by Kathie Malley-Morrison
The Peace Advocate is running a series of opinion pieces about the 2024 presidential election and candidates. We encourage our members and supporters to submit their analyses. We welcome different points of view. –The Editors
Back in 2019, suggestions–such as those from David Smith in The Guardian–that Joe Biden should not run for President went unheeded. Despite his advanced age, accusations of womanizing, and consistently low levels of public approval, which have remained low throughout his presidency, Biden won the election and was sworn in amidst great and unforgettable violence in the Capitol.
By 2022, concerns about Biden running for President again in 2024 began emerging with growing intensity. Mark Leibovich of The Atlantic stated that Biden is already too old for the job. Chris Cillizza of CNN pointed out that 79% of Independents in 2022–and most other Americans–don’t want the President to run again. Allan Katz of Newsweek begged Biden to step down, convinced that if Biden runs, Trump will win. (Biden, taking a rather contrary view of the issue, announced that he was not sure he’d be running if Trump wasn’t trying to regain the Oval Office.) Jon Gabriel on CNN noted in April of this year that “we need a president offering fresh ideas, innovative solutions and the ability to anticipate near-term changes. Instead, Biden remains mired in the past”.
Further, to put the arguments for Biden’s withdrawal from the race over the top is his disastrous response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine. Bishara Bahbah noted in USA Today that Biden’s seemingly one-sided support of Israel could cost him the election in 2024 if he continues to run. Muslims from several swing states are already committing themselves to not vote Democrat if Biden is the candidate, and their numbers are likely to grow. The US veto of the UN Gaza Ceasefire Resolution on December 8, 2023 will be appropriately laid at Biden’s doorstop and is likely to finish off his Presidential ambitions.
President Biden, do the right thing—not just for your political candidacy and for the Democratic party but for the honor of the United States–withdraw your candidacy.
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Kathie Malley-Morrison is an Editor on the MAPA Newsletter Committee, and chairs MAPA’s “Twin Threats” (CANDU) Campaign.