
There is nothing anyone can do about it, but Joe Biden. And if Biden decides not to do anything, it doesn’t matter because we have to vote for him anyway, because it may be our last chance to vote if he doesn’t win. And all we are doing by maniacally focusing on it is eradicating the very slim margin he had and distracting us from the goal of winning.
You do not see the other side doing that about their equally cognitively compromised and only three years younger candidate do you? The answer is no because the Republicans understand unlike the Democrats that winning is the only thing that matters right now.
@patrickrhone You said it all right there. Thank you. At this point in time, winning is all that matters.
There is nothing anyone can do about it, but Joe Biden. And if Biden decides not to do anything, it doesn’t matter because we have to vote for him anyway, because it may be our last chance to vote if he doesn’t win.
There is something we can do about it, which is to consistently and directly push him to reconsider. Much like my father-in-law didn't agree to give up his keys after one conversation, Biden isn't going to agree to give up is re-election bid after one or two suggestions from one journalist or Hollywood star. He needs to be persuaded, which is what I see many anti-Trumpers trying to do.
And all we are doing by maniacally focusing on it is eradicating the very slim margin he had and distracting us from the goal of winning.
I completely disagree with you here. As much attention as Biden's problems have gotten, there is no distraction from the goal of winning. The media, the pundits, and the public have the capability of focusing on the very valid concerns about Biden AND on the need to defeat Trump in November.
You do not see the other side doing that about their equally cognitively compromised and only three years younger candidate do you? The answer is no because the Republicans understand unlike the Democrats that winning is the only thing that matters right now.
The other side has been doing that for years - it's called the Never Trump movement, and there are plenty of Republicans who have come out against their party's candidate. They may not have won the day in their efforts to derail Trump from the nomination, but they remain consistent in their vocal public criticism of Trump.
I would venture a guess that there are approximately zero Democrats out there who don't understand that winning is the only thing that matters right now. They understand the importance of winning just as much, if not more so, then the Republicans. It's just that they don't agree with you on the best way to achieve that necessary win.