Seven incumbent U.S. presidents declined to run for reelection. The most recent was Democrat Lyndon Johnson, who announced his stunning withdrawal in March 1968.
“I couldn’t have been more surprised if I had read my own death notice,” said then-Sen. Philip Hart, D-Mich.
Johnson’s pal, then-Rep. Wright Patman, D-Texas, called Johnson’s decision “the greatest shock I’ve ever had in politics. This is the Pearl Harbor of politics.”
Beaten down by the war he escalated in Vietnam, Johnson might have lost a bid for a second term. But few politicians surrender power of their own accord. By doing so, Johnson impressed his detractors, such as then-Sen. Frank Church, D-Idaho.
“He is making the supreme political sacrifice to further strengthen his search for peace,” Church said.
Critics of Democratic President Joe Biden wouldn’t cheer if he dropped his campaign for reelection. But many backers of Biden would be gratified if he quit.
They fear Biden will lose in November to the presumptive Republican nominee, Donald Trump. With a tiny voice and a miserable performance in last week’s televised presidential debate, Biden was all viewers could talk about. Trump, a convicted felon, must have enjoyed the spectacle.
A speedy withdrawal by Biden would be a service to his country, and I’m not taking a new position by saying so.
I wrote a column in December stating I hoped Biden would end his candidacy for reelection by Christmas Day. Here are a couple of excerpts: “At age 81, Biden this round doesn’t match up as well against Trump or Nikki Haley. Biden’s insistence on running for a second term might position Trump or Haley to flip two or three of the 10 swing states — just enough for a Republican to win the Electoral College.”
After Biden’s dismal showing in the debate, his prospects are much worse. Trump stands a solid chance of retaking the government he tried to overthrow unless Biden quits.
Democrats would have to scramble to field the right replacement, but all things are possible when a country is at stake.
The Democratic National Convention starts Aug. 19 in Chicago. If Biden steps aside, it would be the television event of the year, a brokered convention that might require three or four ballots to choose a nominee. Public interest in the Democrats would soar.
My favorites to replace Biden are Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan or Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey. I like them for many reasons, but one tops the list: Either Booker or Whitmer could win in November, despite a truncated campaign.
Whitmer, 52, leads a state Democrats must win to hold the White House. She’s quick, telegenic and capable of breaking the male stranglehold on the presidency.
Booker, 55, grew up in a small, safe suburb in Northern New Jersey. He played football at Stanford and became a Rhodes Scholar. Booker eventually settled in Newark, New Jersey’s most populous city, and won a seat on the city council.
His next move was a run for mayor of Newark against an entrenched incumbent, Sharpe James. In the weird world of Jersey politics, James doubled as a state senator.
The 2002 election between Booker and James was as rough as city politics can be. Booker lost, but he rebounded four years later to win the mayor’s office. James ended up in prison after being convicted of public corruption.
A high-voltage candidate, Booker would instigate higher turnout nationwide in a presidential election. Like Whitmer, he could win the Northeast, the industrial Midwest and the Pacific Coast. Booker would also give Democrats a chance in parts of the South, notably Georgia and North Carolina.
A certainty is many Democratic candidates would emerge if Biden bowed out.
Trump would prefer to run against Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts or Gov. Gavin Newsom of California. They are big names with certain political skills. But neither would be formidable in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. Trump won all three in 2016, critical to his victory over Hillary Clinton.
In modern campaigns, “tough” is the most overused word. Trump says he’s tough. So do flea-weight candidates on horseback. Competence is seldom mentioned, but it’s the quality necessary for efficiency, reducing the national debt and defeating Trump.
Biden’s natural instinct is to say he’s a tough guy who’s carrying on after a terrible performance. He shouldn’t.
Biden served his country well by ousting Trump in 2020. He can help again this year by going against the grain.
If he quits, America has a chance to win.
