Thoughts on Joe Biden's Big Decision and What Comes Next

The President shook up the race for President by putting his country above his personal ambition

The last three weeks have been some of the most tumultuous in recent political history. It started with a debate that had seismic ramifications for the presidential campaign. Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt and chose his vice president. On Sunday — with only three weeks until the Democratic Convention, Biden made the historic decision to withdraw from the campaign and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.

We had been on the path to a Biden-Trump rematch for well over a year and now everything has changed.

Yesterday, in a bit of fortuitous timing, I wrote about what would happen if Biden stepped aside. I also recently wrote about what the polls tell us about how Harris might fare against Trump. Both of these pieces may be helpful guides for the coming days.

This is a fast-moving story. Here are some thoughts about what it all means and where we go from here.

1. Biden’s Patriotic Decision

By stepping back, Joe Biden did something incredibly rare for a politician. He put his personal ambition aside.

I have nothing but respect and admiration for the President. I grew up in Delaware. My first political memory is meeting Joe Biden at a county fair when I was in second grade. My first political job was as an intern in his Senate office during college. I ran into him at the grocery store, the drug store, and on the Amtrak back to Delaware when I went to school and worked in Washington, D.C. I was so proud and excited when Barack Obama picked Biden as his vice president. During our years in the White House together, he was also pleased to have another Delawarean on the team. Joe Biden has always been incredibly kind and decent to me and my family.

Biden’s decision is the embodiment of his message. He came out of retirement in 2020 to defeat Donald Trump and save democracy because that's what the country needed. Today, he once again put his country first — an act of true patriotism — the polar opposite of Donald Trump.

Joe Biden is a great President. As Barack Obama said, “A patriot of the highest order.” We owe him a debt of gratitude.

2. Kamala Harris is the Overwhelming Frontrunner for the Nomination

Immediately after announcing his decision, Biden endorsed Harris as the nominee. Per his statement:

My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.

The Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman Jim Clyburn, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Kelly, and a deluge others quickly followed Biden’s endorsement. Much of the party is coalescing around Harris. By the end of the day, Harris had the endorsement of more than 100 Democratic members of Congress, half the Senate caucus, and every major potential rival.

Despite his endorsement, Biden’s delegates are free to vote for anyone at the convention. Nothing stops another Democrat from throwing their hat in the ring and challenging Harris at the convention. This prospect is why party leaders like Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, and Barack Obama have not yet endorsed her. Harris would be the overwhelming favorite, but if there is a contest for the nomination, it must be legitimate and transparent. Having a process in place helps Harris because it denies the theory that party insiders handed her the nomination.

Joe Manchin is reportedly considering re-registering as Democrat and making a play for the nomination. Having said all that, I would be surprised if a Democrat of consequence decided to challenge Harris.

The nomination is hers for the taking.

3. Why Everyone is Endorsing Harris

A few weeks ago, many in the pro-Biden camp argued that Biden had to stay in because Kamala Harris couldn’t beat Trump. For years, the idea that she was a weak candidate was an article of faith in some corners of the Democratic Party. Today, she is on the cusp of ascending the nomination without a challenge.

What happened?

First, Harris is the heir apparent and obvious successor to Biden. Second, she is the only possible Democratic candidate vetted and tested on the national stage. Harris fared well in her debate against Pence in 2020. Third, she can inherit the Biden campaign organization and war chest. Another candidate would have to start from scratch. Finally, Harris’s 2020 primary campaign didn’t go well. There were some rough moments in public during the first year of the Administration. However, when most people weren’t paying attention, she became one of the best messengers in the party on the issues that will define this campaign — abortion, democracy, and the rule of law. Additionally, a prosecutor running against a convicted criminal appeals to the schadenfreude of the public. This ad from Harris’s primary campaign shows just how strong a contrast she could draw with Trump.

The last three weeks have been incredibly awkward for Harris. She handled them perfectly, without a single leak from her operation. It was very impressive and a sign of real political deftness.

4. The Trump Campaign is Freaking Out (For Good Reason)

This is the day the Trump campaign and the Republicans have feared since the debate. They responded to the news with histrionics and bad-faith arguments. They threatened to sue to keep Harris off the ballot (Marc Elias says they will fail).

Donald Trump’s campaign was built for one purpose and one purpose only: beating Joe Biden. Their strategy was to weaponize the long-held concerns about Biden’s age and frame the race as strong v. weak. The strategy was working before the debate. After the debate, Trump was cruising to victory.

Harris, at the top of the ticket, scrambles their entire approach. Now, Trump is the exceedingly old candidate without the stamina to mount a typical campaign. Trump is the one who misspeaks and mixes up names. The strategies and messages the Trump folks prepared for Biden are no longer operative.

To date, this campaign has focused on Biden’s weaknesses — his age, his misstatements, the division within his coalition. Trump only looked strong in comparison. That’s about to change.

Kamala Harris faces an uphill climb in introducing herself to the nation, but she gives Democrats a real chance in a very tough election. The Democratic coalition is more excited than it has been in a long time. TikTok is flooded with pro-Kamala content. Democrats raised over $50 million in the first eight hours after Biden’s announcement. There’s a lot of work to do, but I am fired up and ready to go.