Things are looking up for Joe Biden. After a much-needed landslide victory in the South Carolina primary over the weekend, he picked up a number of endorsements, including from Sen. Amy Klobuchar and former Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Monday, both of whom dropped out of the race ahead of Super Tuesday, as well as from former Rep. Beto O’Rourke, former national security adviser and U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, and others.
"If we spend the next four months dividing our party and going at each other, we will spend the next four years watching Donald Trump tear apart this country," Klobuchar said at a campaign event for Biden on Monday.
"It is up to us, all of us, to put our country back together, to heal this country, and then build something even greater," she added.
While it’s certainly good news for Biden that his (relatively) moderate opponents dropped out as voters in 14 states head to the polls, strengthening his chances against Sen. Bernie Sanders, many have noted how curious it is that former President Obama’s endorsement is still missing.
If Obama was ever planning on endorsing Creep Joe... today is the day.
— Carpe Donktum?? (@CarpeDonktum) March 2, 2020
Feels like it should be breaking any minute.
If Biden doesn’t get that Obama endorsement now he might never get it...what with March Madness coming and all
— Sean Spicier (@sean_spicier) March 3, 2020
Ask yourself: Where is Obama's endorsement?
— Thomas Kemmett (@thomas_kemmett) March 3, 2020
Some reports said the recent string of endorsements were thanks to Obama.
The talk on the inside is that this is a deliberate play by Barack Obama. A sort of "soft endorsement," one that would enable him to play kind with a Sanders nominee later if he can't actively defeat it today.https://t.co/ZFza1i2wZg
— Calvin Trager (@ttrgr) March 3, 2020
Obama reportedly called Biden to offer his congratulations after the South Carolina primary, but according to CNN, he is not endorsing anyone yet, as it could "backfire."
A person close to Obama told CNN that the former president's view has not changed: He has no immediate plans to offer an endorsement of Biden -- or anyone -- as the nominating contest heads into Super Tuesday.
"We are skeptical that an endorsement coming from us could truly change the political winds right now," the person close to Obama told CNN. If Obama were to endorse Biden, the person said, there is "a very real chance it backfires."
But more importantly, Obama still thinks his most valuable role is to try and unify the party.
"He feels that he's singularly positioned to help unify the party at the end of this," the Obama confidant said. "And if he were try to put his thumb on the scale now, it would take away his ability to do so when it's most needed -- the general election."
The person added: "So he's prepared to play a vigorous role in coalescing the party around the nominee and working to defeat Trump, but weighing in now likely only divides things worse and weakens his standing for when the Party will need it most." (CNN)
Voters in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, and American Samoa head to the polls today. One-third of Democratic delegates are at stake.