Mariannette Miller-Meeks at the Iowa State Fair, Aug. 13, 2010. Photo Credit – Wikimedia Commons.
Public polling before the primary showed Democrat Christina Bohannan with an edge over Mariannette Miller-Meeks, within the margin of error. In her first match up with the Iowa City Democrat, Miller-Meeks won easily, 162,947 to 142,173. Erosion of her margin in polling indicates her growing unpopularity. Five Thirty Eight shows a June 30-July 4 poll of 375 likely voters, sponsored by the Bohannan campaign, with Miller-Meeks +1. While one shouldn’t make too much of a single poll, Bohannan appears to be closing the gap from the 2022 election.
What is going on? Miller-Meeks and her ill-advised takes on important issues are not that popular with both Republicans and No Party voters. She has to do something about that, and re-engineering her public-facing presence to appear less crazy may be it.
The main evidence of Miller-Meeks’ unpopularity was the June 4 Republican primary election. She defeated challenger David Pautsch 16,529 to 12,981 yet lost five counties, including Scott, the largest in the district. The other losses were in Clinton, Des Moines, Jones, and Washington Counties. This was not a good showing for an incumbent elected twice previously to office. Pautsch’s messaging was voters were “ticked off” with the Congress. “Principle is more important than power,” Pautsch said. By that he means right wing conservative principles. He got some traction among Republicans with that, painting Miller-Meeks as not right-wing enough.
Beginning June 25, Miller-Meeks began a new series of emails from a different official U.S. House address. I’ve been receiving her weekly newsletter from another address since October 2021, the year she was sworn in. Something different is going on. Why a new newsletter? I call it “normalization of the crazy.” Instead of presenting as the Trump-loving enthusiast she is, Miller-Meeks is posing as a “normal Congresswoman.” In her last new email, she wrote, “If you ever need assistance or have concerns that need addressing, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office. My team and I are here to help!” Everyone who believes that, stand on your head. Seldom has she responded to my notes to her office.
The first of the new emails was an invitation to a telephone town hall. The second promoted HR2, the Republican Secure the Border Act, and the SAVE Act “that requires states to obtain proof of citizenship – in person – when registering an individual to vote in a federal election.” The third was a brief summary of some of her main issues and an invitation to subscribe to her regular newsletter and connect on social media. All three messages promoted her regular newsletter. While these messages seem innocuous, and a Democrat holding her office might send something similar with different issues, her need for a more professional image is evident. She is trying too hard.
Miller-Meeks’ main issues, that recur in the messages I receive, are related to the U.S. border with Mexico and gas and oil production and pricing. She aligns with the top of the Republican ticket on these. Border control is bad, other countries are releasing Hannibal Lector-type mental illness patients into the U.S. Gasoline prices are too high and the solution is more exploration of oil and natural gas within the U.S. Trump seems crazy when he talks about these issues and Miller-Meeks is closely aligned with his policy. That may not get her reelected, hence the new image.
Vice President Joe Biden, May 2010 in Cedar Rapids. Photo by the author.
Biden bowed out of the presidential race this afternoon.
First things first. President Biden has COVID-19 and is under treatment for it. Kevin C. O’Connor, physician to the president, said in a press release today, “President Biden completed his eighth dose of PAXLOVID this morning. His symptoms have improved significantly. His pulse, blood pressure, respiratory rate and temperature remain absolutely normal. His oxygen saturation continues to be excellent on room air. His lungs remain clear… He continues to perform all of his presidential duties.”
Then this…
Like many, I resisted believing what people were telling me, that his announcement could happen this weekend. Now that it has, we pick up the pieces, nominate a new candidate for president and vice president, resolve the legal challenges Republicans are expected to mount, and move forward. We are ready.
This year thistles grew near the east side of the house. While planting the garden, I let them grow. Now came the time to remove them and start a brush pile.
After morning reading, writing, and cooking, I took an old sweatshirt from the closet and put it on. Over that I wore coveralls. Socks, garden shoes, a ball cap, and heavy leather gloves completed the ensemble. The idea was to prevent the thistles from puncturing my skin. For the most part that was accomplished. Ensemble is a pretty fancy word for my attire. We don’t do much stylin’ around here.
These jobs seldom take as long as I plan. The idea is to do them well and do them once. While I had the lopper out, I cut back low-hanging branches I’ve been dodging all year while mowing. I cut back a total of five trees. By the time I pile up all the brush, it will be a decent stack. After I add the brush stored in a fallow garden plot, and conditions are good, I’ll burn it. I put the brush pile over the stump of a locust tree, having heard the fire will remove the stump. We shall see.
The first tomatoes ripened. Orange cherry tomatoes as is usually the case. The garden is a bit of a mess yet it is producing like crazy. The refrigerator is at capacity and there is no shortage of ingredients to prepare a meal. This abundance is complicated by the fact my spouse has been helping her sister for three weeks. I’m doing my best to prepare meals without leftovers, although that is hard to do dining alone.
When J.D. Vance was selected as the Republican vice presidential candidate I pulled down my copy of Hillbilly Elegy and read it. It hasn’t been a priority until now. The ivy league lawyer who grew up in poverty has a story to tell, yet, he makes generalizations that don’t ring true. I’ve known more than a few people, mostly family or kin, who are poor and live in Appalachia. To a person, the word hillbilly was never used to describe themselves. From there the book went downhill as having any broader application than his personal life. Vance’s story is engaging, yet it seems written to support his conservative point of view. When I went to Goodreads to declare I finished the book, the software wouldn’t let me rate the book. I got a message that said,
Do you suppose people are dunking on Vance now that he is running for high office?
Each summer I make iced tea a couple of times. I heat up the water and brew three black tea bags in a teapot purchased for our child’s long ago school project. I buy the cheapest black tea available and it serves. I drink it over ice, no sugar. It is one of the pleasures of summer. On a Saturday afternoon, there is little else more satisfying to a septuagenarian pensioner.
The Iowa school voucher program, enacted into law by Republicans, is going to be expensive. Private schools are ramping up to use the newly arriving funds.
Last Saturday, I attended a high school class reunion in Davenport where a group of classmates participated in a tour of our old school building led by Andy Craig, President of Scott County Catholic Schools. A classmate reported Craig was dealing with the influx of money from the new school voucher program into the county’s five Catholic Schools. Enrollment at the high school declined by more than half since I graduated in 1970. Plainly, though, they survived the 54 years since then without the state’s largess.
On May 3, House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst addressed the expense of school vouchers on Iowa Press:
O. Kay Henderson: Will ESA policy in Iowa be like Obamacare policy at the federal government? It’s going to have been in place for several years by then. Will it be impossible, as Democrats argue, to repeal it?
Konfrst: It’s a great question. I think that frankly school vouchers are unsustainable, so we will have no choice but to address how much money is going to school vouchers. Right now, it’s an unlimited appropriation and it comes off the top. So, before we fund public education and increase funding, we’re funding school vouchers. So, this year we know $180 million went to private schools and 60% of those families were already in private school, we’re just funding rich kids to go to private school with our tax dollars. And with an unlimited appropriation, we haven’t even gotten to the point where every Iowan is even eligible yet. That’s next year. So, once we start seeing that, if the dollars start going up so much, we’re going to have to roll back those costs because it’s simply not sustainable from a budget standpoint.
Henderson: Several years ago, when a former state legislator named Walt Rogers initially proposed that, the estimate was that it would cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 million. Is that the current estimate?
Konfrst: $300 million has been the first two years of this program. And, again, we’re not even to the point where the income limits have been taken off. So, we are, we’re going to see hundreds of millions of dollars spent on this, a billion dollars over five years is not unreasonable. And in a state like Iowa, that is simply not sustainable, especially when we remember that that money is coming, that money could be going to public schools to make it better for everyone. 54% of the vouchers so far have gone to 10 counties. So, how is this helping rural Iowa? But the budget for public education has been reduced statewide. So, it’s simply not a fair system. Iowans know that. That’s why they don’t like it. And it’s not sustainable.
Leader Konfrst was right then and the example of Arizona, released by ProPublica this week, shows how right she is.
Arizona, was the model for voucher programs across the country. It spent so much money paying private school tuition that it’s now facing hundreds of millions in budget cuts to critical state programs and projects. Among the projects facing budget cuts are water infrastructure projects, highway expansions and repairs, community colleges, and air conditioning in the state prison system. ProPublica called it a budget meltdown.
Spending hundreds of millions of dollars on vouchers to help kids who are already going to private school keep going to private school won’t just sink the budget, Lewis said. It’s funding that’s not going to the public schools, keeping them from becoming what they could and should be. (School Vouchers Were Supposed to Save Taxpayer Money. Instead They Blew a Massive Hole in Arizona’s Budget by Eli Hager, ProPublica July 16, 2024).
Iowa is not Arizona insofar as we have a budget surplus to be used in case of emergency. However, one expects the emergency upon which it will be spent is the desire of wealthy Iowans for more tax cuts. I believe that bill is coming next year.
Just as my high school managed through declining enrollment and inadequate funding over 50 years, Iowa families will manage through the state’s intentional defunding of public education. What choice do we have? Well, we do have a choice: work to elect more Democrats to the Iowa Senate and House. Here’s a link to some ideas on how to do that. I would point out the governor is up for re-election in 2026. Check out the full article at ProPublica.
Will outdoors enthusiasts rise up to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness? They already did.
In 2023, the Biden administration took action to protect the most popular American wilderness area from sulfide ore copper mining and its pollution of the Boundary Waters.
Responding to concerns regarding the potential impacts of mining on the area’s watershed, fish and wildlife, Tribal and treaty rights, and robust recreation economy, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland signed Public Land Order 7917 withdrawing approximately 225,504 acres in the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota from disposition under the United States mineral and geothermal leasing laws for a 20-year period, subject to valid existing rights. This action will help protect the Rainy River watershed, including the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the 1854 Ceded Territory of the Chippewa Bands, from the potential adverse impacts of new mineral and geothermal exploration and development. (Biden-Harris Administration Protects Boundary Waters Area Watershed, January 26, 2023).
If Republicans regain power in the White House, expect them to work to undo these protections.
Annual trips to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are legendary among my friends. One person has made the trip from Iowa three times a year for the last 48 years. They are well aware of mining interests, and understand the risks to the pristine wilderness area of another Republican becoming president.
What makes this different is most of the attention from the wealthy, libertarian puppet masters of the Republican Party is directed toward oil and gas exploration and development. Only recently has the value of copper has gone up as this 45-year pricing chart from Macrotrends shows. Mining interests already have their sights set on copper in the Boundary Waters and its watershed.
Chart from Macrotrends with price per pound over 45 years
The best way to protect the Boundary Waters, at least short term, is to reelect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in November. Every outdoors enthusiast should be aware of what’s at stake.
Following are links to additional reading on this issue
This week Republicans gather in Wisconsin for their National Convention. On Monday, Iowa’s own Jeff Kaufmann nominated the convicted criminal for president. Readers may ask, “Why would I care about that?” Here are things you could do instead of engaging in the RNC clown show:
Get ready to vote. This is easy. Go to https://iwillvote.com and check to see if you are registered to vote. Then register if you are not or if your information changed.
Educate yourself. Learn about the Iowa Democratic Party at https://iowademocrats.org/. In particular, go to the about page and learn who is in party leadership, who represents us on the Democratic National Committee and on the State Central Committee. There is also information about the various constituency caucuses. The IDP constitution, party platform, by-laws and other party documents are linked here. The state party maintains an events calendar here. A number of events are held on Zoom, so you can participate from where you are. Mid summer is a perfect time to get acquainted with the IDP.
Contact candidates for state house and state senate in your district. More than anything, we Democrats need to pick up seats in both chambers of the legislature. Helping your Iowa House or State Senate candidate is as grassroots as it gets. They can use a helping hand. The IDP website has a list of candidates here. You may need to work to find your candidates, but getting involved with a candidate at the district level can be rewarding.
Engage with your county Democratic Party. The level of engagement among county parties varies throughout the state. While Republicans are bloviating from a podium in Wisconsin, look up your county party and get involved. The IDP website has a list of the county party chairs here. Contact the chair and I’m confident they can plug you into their activities as a volunteer.
Talk to friends and neighbors about voting. Ask people in your social circle (as differentiated from social media) to make sure they are registered to vote at https://iwillvote.com. Same goes for family members. It is unlikely a hard sell will work with friends and family. Just take the initiative and start a conversation about any topic you usually discuss. I believe you will quickly find these discussions will go toward political topics and you will discover whether politics can be added to the list of topics discussed with that person. Democrats do more when they take the initiative in social situations. We need to listen to those closest to us.
Figure a way to stay current with the national scene. Whatever you do, don’t sit in front of a screen and consume national news. Find authors who break things down for you and if they have a newsletter or substack, subscribe. Two I recommend are Heather Cox Richardson’s Letters from an American on substack, and Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin, also on substack. There are literally thousands of newsletters, substacks, and podcasts. Find the authors to whom you relate, and subscribe. Take the initiative to become your own editor.
Long-form learning. What better time than when Republicans are bowing down to their leader for reading a good book. Check out my post, A Progressive Summer Reading Program here for some recommendations.
Our corporate media will be super focused on the Republicans. A good defense to this is to have an alternative plan like the one in this post.
Grade school classmates attending their high school class reunion on July 13, 2024
When there is a high school class reunion after 54 years, one never knows if there will be another. In discussions with classmates, we debated whether we should make up for the 50th class reunion lost in the coronavirus pandemic at the 55-year mark. A majority said we should do it now. There was a sense that some classmates would not make it a 55th year.
There were 258 photos of seniors in our high school class yearbook. Of those, 41 we know have died. We found about 70 willing to attend a reunion. With significant others, our numbers at the golf course pavilion in Bettendorf were about 100. There was plenty of food and a cash bar. One classmate put together an audio-visual presentation that included a speech from the former class president, and an in memoriam slide show with photos of our deceased classmates where available.
The topics we discussed were non-controversial. Noticeable was a lack of discussion about health. The survivors who made it looked young to me, like they had a lot of living yet to do. A couple used canes, and one had a walker. Unlike at the 2010 reunion, no one looked to be on the edge of mortality.
I didn’t hear any discussion of politics. When word of former President Trump’s injury during a shooting reached us, people talked about it in whispers while not knowing if reports were accurate. This is a cohort who experienced John F. Kennedy’s assassination together, in real time. By 1981, when a shooter attempted to kill Ronald Reagan, we had gone our separate ways.
Interest in golf and pickle ball was scant. A group walked the new I-74 Bridge Bike and Pedestrian Path. About a dozen toured the high school. Attendance at the high school shrunk by about half since we graduated. Mainly we sought ways to do things outside the scheduled events. Those who don’t remain in the Quad Cities infrequently return. Each of us has different memories of high school. I took time while there to visit my parents and maternal grandmother’s graves.
It was impossible to talk to everyone. I retain good memory of my high school years. A couple of times, when I mentioned some specific interaction, the other person who was there did not recall it. In a way the reunion was a test in the limits of shared memory. I suppose people live in a moment forged by life’s experiences where other experiences besides high school are most important. I was not very social in high school, so it was surprising the two dates I had both recalled and mentioned them. One can’t make too much of that.
As the glow of the warm July evening fades, I’m already on to what is next. I am just thankful for some time together with people I’ve known for so long.
You will know the Republican effort to control our behavior has reached you when at a meeting someone says, “Can we not talk about politics?” My answer to such suppression of free will is usually “I don’t think that is possible.”
Politics is the lifeblood of much of society. The effort to suppress its discussion is distinctly Republican. They would pretend we should all be above such plebeian concerns. The last thing they want is for Iowans to discuss how we can improve our collective lives through better politics. The Republican way is they want to be the boss of us and just tell us what we should do. You have feelings and thoughts? Well too bad!
My father’s side of the family came down from the mountains of Appalachia where every discussion included politics. I recall making phone calls into Southwestern Virginia supporting a friend who was running for lieutenant governor. Not only did folks take my call, they wanted to ask who else I was supporting and cut some kind of deal: if they would vote for my guy, would I vote for theirs? Even though I was calling from Iowa, these folks I did not know seemed like family and if things go further south in Iowa, I could see moving there. Don’t be talking politics in group meetings here, though.
I forget what I even said. It was something about working to replace my Republican state senator and representative in the Iowa legislature. Apparently, I crossed a line. I had known everyone on the video call for more than 50 years. It never occurred to me discussion of politics was taboo, nor should it be in normal society. I remember wearing my Elizabeth Warren for president t-shirt on one of the calls. It was not intended although it was easy to see who was like-minded.
I was on the board of a local non-profit supporting the elderly. People would help out and we were glad for the help. Some made it very clear they didn’t want to get into discussions about politics as they knew some of us were Democrats who often wrote letters to the editor to the newspaper. We were able to do some good things with that group and we didn’t really suffer by holding off on political talk. I mean, have you been on social media lately? Who needs meaningless political chatter when there is actual work to be done?
What really sticks in my craw is when Governor Reynolds talks about policies that result in telling us how to do things. The recent six-week abortion ban serves as an example. Iowa women do not need the government involved with a discussion that should be between them and their doctor. State Auditor Rob Sand said recently in an email, the administration is just getting started in telling us how to live our lives:
That’s truly chilling, Paul.
Taking away reproductive freedom is bad enough, but they aren’t done yet.
They’re coming for fertility treatments, surrogacy, and contraception next.
If these partisans cared at all about their duty to serve the people of Iowa, they wouldn’t be pushing this dangerous agenda, because more than 60% of Iowans support reproductive rights.
But nope, they’re putting their own stakeholders and partisan agendas ahead of the people, which is a cardinal sin in public service. (Email from Rob Sand, July 8, 2024).
I doubt any of them, Kim Reynolds, Brenna Bird and their ilk will admit publicly they are sinners, yet here we are. The troubling aspect of this is their culture penetrates almost everything we do in public or with others. It begins with the simple request, “Can we not talk about politics?” My point is recognize it for what it is: Republicans trying to tell us how to live. Then, just say no, there is another way.
Following is a fund raising email from Biden-Harris Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon that briefly explains the campaign strategy for a path to 270 electoral votes. Not only does Joe Biden say he will win against Donald Trump, he has a plan to do so.
MEMORANDUM
FROM: Jen O’Malley Dillon, Campaign Chair DATE: July 11, 2024 RE: The Path Ahead
Jen O’Malley Dillon here, Campaign Chair on Team Biden-Harris. In the wake of last month’s debate, many of you have asked for an update on the path ahead and what we need to do to work together to defeat Donald Trump.
Going into the debate, our campaign was clear-eyed about the five things we needed to do to win this race:
Showing the strength of the President’s record of accomplishment, leadership, and support.
Going on the offense against Trump to draw contrast and show how dangerous another term would be.
Maintaining multiple pathways to 270 electoral votes, with a focus on the Blue Wall states.
Staying laser-focused on our coalition of voters and double-down on our grassroots support.
Driving a vision and ambitious agenda for the future.
Those imperatives remain true. What has changed following the debate is the urgency and discipline with which we need to pursue them. We believe if we follow the roadmap below, we will win.
If you want to learn more about how we are going to win and defeat Donald Trump, please read on below.
Where the Race Stands
While there is no question there is increased anxiety following the debate, we are not seeing this translate into a drastic shift in vote share. In fact, this morning, a new ABC/Ipsos poll showed a tied race with no change since April.
Our internal data and public polling show the same thing: This remains a margin-of-error race in key battleground states.
The movement we have seen, while real, is not a sea-change in the state of the race. While some of this movement was from undecided voters to Trump, much of it was driven by voters who have always been our core persuasion targets. Our post-debate net favorability is 20 percentage points higher than Trump’s among these voters based on internal polling. That said, we believe we have a very real path to consolidating their support.
Most importantly, we maintain multiple pathways to 270 electoral votes. Right now, winning the Blue Wall states — Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania — is the clearest pathway to that aim, but we also believe that the sunbelt states are not out of reach. The consensus across internal and public polling is that these states largely remain within the margin-of-error.
In addition to what we believe is a clear pathway ahead for us, there is also no indication that other Democratic candidates would outperform the President against Trump. Hypothetical polling of alternative nominees will always be unreliable, and surveys do not take into account the negative media environment that any Democratic nominee will encounter. The only Democratic candidate for whom this is already baked in is President Biden.
There is a long way to go between now and Election Day with considerable uncertainty, but the data shows we have a clear path to win. As we’ve always said, in today’s fragmented media environment, it will take time for our message to break through with trusted messengers and a strong ground game. That remains the case.
What Comes Next: Shoring Up the Biden-Harris Coalition
Our campaign remains laser-focused on battleground states and prioritizing outreach to the coalition that sent Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to the White House in 2020.
Last Friday, the President rallied over 1,000 fired-up supporters in Madison, Wisconsin. On Sunday, he campaigned across Pennsylvania, speaking at a church in Northwest Philly, stopping by a field office with Senator Fetterman to fire up volunteers, talking with hundreds of supporters, including union members and local Democrats, at an organizing event in Harrisburg, and grabbing coffee at a small business in Harrisburg with Governor Shapiro. And tomorrow, he’ll be in Detroit, Michigan.
The President has also spent the weeks following the debate rallying key constituencies that make up our winning coalition, meeting with Democratic governors and mayors from across the country, talking with key congressional leaders, meeting with labor leaders at the AFL-CIO yesterday, and more.
Next week, as Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans put their toxic extremism front and center at the Republican National Convention, the President will be on the road. On Monday, he will mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act in Austin, Texas, followed by a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada for events with the NAACP, UNIDOS, and local leaders.
A Campaign Designed to Win Close Elections
Our campaign has been designed to win a close election from the beginning.
Since last fall, we have been building deep relationships in communities across the battleground states to register, persuade, mobilize, and turn out voters when it matters most. Using both in-person events and activities as well as engaging voters online, we are having conversations with voters to cut through media silos and political narratives.
At the same time, we made early and ongoing investments in a staff presence across the battleground states. We are presently at over 1,200 coordinated staff across key states. They are building an army of tens of thousands of volunteers who will talk to millions of voters. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s operation relies almost exclusively on name ID and earned media, which presently Democrats are giving him in spades.
Framing the Election as a Choice
People are continuing to vote on the issues they care about — which are also the very issues we are winning on. Many voters turned on the debate having forgotten how much they dislike Donald Trump. They left the debate with a fresh reminder of how extreme and dangerous a second Trump term would be.
With that in mind, our path centers on reminding voters that this election will be a choice between Joe Biden, who is fighting to move our country forward and make life better for working people, and Donald Trump, who is focused on his own revenge and retribution with no concern for who he hurts.
In our polling, we have seen that when we remind voters what Trump has done and said — bragging about overturning Roe v. Wade, saying that there has to be some form of punishment for women who have an abortion, proposing cuts to Social Security and Medicare and tax cuts for big corporations — the voters who moved away from us after the debate came home. And, after hearing messaging about the stakes of the election, we move ahead of Trump in vote choice.
Our team has seized on this unique opportunity by amplifying Trump’s deeply unpopular agenda online and in ads. Project 2025 is now more frequently searched than Taylor Swift and the NFL, and President Biden himself weighed in, warning that Project 2025 “would give Trump limitless power over our daily lives and let him use the presidency to enact ‘revenge’ on his enemies, ban abortion nationwide and punish women who have an abortion, and gut the checks and balances that make America the greatest democracy in the world. It’s extreme and dangerous.”
When we reach our target voters with the President’s positive vision, they respond to it. This is not a simple task in this media environment, but it is a straightforward one. While we will aggressively attack the threat that Trump poses, we will simultaneously paint the picture of the America Joe Biden and Democrats nationwide are fighting for. One where we restore Roe, make billionaires pay their fair share in taxes, lower costs for American families, and protect our fundamental rights and freedoms.
During the 2022 midterms, Democrats were disciplined and banded together to expose Republicans up and down the ballot for their extremism on democracy and reproductive freedom, heading off a red wave the pundits said was inevitable. We have an opportunity to do that again over the next three and half months — and there is no better time than next week to start.
The Bottom Line
No one is denying that the debate was a setback. But the President and this team have made it through setbacks before. We are clear eyed about what we need to do to win. And we will win by moving forward, unified as a party.
We must focus on defeating Donald Trump every single day between now and Election Day. There’s never been a more important moment than right now to show that you are ready to defeat him once and for all. So, I have to ask:
When I signed up for the District and State conventions, the Iowa Democratic Party required me to sign off that I supported Joe Biden for president. I did and I’m guessing there was a similar process in enough states for him to win the nomination at the August convention no matter what. In fact, I know he has enough delegates to be nominated. Biden has not changed substantially since then, so what is the hullabaloo? It is a media-driven distraction.
In a recent Washington Post article, Leigh Ann Caldwell and Theodoric Meyer report progressives in the Congress continue to support Biden’s candidacy for reelection. Specifically, progressive bastions Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Greg Cesar (D-TX), and Ayanna Presley (D-MA) support the president’s reelection. U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) told the authors, “Biden is one of the ‘more progressive’ presidents since Franklin D. Roosevelt.”
It’s not just Sanders. “Despite their criticisms, many of them say Biden has been the most progressive president in generations. They point to his investment in infrastructure, his work to allow Medicare to negotiate the price of prescription drugs, an aggressive antitrust division at the Department of Justice and his willingness to appoint Lina Khan, a consumer advocate, to lead the Federal Trade Commission. They also champion acting labor secretary Julie Su, whom Biden has kept in place despite lacking the votes for Senate confirmation,” reported the Post. According to this progressive caucus, Biden is getting things done. He is also the president who will defend Social Security and Medicare from Republican wants and desires to fundamentally change the programs.
While these legislators differ with Biden’s approach in some areas, when they lobby for changes in policy, they feel Biden is listening, according to the Post. Biden’s staff is left-leaning, so when a member of the squad calls the White House, they find a sympathetic ear despite Biden’s history of being centrist in his politics. It is Biden who makes this positive reception of progressive ideas possible.
Who is publicly calling for the president to step aside? Senators who have had presidential aspirations themselves were the first: Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) and Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO). Part of this may have to do with state polling showing some weakness for Democrats in these malleable states. Christina Bohannan and Sarah Corkery, Iowa Democratic candidates for Congress, called for Biden to step aside July 11. I don’t see how this helps their campaigns in a state Trump is expected to win and deliver coat tails for their Republican opponents. Everyone should be concerned about the results of the November election. The idea that Biden can’t do the job falls flat because he IS ACTUALLY DOING THE JOB EVERY SINGLE DAY. Biden’s performance in many areas of his administration is what progressives seek in governance.
What we have here, and progressives in the Congress appear to see it, is an ability to jump on the post-debate bandwagon as journalists, donors, and Democratic operatives appear to be doing. The Congressional Progressive Caucus appears to be able to see through the noise and focus on what is important in the Congress: getting work done for the American people.
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