political capital he had to ensure that Vice President Harris succeed him.
This decision and action effectively secured Biden’s legacy by allowing history to
characterize him as the second “Washington,” who was the first leader to step aside from the presidency voluntarily to secure the future of the American Republic by demonstrating a willingness not to abuse his position or power. Biden chose himself to step away from power, to protect the republic from an existential threat known as Trump.
It also allowed him to go down in history as securing the nomination of the first Black and South Asian woman to be nominated as a presidential candidate by a major political party. This decision alone confirmed Biden’s position as leader of the party and a serious political strategist. The promotion of Harris ensured continuity within the Democratic Party’s selection process and secured the support of party leaders (Senate leader Schumer, former Speaker Pelosi, Minority leader Jeffries and Representative Clyburn, etc.). It would also ease the transition of campaign funds previously tied to Biden. And it secured the women’s’ vote (most notably, those suburban women voters who are not happy with Trump or the Dobbs decision), the Black vote if not the votes of other minorities, and quite possibly younger voters. It effectively rejuvenated the Democratic Party: within just one week of receiving the endorsement of Biden, Harris raised $200 million (60 percent of which were first time donors) and gathered the support of 175,000 volunteers.
Of equal importance is the fact that, being a former prosecutor, Biden knew Harris would be able to stand up to Trump in a debate. She could legitimately call out his convictions regarding sexual assault, business fraud and tax evasion, and his felony convictions involving falsifying business records because he did not want an affair with a porn star to influence the outcome of an election. She could speak as a woman, as she has done, about the importance of Roe, how Dobbs was so wrong in overturning a woman’s right to make decisions concerning her own body, thereby standing up for 50 percent of the voting public. She could speak, as an attorney, to the court’s mistake regarding stare decisis, about the history and role of the special prosecutor, and how the
Department of Justice has not and should not be weaponized. She could speak, as the second highest officer in the land, why classified documents should not be treated so lightly
– particularly, insofar as it threatens not just our national security but the lives of people serving in our armed forces. And she could do so in ways that would be more effective than Biden. With such positives, funders would have no choice but to back Harris. Equally, past democratic presidents will also have no choice but to follow convention rules and endorse Harris. The party would have to coalesce around her.
Which again reveals Biden strength as a strategist. He effectively neutered the opposition and persons within the party who would try and challenge her. Consider, for example, the idea put forth by James Carville that the Democrats not automatically anoint Harris, but instead engage Clinton and Obama as hosts of four town halls designed to vet and select a new nominee. Biden knew the idea, while admirable, could not be realistically
achieved. Not only did his delay make it
impossible to achieve by the time of the convention, it reeked of political opportunism, which the Trump camp could have exploited by arguing the Democrats were so weak they had to resort to old has-beens who merely wanted to see a return to the ‘good-old-days’ which have been denounced and put aside by the Republicans years ago.
Through Biden’s actions, the Democratic Party was able to rally around someone who was not only qualified to do the job but do it in a way that all parties admitted would follow upon the successes of the Biden Presidency. With Biden
recommending Harris to be his successor, Harris gained the support of enough delegates to secure the nomination. All the squabbling was done, the political infighting was done. The
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