Apparently we're entering crunch time in the Dump Biden saga. Biden, unfortunately, has caught COVID-19, taking him off the campaign trail for several days. That has created another lever for those who are trying to get rid of Biden to use against him. Apparently there are rumors "major donors" are now threatening to take their money away if he stays in, and as a result he is about to fold. Of course, I am getting these rumors 3rd- or 4th- or 5th- or 27th-hand, so I have no way to verify them or what Biden's actual thinking is at the moment. I'm just reacting to the flow of (potential) bullshit in my information streams.
Let me clear: I have thought Dump Biden has been a hit on Biden since day one. There is not an organic groundswell among the Democratic primary voters based on the 6/28 debate to change who they selected in 50+ primaries. This is a top-down, rich male-driven attack that does not have the country's best interest in mind,* blasted through a media that is owned by many of the same people but that also has its own parallel interests. It's a one-way bet for both groups - either they cripple Biden and Trump wins, or they get a shitty replacement and Trump wins, or they get the exact replacement they (and not the Democratic base) want and that person wins, and is beholden to them. Even Harris, if she survives this putsch and is the replacement candidate, may feel obligated to them (though I would like to think not), or at least very intimidated by what they just accomplished. No matter the outcome, rich males will get tax cuts and the media will get a controversial, click-bait-ready president. Everybody else will lose.
I very strongly prefer that Biden stays in. I believe he can beat Trump - or at least could have beaten Trump before the hit on him was ordered. Things have gotten murkier since the media blitz against Biden began, and the attempted assassination of Trump did not help. Biden may be irreparably damaged among low-info swing voters who don't know much but do respond to the general tone of media coverage. Of course, if the media decided to stop putting its thumb on one side of the scale and try the other one for a change, those swing voters would pick up different vibes. That won't happen, especially now. But it's also not clear to me that a replacement will suddenly surge in the polls, even with good vibes from the temporarily placated media. For better or worse, even if the replacement is Johnny Unbeatable, some segment of the Democratic coalition will be bitter about what has transpired, rendering ole' Johnny eminently beatable.
No matter how it occurs, or why, any replacement for Biden other than Harris is absolutely unacceptable. I will not accept "major donors" controlling the party in that way. Yes, it may play into their hands if I don't vote for president. And yes, I am a straight white male, albeit a poor one. But I believe in democracy, and even if the Democratic Party's selection process is flawed, it is still little-d democratic, and should be respected. If the Democratic Party won't stand for democracy within its own processes, what will it stand for at all?
So, we may be reaching an inflection point. Or not. I certainly don't know. Whatever happens, it's going to be jarring for someone.
* I have ideas about the composition of this group which are circumstantially strong but otherwise unsubstantiated, so I won't publish them.
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