I’m sure it doesn’t feel this way to President Joe Biden now, given the fighter he is, but stepping down was the right thing for him to do.
Not because members of Congress were calling for it, not because donors had started to withhold funds and certainly not because of that awful debate performance. Deciding not to seek reelection was the right thing to do because doing so fulfills a campaign promise he made to voters shortly after Super Tuesday in 2020.
“Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else,” he said at the time. “There’s an entire generation of leaders you saw stand behind me. They are the future of this country.”
He was 77 then.
Few progressives questioned his ability to work with Congress or bring a sense of normalcy on the world stage. But many voiced concerns about him being an octogenarian when it was time to seek reelection. To ease their anxiety, he said he wanted to undo the damage caused during the Trump administration and to get the country pointed in the right direction. He told us the Pete Buttigiegs and Gretchen Whitmers wouldn’t be hamstrung by a Biden reelection bid.
Hard to say goodbye
As he noted in his letter on Sunday announcing the decision to not seek reelection, he fulfilled many of the campaign promises he made to the American people.
“Today, America has the strongest economy in the world,” Biden wrote. “We’ve made historic investments in rebuilding our Nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans. We’ve provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world. America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today.”
Perhaps achievements such as those are why he found it so hard to keep that one campaign promise — the one about being a bridge to the future.
I guess teaching us how to say goodbye is a lot harder in practice than it is to sing in a popular Broadway musical.
Rarely is the decision to not seek reelection celebrated as honorable. Usually it’s an indication of legislative disappointments or morality shortcomings. Like when a coach says he is stepping down to spend more time with his family. It’s difficult for us Americans to imagine someone willingly relinquishing power. This is particularly true when that person is as effective as Biden has been. To step out of the presidential election must feel like a gut punch, particularly given the risk of the Republican nominee becoming president.
Donald Trump is the first convicted felon nominated by a major party. He has been found liable for sexual abuse and business fraud. For stretches during his presidency, he had trouble denouncing White supremacy. Four years ago at this time, unemployment was over 10% and we were struggling to find hand sanitizer and toilet paper in our stores.
Biden, like many of us, grew up at a time when evangelical voters in this country would have never considered supporting someone like Trump. Now this con man is worshipped like a demigod — selling Bibles alongside sneakers.
And yet, Biden has been projected to lose to him.
Not because the president isn’t good at his job but because the concerns raised about Biden’s age back in 2020 have come to pass. He is a good man. He is also dangerously close to looking like Michael Jordan with the Washington Wizards. Politics, like the NBA, is for the young. Washington today is less “The West Wing” and more “Game of Thrones.” And Democrats are no longer in need of an elder statesman to remind voters of the promise of America. The party needs a warrior who can be relentless on the campaign trail and effectively communicate the party’s message about the future. Biden is no longer able to do either, and that’s OK.
Dedicating his life
In 1972, when he was first elected to the Senate, I was still in diapers. Since then he has dedicated his life to serving this country. And those years of service are very much appreciated.
He did not deserve to be beaten up in the press as badly as he has been by members of his own party. Had he stayed true to his promise to be a bridge candidate, that would not have happened. This year could have been a celebration of Biden’s leadership, alongside a robust primary competition to choose a younger nominee.
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Instead there is a scramble heading toward the convention in Chicago next month. I hope that Vice President Kamala Harris, with Biden’s endorsement, can step smoothly into the top spot on the ticket, and can bring in a running mate such as Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, the former astronaut and the husband of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. That would reset the narrative surrounding the ticket, to be less focused on Biden’s age and more on the dangers of the geopolitical policies of Trump and the domestic implications of Project 2025.
Biden’s decision to remove himself from the race does not reflect on his administration’s effectiveness. It doesn’t cast a poor light on his career. What it does is better position the party and the country to avert the threat of a second Trump administration.
I’m sure it doesn’t feel this way to Biden now, but history will remember this day as one of the most patriotic moments of his career.
LZ Granderson is a Los Angeles Times columnist. ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency.
