The excitement surrounding the primary campaign of former Vice Pres. Joe Biden appears to be fading fast as Democrats see credible fears that he’s nothing more than a relic who doesn’t stand a chance against President Donald J. Trump.
At the outset of his primary bid, accusations of inappropriate sexual behavior surfaced. What was particularly troubling is that the allegations about unwelcome touching, kissing and unseemly hair sniffing were leveled by members of Biden’s own party. Unlike the unsubstantiated allegations leveled against U.S. Supreme Court Judge Brett Kavanaugh, photos and video surfaced proving the lecherous touchings by Biden during the Obama years.
Despite Democrats claiming to support the #MeToo movement, party leaders ran to his defense against the women who came forward. It appeared Democrats were willing to make a deal with the devil in their efforts to retake the White House.
But as the Biden campaign moves forward, Democrats have grown increasingly disturbed by Biden’s history. His track record shows a man who embraced racism in the past and offers no apology. In fact, Biden touted the former segregationists he befriended in Congress as men who got things done. New Jersey Sen. Cory “Spartacus” Booker has repeatedly called on Biden to apologize for his racially insensitive remarks.
“Vice President Biden’s relationships with proud segregationists are not the model for how we make America a safer and more inclusive place for black people, and for everyone,” Booker reportedly said. “And frankly, I’m disappointed that he hasn’t issued an immediate apology for the pain his words are dredging up for many Americans. He should.”
“You don’t joke about calling black men ‘boys.’ Men like (Sen.) James O. Eastland used words like that, and the racist policies that accompanied them, to perpetuate white supremacy and strip black Americans of our very humanity,” Booker reportedly said.
The 76-year-old Biden served in the U.S. Senate from 1973 until becoming vice president under Obama. Although a Democrat, his tenure in the Senate includes numerous positions roundly rejected by the Democratic Party today. Although the party wants to move past its troubling, racist past, Biden has become an unsettling reminder of how Democrat policies harmed minorities and women.
“Unchanging, unapologetic, unaware @JoeBiden is a disaster waiting to happen. If you are serious about beating Trump, you need to be serious about beating Joe and giving us a serious progressive for the White House,” former Alaska Democrat Sen. Mike Gravel tweeted.
Sen. Gravel was a colleague of Biden’s until 1981, he frowned on his relationship with segregationists during the 1970s.
To say Biden is a relic who has not learned that many of the issues and legislation he supported inflicted unprecedented harms on low-income and particularly African-American families, is an understatement.
For example, the zero-tolerance crime laws he touted during the mid-1990s resulted in people serving excessively long and even life sentences. Many were not hardened criminals, just economically-challenged Americans who made a wrong decision.
President Trump recently signed prison reform legislation and pardoned people suffering unjust sentencing due to the Biden-supported laws. The 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act signed into law by disgraced ex-President Bill Clinton has been viewed by many political experts as an extension of Biden’s work.
The 1994 Act put mostly African-American offenders behind bars for life. Still, in Biden’s antiquated thinking, he refuses to apologize or admit the law was reactionary and unjust. That sends a message to African-American voters “Creepy” Joe Biden could, once again, harm their communities.
“I, on the other hand, was responsible for criminal justice reform, which had tremendous support, (and) helped fix the bad 1994 bill,” Pres. Trump reportedly tweeted. The president went on to say, “anyone associated” with the 1994 law “will not have a chance of being elected.”
And on Democrats primary abortion platform, Biden is living in the past as well. He was a supporter of the pro-life Hyde Amendment that blocked the use of federal funds for abortion procedures. The amendment, which Biden voted for, effectively empowered states to overturn Roe v Wade in practice.
Despite urging by prominent Democrat leaders and polls showing liberals are staunchly in favor of expanding abortion, Biden didn’t officially change his position until early June. That sends a clear message his thinking is not in tune with today’s Democratic Party. Even left-leaning political analysts watching the Biden campaign view him as a clumsy dinosaur.
“Seeing Biden on the stump often feels like watching an actor who can’t quite remember his lines. Even if you don’t support him, it’s hard not to feel anxious on his behalf,” New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg wrote. “Anyone convinced that Biden is the safe choice should go see him for themselves.”
