It’s very difficult for ambitious people to admit that they’re done. Once you reach the pinnacle, it’s hard to give up, because the only way forward is down. LBJ is held up as an example, but it was difficult for him, too:
On Inauguration Day (January 20, 1969), Johnson saw Nixon sworn in, then got on the plane to fly back to Texas. When the front door of the plane closed, Johnson pulled out a cigarette—his first cigarette he had smoked since his heart attack in 1955. One of his daughters pulled it out of his mouth and said, “Daddy, what are you doing? You’re going to kill yourself.” He took it back and said, “I’ve now raised you, girls. I’ve now been President. Now it’s my time!” From that point on, he went into a very self-destructive spiral.
Consider how screwed up the SC is right now. Yes, a lot of that is due to Mitch McConnell and Lindsay Graham playing games, but it’s also due in no small part to RBG not resigning when many told her she ought to. Now, it’s quite clear that she was capable of the job at the time, and would only be stepping down for political expediency, so Obama could have named a younger replacement. If RBG had retired, and the court was less of a clusterfuck, we might not have appreciated how important that moment would have been.
It’s hard enough to take the car keys away from Grandpa, it’s harder to take the keys to power away.
Even Harris is polling better, and doesn’t have the pro-genocide baggage. If polls are to be believed she has a better chance of beating out Trump, especially among key demographics of black voters and suburban women, and if she has a better chance then I feel like basically anyone does.
That’s my concern too. Harris was closest at about the same percent as Biden. Though it did increase the amount of people who would say they’re not sure when compared to the Biden Trump race. It’s possible a new candidate might have some wiggle room to convince more swing voters. So I think there’s an argument to be made that some of the potential replacements have a higher ceiling than Biden does that they might get to even if they start at a lower polling basis. I would feel a lot better about a switch if someone was actually polling better than Biden already though.
These ones were earlier from February 2024, and though it was only in a single poll, the only person who recorded a higher percent than Biden in a poll was fucking Joe Manchin, ugh.
~69% of voters neither approve nor disapprove of Whitmere fro president.
She’s the best shot we have that the DNC would appoint.
And I have zero reason to doubt shed beat Trump. Plus as the recent victim for a kidnapping plot, she’s going to take the risk of fascists seriously.
Among the full US public, Biden’s favorability rating stands at just 34%, with 58% viewing him unfavorably. And while many of the Democratic names bandied about as possible replacements for Biden are less widely disliked, none would start with more public goodwill – instead, they are less well known. Harris has the widest recognition – and is also deeply underwater, with a 29% favorability rating, 49% rating her unfavorably, and 22% saying they have no opinion or haven’t heard of her. Roughly half of the public has no opinion on Buttigieg (50%) and Newsom (48%), with about two-thirds (69%) offering no opinion of Whitmer.
She’s not beating trump in head to head polls yet. But if she was the candidate she likely would be. And I think that head to head poll is from Data for Progress anyways, which has a whole bunch of issues.
But it’s important to remember that literally anyone’s numbers would go up in head to head polls if they had an active campaign and the DNC supporting them.
Biden already has that, it’s as good as it’s going to get for him, because the more voters interact with him, the worse his numbers get.
and don’t understand why we’re plowing ahead with two candidates no one really wants as president.
That’s easy to understand; it’s because the two primary political parties run the show from bottom to top and they both managed to make serious political miscalculations at the same time.
Democrats screwed up by repressing all their younger members for the past 15-20 years in favor of their established power brokers; now their cupboard is bare right when they need it most. The Republicans miscalculated by assembling behind Trump in the first place and then they did it again by re-assembling behind Trump.
If this country’s politics weren’t being totally controlled by Ds and Rs now is when a 3rd Party Candidate (Libertarian, Green, etc) could gain some serious traction.
Eh.
I think even with Biden it’s close to a 50/50 shot of beating trump.
I just don’t like those odds and don’t understand why we’re plowing ahead with two candidates no one really wants as president.
I just wish Biden and the DNC were taking this election seriously. This could be a walkin victory with AOC or even Whitimere.
It’s very difficult for ambitious people to admit that they’re done. Once you reach the pinnacle, it’s hard to give up, because the only way forward is down. LBJ is held up as an example, but it was difficult for him, too:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyndon_B._Johnson
Consider how screwed up the SC is right now. Yes, a lot of that is due to Mitch McConnell and Lindsay Graham playing games, but it’s also due in no small part to RBG not resigning when many told her she ought to. Now, it’s quite clear that she was capable of the job at the time, and would only be stepping down for political expediency, so Obama could have named a younger replacement. If RBG had retired, and the court was less of a clusterfuck, we might not have appreciated how important that moment would have been.
It’s hard enough to take the car keys away from Grandpa, it’s harder to take the keys to power away.
People aren’t even really trying to take Biden’s keys away…
They’re just saying we’re not letting him drive the kids to Country Kitchen Buffet anymore.
We don’t know if there’s going to be an accident this time, or ever.
It’s just bad risk assessment to let him keep going to until an accident happens
Even if he beats trump, that doesn’t mean he’ll be a capable president at 85 when this next term is up
The problem is that I don’t think the odds are appreciably better with any other Democrat.
Even Harris is polling better, and doesn’t have the pro-genocide baggage. If polls are to be believed she has a better chance of beating out Trump, especially among key demographics of black voters and suburban women, and if she has a better chance then I feel like basically anyone does.
https://www.newsweek.com/gretchen-whither-chances-beating-trump-poll-1919211
That’s my concern too. Harris was closest at about the same percent as Biden. Though it did increase the amount of people who would say they’re not sure when compared to the Biden Trump race. It’s possible a new candidate might have some wiggle room to convince more swing voters. So I think there’s an argument to be made that some of the potential replacements have a higher ceiling than Biden does that they might get to even if they start at a lower polling basis. I would feel a lot better about a switch if someone was actually polling better than Biden already though.
https://www.vox.com/2024-elections/358559/biden-harris-whitmer-newsom-shapiro-buttigieg-alternative-nomination-candidate-2024
These ones were earlier from February 2024, and though it was only in a single poll, the only person who recorded a higher percent than Biden in a poll was fucking Joe Manchin, ugh.
~69% of voters neither approve nor disapprove of Whitmere fro president.
She’s the best shot we have that the DNC would appoint.
And I have zero reason to doubt shed beat Trump. Plus as the recent victim for a kidnapping plot, she’s going to take the risk of fascists seriously.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/02/politics/cnn-poll-post-debate/index.html
She’s not beating trump in head to head polls yet. But if she was the candidate she likely would be. And I think that head to head poll is from Data for Progress anyways, which has a whole bunch of issues.
But it’s important to remember that literally anyone’s numbers would go up in head to head polls if they had an active campaign and the DNC supporting them.
Biden already has that, it’s as good as it’s going to get for him, because the more voters interact with him, the worse his numbers get.
That’s easy to understand; it’s because the two primary political parties run the show from bottom to top and they both managed to make serious political miscalculations at the same time.
Democrats screwed up by repressing all their younger members for the past 15-20 years in favor of their established power brokers; now their cupboard is bare right when they need it most. The Republicans miscalculated by assembling behind Trump in the first place and then they did it again by re-assembling behind Trump.
If this country’s politics weren’t being totally controlled by Ds and Rs now is when a 3rd Party Candidate (Libertarian, Green, etc) could gain some serious traction.