Former Vice-President Joe Biden’s entry into the 2020 Democrat presidential primaries has naturally infuriated progressive Democrats who want to take the party far-left. It has also enraged other Democrats running for the presidency as Biden’s massive support network, resources and high-level endorsements make him the automatic frontrunner in what is sure to be a nasty, confusing primary season.
What began as a confusing yet fairly civil competition for the Democrat presidential nomination is now turning into a name-calling, party-dividing mess that is sure to benefit current President Donald Trump when the 2020 presidential elections come around.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren was one of the first Democrats to take swings at the former vice-president. She accused him of siding with the credit card companies instead of the American people back in the day when Congress was debating the merits of a massive bankruptcy overhaul.
Sen. Bernie Sanders also took shots at Biden, noting that he accepts money from corporate lobbyists and corporations.
Other candidates have been more cautious in their criticism. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand referred to Biden’s odd behavior with women, stating that it was not OK and should be explained by the former vice-president. Rep. Seth Moulton told reporters that Joe Biden should apologize to Anita Hill for his treatment of her during Clarence Thomas’ Supreme Court confirmation hearings. While the former vice-president’s stance was not controversial in the least in his time, viewed in light of today’s #MeToo movement it is downright heretical.
Progressive organizations were even more scathing in their attacks on Biden. The Justice Democrats, which counts New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as a member, slammed the former vice-president for his support of the Iraq War and the Bankruptcy Reform Act. The organization also torched Biden for being against gay marriage at one point even though his position on the topic “evolved”.
Adam Green, the co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, tersely told journalists that this is not Joe Biden’s moment. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, always on the lookout for some moderate politician to bash, accused Biden of being out of touch with the Democrat Party.
So, how much merit do these attacks have? In reality — not much. In fact, Biden has more endorsements from Democratic members of Congress than any other Democrat politician in the presidential race right now. Democratic voters who don’t want a socialist president are rallying behind him — Biden raised more money in a single day than any other Democrat in the race.
Naturally, Joe Biden’s tendency to stick his foot in his mouth at the worst possible time hasn’t helped him much. He publicly stated that the current definition of “progressive” seems to be “socialist”. To make matters even worse, the DNC seems to be lining up behind the former vice-president by urging Democrat presidential candidates and Democrat organizations to “play nice” and “be positive”.
Unfortunately for the DNC, a large portion of the party has no intention of being nice to Joe Biden or any other Democrat who even flirts with moderation. The progressive wing of the party is becoming increasingly more vocal, while its demands become more outrageous by the day.
Senior DNC members, desperate to show potential voters a “united” Democrat party ready to take on President Trump, may very well consider using underhand tactics to force out other presidential contenders that don’t have a prayer of winning the 2020 presidential election. However, doing so could easily backfire as far-left organizations and voters fail to support a candidate that doesn’t endorse far-left platforms such as the Green New Deal, Medicare for all, college debt forgiveness and gun control.
~ Patriotic Freedom Fighter
