I feel the need to both share and publicly appreciate a recent endorsement of Joe Biden for President. The Lincoln Project, founded by Reed Galen and George Conway, published their endorsement of Biden in The Washington Post a couple of days ago. It is a beautifully written piece. It is simple and straightforward, presenting a compelling argument for the former Vice President. It talks about human decency, competency, and experience. It talks about a life shaped by heartache, a life that could have gone in a very, very different direction—that it didn’t, the authors credit to Biden’s perseverance and strength of character, both qualities the country, and the world, need now.
We humans are at a perilous juncture today. The United State of America doesn’t seem like the sure thing I’d grown up thinking it would always be, and as a result, we and the rest of the world are in danger. I don’t mean to sound apocalyptic, it’s not like that. It’s just that humanity periodically goes through very dark times, and I believe that those times come when strong leaders fall and great empires crumble. And for all of President Trump’s posturing and bluster, he is not a strong leader, and it feels like we may be about to crumble.
For about 100 years, the United States has led the world—through difficult times and into promising times. The last great struggle we faced, one that endangered great portions of the globe, was one of war and economic depression from WWI to WWII. While the 30 years this period lasted seems like a long time to most of us, historically speaking, it was a flash. Had we not been led by great governments and leaders in England and the United States, had Churchill not held the reins when he did, had FDR not raised American spirits and sent munitions and then men, had Donald Trump been president instead…well, that flash of 30 years may have turned into another Dark Age. Thanks to great leaders and great institutions, it didn’t. I believe that we are at another such crossroads today. I believe that what we, here in the United States, decide to do this November, could put the world on a trajectory either toward truly long-term tragedy or toward daylight.
It took brave, bold, and selfless leadership in the 1930’s and 40’s to ward off economic ruin and political terror. Today, we need competence, empathy, character, and grounded leadership to get back on our feet and then to do better than we were doing before. Galen, Conway, Schmidt, Wilson, Horn, Weaver, Madrid, and Steslow exhibit these qualities when they not only place country above party, but choose to value our country’s long-term survival over shorter-term policy choices. Some of them have left the Republican party, all of them have consistently spoken out against President Trump’s narcissism, self-aggrandizement, incompetence, and bald-faced manipulations of the press. All of them have spoken out against the majority of Republican leaders who have fallen in line with this president.
This is a group of lifelong Republicans and Conservatives who have based their careers on championing Republican issues and candidates. They, and others like Nicolle Wallace, Bill Kristol, Joe Scarborough, Charlie Sykes, Stuart Stevens, David Frum, Tara Setmayer, David Brooks, Michael Steele, Joe Walsh, Tom Nichols, Justin Amash, Tim Miller, Elise Jordan, Amanda Carpenter, George Will, Max Boot, Susan Del Percio, Jennifer Rubin, Sarah Longwell, Mike Murphy, Mark Salter, and Ana Navarro (apologies for those I missed) still believe in Republican tenets. They haven’t suddenly decided that raising taxes is the way to go or that the 2nd Amendment should be severely restrained or that big government is favorable to small government. They have not become Democrats, they still subscribe to an up-by-the-boot-straps ethos, but, this time, they are willing to look past policy differences to character. And what they see is that the candidate with character is the Democrat, former Vice President Joe Biden.
As a Democrat, I thank each and every one of them for doing this. It is not easy. When we come out of this, when we have a President Joe Biden rather than President Trump, it will be they and thousands (millions?) of Republican voters who are the real heroes. They will be our Churchills and Roosevelts for getting us over the rainbow and back home. And I look forward to the day when Democrats are again debating policy with the likes of Charlie Sykes and Nicolle Wallace and Steve Schmidt, a day that will only come if we elect Joe Biden this November.
Read the Lincoln Project’s endorsement of Biden here.