The NOBILITY of Joe Biden

He’s going up.

In last night’s Democratic Convention Joe Biden transitioned into the record as a president who stepped beyond his own interest.  He looked at the horizon, and moved the nation onward, taking that goal as his first concern.

This article is a comment on character – the nobility of Joe Biden – rather than a narrative about a convention evening where he was thanked for his service.

His service has been impressive - scholars agree that he has been one of the best presidents in American history.  He led America from the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic to a best in the world recovery; he signed a $1 trillion American infrastructure law; and he reclaimed America's respect on the global stage.

Many of us have thought that Biden’s recent dismissal by former friends who no longer supported him was unjust and ungrateful. Happy as we are to see Kamala Harris blossom as a presidential candidate, some have regarded the jettisoning of Joe as an act of betrayal.  He had created achievements that no other leader had been able to do…and this is how they repaid him?

And for what: that they could be elected more easily themselves?  It hard not to look at the actions of the treasonous as selfish, shallow moves.

Let’s be clear: they did not and could not force Biden out.  He still had to power to fight on of he chose.  And he deserved another term.  I am convinced he would have flushed Trump down the tubes of Trump’s own Abortion agenda.

But Biden chose not to break his Party by pushing for it.

In last night’s speech at the Chicago Convention Centre, Biden made clear that he held no ill will towards those who rejected him, and urged full support for Kamala Harris.

We have to reflect on how hard it was for Biden to give that speech.  He had fully expected that he would be the one being cheered for a second term – yet he gave that up.

At some point, an element in his character overrode the powerful urge to try to stay in the position that he had fought so hard to attain.  That element – nobility – is lacking in all his attackers. 

He will be rewarded instead by history as having made a courageous decision that will boost America.

There are many fine writers who give an excellent summary of Biden’s career, challenges and accomplishments, like Robert Draper of the NY Times. 

Biden’s coming fame will encompass two major strides in American politics.  First, Biden found himself moving from being the VP to the first Black president, to the man who launched the (coming) first Black female president.

In this, he has been pivotal in ensuring the (coming) success of the first Woman President.

The character of Biden in making those choices is reflected in what President Obama said about the reason he originally chose Biden for his running mate and VP:

"The reason why I originally selected Joe Biden to be my vice president, the reason that I think he was one of the best vice presidents we've ever had, and the reason why I think he has been an outstanding president is because he has moral conviction and clarity… he's willing to listen to all sides in this debate and every other debate and try to see if we can find common ground.”

This is what drives American greatness: its vision has been global and its inclusion has – eventually – been big enough to override all social barriers.

The fight against that liberal tendency has not been easy: the Civil War, the KKK, the White mobs, the arrest of Japanese citizens during WW2, all are points of great disruption on the path.

But consider what has been accomplished by an incredible vision.

When the Founders put together the Declaration of Independence, they launched a revolution in more than one sense.  There was the fight against a King, of course, but there was also a call to American citizens to overlook local limitations and see humanity as something that could be universally lifted.   It’s easy today to mouth the words “all men are created equal,” but to put it on paper as a national aspiration is a stunningly new step. 

This is in America’s character – and Biden brought it out. 

He created the most diverse Cabinet in American history – reflecting the character of the nation today.

In his speech he noted that  “Nowhere in the world has a kid with a stutter and modest beginnings from Scranton Pennsylvania grow up to sit at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.

“America is a nation of possibilities.

“I am more optimistic now about our future than when I was a 29-year-old Senator.”

He carried that theme of ‘character is destiny’ on when he passed the torch: “It will be an honour to serve with Kamala and Tim; picking Kamala was the best decision in my whole career.”

America has been through a lot of pain, historically, to get to this point, and we are fortunate to have had a man at the helm who has been pivotal in making key changes.

He aided the success of Obama.

Twenty years ago, Obama made a stirring speech to a different Democratic convention.  He laid out a vision of progressive patriotism.  To a nation that was made and remade, by immigrants, a nation that has grown more diverse, and a nation that is increasingly rooted in global networks, Obama’s story symbolized the strength of American identity.

“I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents’ dreams live on in my precious daughters,” he said. “We gather to affirm the greatness of our nation, not because of the height of our skyscrapers or the power of our military or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over 200 years ago, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal [and] we are connected as one people.”

Obama was interrupted 33 times for applause; delegates shed tears at his words.

He highlighted that the commonalities among people drive a sense of optimism, not fear. America has been able to harness the energy of people from all countries.  This is what makes America incredible.

In Joe Biden, Obama found a humble and hard-working partner who could help make America thrive.  Someone who had the audacity to believe in a better America.

“What kind of country do we want to live in? … A country of freedom, compassion, and rule of law or a country of chaos, fear, and hate?”

As VP, he helped Obama secure passage of the Affordable Care Act, oversee the then-largest economic recovery plan in history, and strengthen American leadership on the world stage. The Obama-Biden team oversaw a major recovery from recession, and led a turn-around in economic vitality.

I’ll gloss over what Biden did as President, because others will cover it thoroughly, but we should include the first over-the-counter birth control pills; stricter gun legislation, a push to transition to green energy, support for farmers as they convert to ‘climate smart’ farming, loosening regulations on marijuana, penalties for programs that trap college students in debt, a move to bring microchip production back to America, new alliances with Japan and Korea to counter China’s regional moves, invigorating medical research, supporting unions, fixing infrastructure, supporting Ukraine, and helping to expand European strength with a renewal of NATO power and membership.

Suffice it to say that he broke Obama’s record for the most votes ever cast for a president: 81-million.

During Biden’s speech he was interrupted several dozen times by people chanting “We love you Joe”, which transitioned to “Thank you Joe!”

Biden was not shy about casting stones at his opponent’s lack of character.  “There is no place for political violence in America. You can’t say you believe in democracy only if you win.”

He pointed out that Trump’s proposed new $5-trillion tax cut for the wealthy in America would be a disaster, just like his last tax cut.  By raising taxes instead on the top 1,000 people, he added, America could raise $500-billion in the coming years.

Biden is determined to ensure an America “where hate has no safe haven.”

Denying Trump’s claim that America was a “failing nation”, Biden stated that “our best days are before us; the winter has passed; the summer is here.

“We have created 60 million new jobs, wages are up, the stock market is up; capping pharma costs will save our country $160-billion over the next decade…The infrastructure where Trump never built a damn thing is now under construction…we passed the most significant climate law in the history of mankind, for $160-billion in changes.”

Biden was the first President to walk a picket line: “where unions do well, we all do well”.

There will be a difference in November, he advised, between having a prosecutor (Harris) in office, and having a felon. His audience was delighted.

And Trump will find out the power of Women in 2024.

He also burned another loser: Putin.  “He thought he could take Ukraine in three days.  It’s been three years and he’s still fighting.”

With Biden’s help – unlike Trump’s disastrous policies – Europe is pulling together.  Not since Napoleon has Europe not looked over its shoulder with fear at Russia.

Now, while the spotlight swings from Biden to Harris, let’s never forget who put Harris into this position in the first place.

Biden picked Harris carefully, going through a checklist:

·        As a woman, she supported a national Reproductive Rights platform;

·        She had experience, and had been vetted on the national stage due to her own 2020 bid;

·        She had working in government, both as California attorney general and as a US senator;

·        She represented a younger generation of leader, which was a major factor in his choice;

·        She was an historic pick as the first Black and South Asian American woman on a ticket;

·        She’s from California, a major source of both Democratic votes and Democratic donors; and

·        She was an outspoken voice on race – critical to harmony in America.

Yes, Harris is a wonderful candidate for president and she works hard…but Biden is responsible for putting that person into the spotlight.

And he himself stepped out of the spotlight to allow her to shine.

On the evening of July 24^th Biden left the Oval Office and he and his family went out to the Rose Garden.  To his staff – some of whom had been crying earlier – he told his audience of media and well-wishers that he was resigning and said “I’m so damned proud to be a part of you. I really mean that.”

Sounding confident, he told his staff members to focus on the work that needed to be finished in the coming six months, to extend drug benefits and force the wealthy to pay more taxes.

Then he laid it out: “We can start to help lay the groundwork for Kamala…“Let’s elect Kamala!”

Joe Biden has been a stellar event all on his own. 

He was launch-pad for Obama.

He rode the rocket of achievement in his own presidency.

He put a new star into the skies with his choice of and promotion of Kamala Harris.

First Black presidency, first Woman president. 

And a remarkable level of achievement as a bridge between them.

I hope that much will be said in coming years about the nobility of the man who stepped back instead of fighting blindly on.  Can you imagine Trump stepping aside, in the nation’s interest?

I also would like to know how Biden was able to make that move; how he was able to step aside.

This is an extraordinary strength of character – the character to make history.

He is now watching from the sidelines as Kamala revels in support that he never enjoyed.  When Harris introduced her VP candidate Tim Walz at an enormous and emotional event in Philadelphia, neither of them mentioned Biden at all.

But Biden never showed resentment.  He had been raised by his father to reject self-pity.  He had a burning sense of social justice, and was arrested once in South Africa for trying to meet anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.  Yet he was never a proud man.  When he was working for Obama to turn around the recession in 2008, he helped secure the three crucial Republican votes from Senators Arlen Specter, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins.  He knew the people, was respected and could work with the members.  They respected the man whose promise was “My word as a Biden”.

Bernie Sanders once observed that “Biden is a very relationship-oriented person.”

Biden came to view Sanders as door to the future.  When Sanders visited the White House in early 2021, he told Biden that he would like to see a social-spending bill in the neighborhood of $5 trillion to $6 trillion. “Bernie,” Biden replied, “I want to go as big as we can possibly get.”

Biden was heading straight for the kind of social investment that makes a country strong.

In fact, one of the main reasons he resisted pressure to give up the presidency as that he had a career’s-worth of plans waiting to be enacted.  He did not want to give up.

However, in an increasingly visual world of cell-phones and screens, he was not able to keep his elderly appearance under wraps, the way Roosevelt hid his paralysis.

While the same flaws could be seen in Biden’s opponent, the Trump media ignored his lapses and Trump cultists did not search out conflicting information. 

That’s the advantage to having a voter base that does not read.

Biden helped to restore the faith of longtime allies in the United States.  His experience gave him the ability to achieve things that no one thought he could achieve, regardless of age.  He saw what America could be like a decade from now.

But by the time he got to office, with his accumulated wisdom and relationships, he projected an image of ‘age’.

In the end, he demonstrated the difference between stepping aside for noble reasons, and quitting.

Joe Biden never quit.

Instead, he delivered on the promise of the Constitution, and renewed America.

Truly, a noble act.

It must have been very painful for Biden to deliver that speech.  It marked a decision of enormous self-sacrifice. In his last political act, he said “Vote for her.”

This has never happened in politics before; he gave up his presidency in the service of democracy.

And in retirement, Biden will be able watch the future that his four years as president helped to create. And Joe still has five more months of achievement before he goes, as he pointed out.

I trust that he will be honored in return, as he has honored us.

His closing words were “America I love you.”

The audience gave him a roaring, weeping, standing ovation for 3 minutes and 58 seconds.

Then he left, to work on his last months of service to his country.