Joe Biden has never been an exceedingly popular politician on the national stage. In 1988, he made an early exit from the presidential race after allegations of plagiarism surfaced. He ran again twenty years later but finished near the bottom of the pack.
Biden was saved from national obscurity by Barack Obama, who chose him as his running mate in 2008. He rode Obama’s coattails to eight years as Vice President. Unfortunately for Biden, his tenure as Vice President was so unimpressive that at the end of his term, Democratic Party insiders overlooked him and chose Hillary Clinton as their presidential nominee.
When the 2020 race began, Biden started with a string of horrific losses. He was saved in South Carolina by U.S. Congressman James Clyburn (D-SC), and he cruised to the nomination because the Democratic Party leadership feared his primary opponent, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), was too radical.
Of course, Biden became President in a tumultuous election year filled with COVID worries, George Floyd riots, lockdowns, unprecedented voting procedures, millions of mail-in ballots, and unending controversy about the result.
Biden’s tenure as President has been catastrophic. While he achieved significant legislative successes, none of the “accomplishments” improved the lives of Americans.
The results have been horrific, including a record $33 trillion national debt and a 3.7% inflation rate, more than double the 1.4% rate at the start of his presidency. In addition, mortgage rates have skyrocketed to the highest point in almost 23 years, devastating the real estate industry and leading to higher credit card debt payments for millions of Americans.
As the economy has deteriorated, voters are blaming the President, who has labeled this collection of policies as Bidenomics. Only 20% of Americans believe they are “better off’ today than in 2020, at the start of the pandemic.
Biden’s awful record is coupled with a sharp decline in his physical condition and his ability to communicate. When he is not falling off his bike or on stage, he is making speeches filled with gaffes and misstatements.
In the last week, he embarrassed himself at the United Nations, fumbling with an earpiece and almost knocking over the Brazilian flag. To make matters worse, he insulted the Brazilian President by leaving the stage without shaking his hand.
In another speech, he praised the significant accomplishments of the Congressional Black Caucus; however, he was speaking to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. During an actual speech to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s legislative conference, he referred to their “Phoenix Award” recipient, rapper LL Cool J, as “LL J Cool J.” As icing on the cake of gaffes, he called the rap legend “boy.”
No wonder only 34% of Americans believe that Biden can finish a second term if elected again. Even worse, in a new ABC News poll, 74% of respondents believe he is too old and should not run again.
The ABC News poll also showed that President Donald Trump is leading Biden by a remarkable 51-42% margin. Overall, Biden has a low 37% approval rating among voters, with only 30% approving of his stewardship of the economy and a mere 23% approving of his handling of “immigration” on the U.S./Mexican border.
These results are devastating for Biden, indicating that Americans dislike his policies and are increasingly worried about his age and ability to serve as President. While Trump is gaining support and expanding his lead in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, Biden’s troubles are intensifying.
Democrats are not going to steadfastly support Biden if it means Trump will return to the White House. They possess an unnatural hatred of Trump and a genuine fear of his “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) agenda.
Sadly, for Democrats, their options are limited by the presence of another unpopular politician, Vice President Kamala Harris, who has a low 39% approval rating. She is also not very respected by many Democratic Party insiders and possesses an extremely poor record of accomplishment.
For example, she was appointed the “Border Czar” by President Biden. Even though a record number of 5.8 million illegal immigrants have streamed into our country in the last 32 months, Harris has made only one visit to the border.
While Biden is the king of gaffes, Harris is the queen of “word salads.” Neither politician is connecting with the American people or generating fervent support.
If not Biden or Harris, what other options do Democrats have? Their bench is woefully weak. Michelle Obama does not seem to want the position, and California Governor Gavin Newsome said that if Biden does not run again, Harris is “naturally lined up” for the job.
Other potential candidates include the Governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer, and the Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg. Yet, none of these potential nominees are politically moderate or opposed to the Biden administration's radical left direction.
Only one Democratic Party presidential contender offers some diversity of views, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He has sparked interest from a collection of voters from across the political spectrum.
His beliefs on the COVID-19 vaccine, the border, the power of government agencies, and the war in Ukraine do not coincide with the powerful interests that control the Democratic Party, so he has no chance of winning the party’s nomination. His only chance to get any traction is a possible third-party candidacy, but that would ensure the re-election of Trump as President.
The Democratic Party woes are good news to President Trump, who continues to lead all his GOP challengers by huge margins. He will skip this week’s Republican Party presidential debate to speak to 500 United Auto Workers on strike.
After eight years as a candidate and President, Republicans know Donald Trump, so he does not need to debate and give exposure to his challengers. Despite his indictments, Trump is in an outstanding position politically. In contrast, Biden’s support is crumbling, and the Democrats are desperately searching for an alternative.
Jeff Crouere is a native New Orleanian, and his award-winning program, “Ringside Politics,” airs Saturdays from Noon until 1 p.m. CT nationally on Real America's Voice TV Network & AmericasVoice.News and weekdays from 7-11 a.m. CT on WGSO 990-AM & Wgso.com. He is a political columnist, the author of America's Last Chance and provides regular commentaries on the Jeff Crouere YouTube channel and on Crouere.net. For more information, email him at jcrouere@gmail.com