This was not going to be a joyful presidential debate by any measure, but neither were Americans expecting it to be the waking nightmare it turned out to be. The United States and the world had gathered around their television sets on the night of June 27 to watch two opponents whom they were not particularly excited about, but instead found themselves in a chilling scenario: President Joe Biden, usually feisty, statesman-like, and wise, was barely audible and unable to deflect his opponent’s barrage of barbs; former president Donald Trump was in his element. He was confidently shooting from the hip―taunts, insults and lies about Biden’s record and his own. Civility was dead, but more than that, the election itself seemed to be in death-throes. Was Biden just having a bad day and a bad cold? Or was age finally catching up?
Everyone from ordinary Americans to the world media, including The New York Times, jumped into the fray. The verdict of the Times editorial board was scathing: “At Thursday night’s debate, President Biden appeared the shadow of a great public servant. The greatest public service he can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election.”
Media across the US and the world has been equally tough on Biden. But he recovered a day later and gave a strong performance in Pennsylvania. So, was it just an aberration or something which will worsen with the passing months? After all, Biden will be 86 at the end of his second term. And yet, age is just a number, and some older adults are still going strong into their 90s. Biden has had a long and illustrious career and has the gravitas and experience to pull off difficult decisions.
As California Governor Gavin Newsom wrote in a fundraising letter for the Democratic National Committee, “I was at the debate last night. I watched it. I tried to keep track of Trump’s lies as it went on and I ran out of paper. On the substance, Joe Biden won the debate last night. That’s what matters to me. Don’t look at 30 minutes. Look at the last three and a half years under Joe Biden. It’s been a masterclass: 15.6 million jobs created―eight times more than the last three Republican presidents combined.”
On the other side is Trump who has been the king of chaos with everyone left bruised and hurting, except for his special band of followers. The country is truly polarised between these two men. According to a latest survey by the Pew Research Center, voters are divided on so many issues. A quarter of Americans hold unfavourable views of both Biden and Trump, making them the least-liked pair of major-party candidates in decades. The survey found only 39 per cent of Americans view Trump favourably, while just 37 per cent have a positive opinion of Biden.
Fighting ugly: Donald Trump leaves a campaign rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, a day after the presidential debate | AP
After Biden’s performance in the debate, many voters are anxious to see him step down in favour of a candidate who has a winning chance against Trump, as the alternative is too dangerous to contemplate; Trump has clearly shown that he wishes to rule like an autocrat and democracy will be dead in the world’s oldest democracy. It is late in the game, but many voters think that an infusion of fresh blood into the Democratic campaign may yet save the day.
However, the decision rests solely with Biden. As political columnist David Lauter wrote in the Los Angeles Times, “To be clear, no Democratic Party official or combination of officials has the authority to force Biden out. He won the party’s primaries. The nomination is his to claim; he can renounce it, but only if he so chooses.”
When Biden was inaugurated four years ago, he had said that he planned to be a one-term president and pass on the mantle to a younger leadership. One does not know when or why his thinking changed but it would have been best to have a succession plan with the many strong young Democrats in the party and remain as elder statesman and mentor.
According to Axios, “Dr Jill Biden (the first lady); his younger sister, Valerie Biden; and 85-year-old Ted Kaufman, the president’s longtime friend and constant adviser; plus a small band of White House advisers, are the only Biden deciders. This decades-long kitchen cabinet operates as an extended family, council of elders and governing oligarchy. These allies alone hold sway over decisions big and small in Biden’s life and presidency.”
It may have been a private decision, but after the debate debacle, it has become a public matter and all Americans have become vocal on who should run for president. Now whether he wants to or not, Biden may be compelled to write a different ending to his White House story as voters discuss viable candidates.
So who are the possibilities? Vice President Kamala Harris has, at times, struggled to define her role at Biden’s side, and is regarded somewhat of a political liability. There are a handful of other good contenders, including governors Newsom of California, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania. Other possibilities include Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Senators Cory Booker of New Jersey and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. There were also reports about former first lady Michelle Obama as a candidate, but after Biden’s debate disaster, Barack Obama issued a forceful statement supporting the president.
Many voters are also furious that Trump, as usual, has got away scot-free in spite of being a felon and having so many charges against him. Will his Teflon persona last?
As Biden told a rally in North Carolina after the debate: “I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to,” but, he added, “I would not be running again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul I can do this job.” To which he added, “I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know how to tell the truth.”
Just two days after the debate, Governor Phil Murphy of New Jersey hosted a private fund-raising dinner for the president at his home, raising $3.7 million for the campaign. Calling Biden “America’s comeback kid” Murphy said: “It was acknowledging that they had a tough night and also acknowledging that we’ve got to remember that this has been a heck of a run the past four years, and we’ve got to keep it going. They have to hit the gas pedal hard.”
Chintan Patel, director of Indian American Impact, a pro-Democratic group, and his team sent out an email to supporters about the two competing visions seen on the debate: “From protecting reproductive freedom and voting rights to fighting health care costs and the global climate crisis, the Biden-Harris administration is ready to act on the issues that matter most to us. And as the fastest growing voter bloc in many states, Indian and South Asians have the power to decide who represents us and the future of our country.”
As this nail-biter of an election moves toward its unknowable finale, the world watches and waits. Americans are going about their daily lives, but the upcoming elections are never far from their minds, and a matter for stress and gloom. As the stand-up comedienne Zarna who is Indian and American piped up on social media, in ‘puja-mode’ to the music of Kabhi Khushi, Kabhi Gham, “Tonight’s a very difficult night for America and I’m inviting you all to pray for America.”
―Lavina Melwani is a New York based writer and blogs at Lassi with Lavina.