Returning the White House to Trump may be the political legacy that Biden ultimately leaves behind
On July 21, U.S. President Joe Biden announced on X that he was dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris. His statement caught most of his political allies and opponents completely off-guard.
Although Biden was recuperating from COVID-19, there were no signs he was getting ready to pack it in. His presidential bid was still moving ahead at full steam. Appearances in several cities remained on the docket. Biden had an interview with NBC News’s Lester Holt on July 15. On July 19, his co-campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, where she acknowledged a “slippage” in support but stated he was “absolutely” staying in the race.
Biden’s final decision seems to have been made quietly at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Much of his campaign team was reportedly “blindsided” and only learned about this announcement a minute before the general public did.
This was a stunning end to his presidential re-election bid. It also concluded a period of speculation that had existed long before Biden’s horrible debate performance on June 28 against former President Donald Trump and the horrific July 13 assassination attempt against his main rival.
 Image by Liam Enea |
| Related Stories |
| Biden and Trudeau ignore calls to step down at their own peril
|
| Is Trump on an unstoppable path to victory?
|
| Covering up U.S. Presidents’ illnesses is nothing new
|
For the past couple of years, it wasn’t unusual to come across something related to Biden’s political future. A fair amount of chatter came from individuals with almost nothing of value to add to the debate. There was also plenty of speculation from seasoned politicos, columnists, commentators, reporters and others.
The comments ranged from serious to ludicrous.
Every time Biden tripped, stumbled, coughed, sneezed or made a mistake, there was a collective sigh or roar. When White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre preposterously claimed in June 2022 that she “can’t even keep up with him,” most political circles of interest couldn’t control their laughter. Frustrations of Democratic politicians (including unnamed ones) and opinions of medical experts (few who would ever identify themselves) made the rounds over and over again. There were suggestions the President wasn’t in charge of the White House – and had never been.
Predictions of his departure from Washington were endless, too.
Biden was leaving today, tomorrow, this week, next week, a month from now, on or before the first snowfall, as the crow flies, when former President Barack Obama told him to – and more. Some believed he would never run for a second term in office, serve only for a short while if he won in November, or drop out before the Democratic Convention in August.
This was beyond the pale, to put it mildly. Biden always intended to be a two-term President. It’s the only way he could genuinely build a political legacy for his presidency.
The first presidential term initiates a range of short-term and long-term goals and policies. The second term aims to complete this agenda and establish a legacy that will be studied and remembered for generations.
That’s how it’s done, plain and simple.
One-term Presidents like Biden cannot leave behind this type of political legacy. Harris attempted to adjust this long-standing narrative by stating at a White House event on July 22, “In one term, he has already surpassed the legacy of most presidents who have two terms in office.” Her statement was historically inaccurate, utterly ridiculous, and far from true.
Unfortunately, Biden’s decision to leave the presidential race was likely not his own. It wasn’t a coup or anything like that. Rather, it was a recognition that his political ambitions – and his family’s ambitions for him – could not be realized.
His age and physical decline worked heavily against him. He’s not as mentally sharp as he was when he started his career as a Delaware Senator in 1973 or even when he won the White House in 2020. His gaffe-prone demeanour and inability (or unwillingness) to self-censor his remarks, which used to make people laugh and jokingly call him “Crazy Uncle Joe,” have now turned into a sad state of affairs.
Democratic politicians, White House staffers, and family members clearly tried to cover up his declining faculties. They hoped Biden could somehow muddle through the presidential campaign and win in November. His terrible debate performance against Trump exposed the deficiencies they tried to mask and revealed many others.
If Biden had announced his departure from the White House earlier this year, the Democrats could have built up a proper successor and run an efficient campaign. But with just over 100 days until the next election, they have little time to prepare. Despite the party’s support, Harris is an underwhelming choice and unlikely to fare well against Trump, the frontrunner. No other Democrat seems poised to do much better. Losing the White House now seems like a distinct possibility.
And that may be the political legacy that Biden ultimately leaves behind.
Michael Taube, a Troy Media syndicated columnist and political commentator, was a speechwriter for former Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He holds a master’s degree in comparative politics from the London School of Economics.
For interview requests, click here.
The opinions expressed by our columnists and contributors are theirs alone and do not inherently or expressly reflect the views of our publication.
© Troy Media
Troy Media is an editorial content provider to media outlets and its own hosted community news outlets across Canada.
