Pick your poll. You want Biden? We’ve got a poll for that. You want Trump? We’ve got a poll for that. You want someone else? Sorry, no poll for that. As of now, slightly less than one year away from the 2024 presidential election, there’s just two realistic choices for the nation’s 47th President. And that terrifies me.
In just over 11 months, eligible Americans will begin voting for the man who will hold the nation’s most-important leadership position from January 20, 2025, until January 19, 2029—or longer. And that terrifies me.
One of the two likely candidates has openly declared his disregard for the laws, rules, procedures, democratic processes—and even the U.S. Constitution—that have guided this nation for nearly 250 years. Donald Trump has demonstrated that once elected to office, he has no intention of leaving. And that terrifies me.
Donald Trump has proven that no scandal—or series of scandals—can move his faithful followers to abandon him. And that terrifies me.
Good Reason to be Terrified
If you think my concerns are overblown, remember these facts:
· Dozens of people who served in key roles in the Trump administration have warned voters of the dangers of re-electing this man who so admires dictators.
· Trump suggested that Mark Milley, now-retired Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, should be executed for treason. Why? Apparently because Milley called his Chinese counterpart to assure him that—following the Jan. 6 insurrection—the U.S. was okay and that we had no plans to attack China.
· Trump has repeatedly threatened—in thinly-veiled terms—many of the prosecutors and judges serving in the trials and pending trials he is facing.
· Trump has stated that, if re-elected, he will use his justice department to go after his perceived enemies.
· Trump’s army of devoted followers see all the above dictatorial tendencies as cause for celebration rather than for concern.
And, as of now at least, the only person standing in the way of Donald Trump’s return to the White House is 81-year-old Joe Biden. Sure, Trump first has to win the Republican nomination. But the primaries are a mere formality. Trump will be the Republican nominee. Period. So, with some polls showing “Trump Beating Biden in 5 of 7 Swing States,” I say it’s time for Biden to step aside in favor of a Democratic candidate who has a better chance of saving the nation from Trump.
Joe Biden Must Step Aside
Joe Biden has done an admirable job of returning normalcy and decency to the nation following the four years of the Trump chaos. Biden deserves a second term. But there’s too great a chance that he could lose to Trump. For the good of the nation—and the entire world—Joe Biden needs to admit the truth: too many voters perceive him as being too old to serve a second term as president. Many have correctly pointed out that Biden is just three years older than Trump—and in better shape than the Big Mac Messiah—but that doesn’t matter. And here’s why it doesn’t matter: Many Democrats and independents truly are concerned about Joe Biden’s age and as a result might not vote for him. Meanwhile, MAGA folks would still vote for their guy even if he’d been rotting in the grave for years.
Democrats must field their strongest possible candidate. Nothing matters more than keeping Donald J. Trump out of the White House. If Joe Biden is the patriot many believe him to be, then he must pass the mantle to a younger, more-electable candidate.
A More Electable Democrat
Arizona’s third district Representative Ruben Gallego is, I believe, the ideal candidate to replace Biden. Consider his credentials:
· He’s a hard worker: “He supported his family throughout school by working as a janitor, a cook, and at a meat-packing plant.”
· He’s a Harvard grad.
· He’s an Iraq War combat veteran.
· He’s a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
At 44 years old, Gallego has experienced enough of life to have properly aligned priorities as well as a deep appreciation of the USA as a singularly exceptional nation. Additionally, no one is going to call him too old for the office; if elected, he’d be just 45 when taking office. Still, that’s two years older than JFK was when he took office as the nation’s first Catholic President.
In recent years, more and more Latinos have been moving toward the right politically. A Gallego candidacy could counter that trend. The prospect of electing the nation’s first Latino President could—likely would—bring out Latino voters as never before, much like Barrack Obama’s candidacy enthused Black voters.
Gallego has proven his electability, having won 74 percent of his district’s votes in his first congressional campaign and never dropping below 70 percent in any subsequent congressional election. And polls show him leading all the declared candidates for Arizona’s U.S. senate seat currently held by independent Krysten Sinema.
Obviously, if Gallego were to run for President, he’d have to drop out of the senate race, which might leave an opening for the bonkers MAGA candidate Kari Lake. But, more likely, Gallego’s Arizona popularity would help pull a new Democratic senate candidate to victory in this formerly solid-red state. It also almost certainly would guarantee a Trump loss in this key swing state.
Ruben Gallego is, I believe, the perfect candidate to keep Donald Trump from gaining back the presidency, which he has openly stated he would use to exact revenge on his perceived enemies and to put an end to our nation’s long-cherished democratic form of government.
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