Let’s begin with the obvious: Donald Trump should never have been entrusted with the presidency. His entire life is a cautionary tale about how to fail upward and fool people with mediocre con artistry.
His recent actions shine a bright light on his incompetence and ridiculous behavior. Not only did he fail to protect the nation from COVID-19, but he couldn’t even protect himself. President Superspreader’s risky, arrogant violations of basic common sense during a pandemic (mask aversion, large groups and a lack of social distancing) led to his inevitable diagnosis. The White House quickly became a hot spot, with infections hitting his big-name enablers, military leaders, the press corps, housekeeping staff and even his own wife.
Instead of learning from his illness, Trump is still trying to nullify the Affordable Care Act and strip health insurance from millions of Americans. He left the hospital, pulled off his mask, gasped for breath, walked into our White House, exposed everyone in the vicinity to a deadly disease and tweeted to the world, “Don’t be afraid of Covid.” A few days later, he called his infection “a blessing from God.” God was unavailable for comment, as were the 1 million dead from COVID-19 worldwide, including more than 210,000 Americans.
This insane behavior distracted from other Trump insanity, including the first presidential debate when Trump engaged in multiple childish outbursts, lied about nearly everything, failed to commit to a peaceful transfer of power, and defaulted on condemning White Supremacists.
Trump mocked Biden for wearing a mask while spewing coronavirus with his own breath. He ghoulishly interrupted Biden talking about his dead son to attack his living son with obvious lies. Just days before that, Trump’s own son Eric was ordered to testify in the corruption probe of Trump’s businesses. Detailed reporting about Trump’s taxes showed that he’s not only a terrible businessman but also deeply in debt and possibly guilty of financial crime. And his fourth (fourth!) campaign manager was arrested (“only the best people!”).
In short, Trump is terrible. But let’s turn our attention to what should be obvious but isn’t: Joe Biden could make a fine president.
Sure, Biden is older than anyone elected president. He’s sometimes inarticulate. He held some questionable views decades ago. And his son’s position on a foreign oil board (nowhere near the scandal Trump lies about) was awkward. That’s all true.
But here’s the important question: So what? None of it compares with Trump’s multiple character flaws and monstrous behavior. It’s. Not. Even. Close.
Biden is steadfast, humane, hopeful and knowledgeable. His life story is of grief healed by love. While Trump resided in a literal tower making a trashy reality show while cheating on his taxes and wives, Biden lived a real life. And he gained more practical experience in public service than almost anyone in recent years. That matters. By contrast, Trump remains clueless about government.
As a senator, Biden sponsored or co-sponsored hundreds of bills that became law, including many that benefited women and children, our military and their families, law enforcement officers and people in under-represented groups. As vice president, he oversaw The Recovery Act, helping bring the economy back from the Bush crash. He advocated for de-escalating military actions and even voiced his support for marriage equality before President Obama did.
Trump loves to brag, but Biden’s contributions are real and consequential. And he learned from his primary rivals. Many of his extensive proposals reflect the consummate planner, Elizabeth Warren, and the ultimate champion of the people, Bernie Sanders.
Instead of watching Trump preen for press coverage, visit JoeBiden.com. You’ll find plans for combating COVID; promoting racial, gender, and LGBQ+ equity; opening schools safely; addressing climate change; making health care more accessible; strengthening Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; enacting fair taxation; spurring job growth; supporting essential workers, caregivers and teachers; enhancing education and training programs; rebuilding infrastructure; promoting clean energy; reducing gun violence; reforming immigration, campaign finance, and criminal justice; revitalizing rural America; and reestablishing American leadership in the world.
Are these plans perfect? Of course not. Are they better than the Trumpublican fantasy agenda? Absolutely.
Biden will surround himself with smart, dedicated, optimistic people. (Hello, Kamala!) And he won’t mind if they outshine him because Biden is a grown man, unlike Trump, who needs the presidency to buttress his flaccid ego and resuscitate his moribund brand.
A recent, almost unnoticed moment is emblematic of the difference between Biden and Trump: Some Trump supporters heckled Biden as he walked to an event. He veered in their direction, greeted them with smiles and elbow bumps and vowed to work for them as president. We know Trump lacks such grace and humanity.
Fear and hope are great motivators. Fear spurs us with immediate motivation, but hope sustains us with lasting aspiration. We’re perfectly reasonable to fear how Trump will attack basic American values if he gets a lame-duck term. If that fear propels us to the voting booth, then, please, let’s all vote for Biden with a shiver down our spines.
But let’s embrace hope as we tremble. Trump’s election was a self-inflicted wound that scarred our nation. But a Biden win could turn us toward the long-term self-healing we so desperately need.
John Sheirer is an author and teacher who lives in Florence. His book, “Positively Toward the Negative,” contains his Gazette columns from 2016-2020. Find him at JohnSheirer.com.