Okay, Biden’s out. What now?

[solarbird]

I have no idea what’s about to happen now – and neither does anybody else, keep that in mind. But I do know a few things:

1. White people: I know that a LOT of adult and older Black people are going to be INCENSED about this, and it’ll be because of Kamala. This is because the Black people I talk to in this cohort say so, it’s not a hypothetical. They see this as being BECAUSE of WHITE REJECTION of KAMALA HARRIS. In short, that it is racist as fuck.

LISTEN to them, ACKNOWLEDGE their view, be fucking RESPECTFUL and take their opinions seriously because I do think it’s one of the reasons.

As I’m writing this, Biden endorsed Harris. You want to fix item one? WHITE PEOPLE, GET HER THE NOMINATION. FUCKING DO IT. SHUT UP, AND DO IT.

2. White people who didn’t want this: do what way too many Bernie people did not do, and GET OVER IT NOW. It’s done. None of us can afford to carry any grudges.
3. Bernie people: I have talked with so many Bernie people still carrying grudges, so same goes to you: GET OVER IT NOW. It’s DONE.
4. Everybody: Many of you will get someone you don’t want. I don’t care, I’ve never got someone I actually want, and you can’t afford to care either. The Democrats have just thrown away more advantages than you know and the work gets harder now, not easier.

Work your asses off to get whoever comes out of this elected, no matter what.

Goddamn, we really, really do not have room for any more self-inflicted wounds. Got that?

I hate the phrase “vote blue no matter who” but I got some fucken news: Vote blue, no matter who.

This time, it really, really, really matters.

Posted via Solarbird{y|z|yz}, Collected.

Comments

[rialian]

===Many of the Bernie folk in WV went to Trump, and never switched back. I am hoping that this does not happen this cycle. (Already had to talk down one Biden person regarding not voting....)

===Absolutely voting blue, no matter who.

[vostoklake]

Assuming the candidacy is wrapped up ASAP (*cough* Harris *cough*) this can only help. The election is no longer a referendum on whether Biden is old and feeble. It is now a referendum on whether Trump is old and impaired and insane and a fascist.

[tornir]

You've mentioned incumbent advantage; if Biden stepped down now and let Harris take the wheel, would 100 days be enough to transfer that to her?

[solarbird]

I desperately hope you are correct. I know you follow me other places; I have been working my ass off all day for Harris.

But here's the other side of that:

1) Lots of older whites, mostly men, who would and did vote for Biden and would consider it again absolutely will not do so now. Millennials and Zoomers absolutely have to step up.

Mind you, if they do so in big enough numbers, we could deliver a real curb-stomping.

Christ I hope they show up in numbers like that.

2) It doesn't matter that there's no legal basis for it, the Republicans will be challenging every ballot now, and will also do so again after the election with different arguments. Way too much coverage will be about that, rather than Mad God-Emperor Trump.

3) My big concern that I couldn't get a straight answer for in advance of this was whether Harris can keep the money. NPR today says she can, and I'm like okay. If that holds up, then we don't have that problem, but if it doesn't, we have a huge money problem.

4) We also have a big organisational problem. A lot of people think Biden loyalists weren't actually Biden loyalists, but they were. Harris is the best chance of keeping them. But if something happens to that plan... very few people appreciate how much work these campaigns are. Rebuilding would be a massive handicap and a brutal nightmare.

Which is why I am 100% all in on making her official now. And anybody who gets in the way of that needs to have their career over.

[solarbird]

I don't see her taking over as President; I think Biden will still be in the Oval Office. This frees her to campaign more than he could, which is important.

But also, effectively, no. She wasn't voted on for President and without that, incumbency doesn't matter as much. (See also Ford in 1976. Nobody considered him a proper incumbent, as far as I can tell.)

Regardless, Biden staying in the office should keep Trump from being able to claim the trappings of the office. And being a voted-in VP (vs. Ford who never faced a national vote) does make her kind of an incumbent, just not for the office she wants next. So maybe she'll get some of it.

It's gonna be a delicate balancing act, so we'll have to see how it plays out. I kinda suspect that as an issue it'll be swamped by the incoming flood of racism and misogyny. It's going to be a hard few months.

But then, it always was going to be.

[solarbird]

Good job on talking them down. Keep at it.

This is the big one I've been talking about for so many years. And we do win it. If we all put in the work.

[gorgeousgary]

According to one report I read this afternoon Harris has raised $81 million in the last 24 hours. Money may not be a problem?

[solarbird]

Well, like I said, once NPR reported yesterday that she could use Biden-Harris campaign money, that stopped being an issue. I trust NPR to accurate about things like this.

Yesterday's money haul doubled down on it not being an issue though, that's for sure.

[l33tminion]

If Biden resigned, there would also be the issue of the VP vacancy that the Republican House would not allow Harris to fill. That would be a huge distraction, and it would leave Mike Johnson next in line for the Presidency.

[solarbird]

Oooh, good point. I didn't consider that - I mean, given there's no chance in hell Biden's going to resign, I didn't bother permuting it out. But yeah, that's a very good point, and all but certainly an extra reason you've got MAGAts calling for him to do so.