OPINION: Sometimes a wound needs a Band-Aid to heal
Joe Biden, while having over half a century of experience in politics, has never had the chance he currently has to be able to secure the presidency. What has happened in America that this, of all other times past, is his chance?
Our current political climate is, well, how do I put this… a mess. Not only has Covid-19 ravaged our country’s economy, health, and our day-to-day life, but political unrest is volatile as protests and riots become more and more prevalent as well. Many Americans believe that our democracy is slowly coming apart at the seams. Ever since the beginning, the Trump campaign and then administration has been a divisive entity, but probably never to the extent it has been over the last few months. Enter Joe Biden. No doubt that Joe Biden is not the next John F. Kennedy or Barack Obama, but he is the band-aid for our scraped and bruised country that we see in 2020.
The paving of his political road began nearly a half century ago, when he served as a Senator representing Delaware from 1972 to 2009, becoming the longest Delaware Senator to ever serve. He ran for president on the Democratic ticket in 1988, but his campaign derailed shortly after his campaign began as it came to light that he had plagiarized certain parts of his speech from British Labour Party Leader Neil Kinnock. Biden ran again in the 2008 election, but dropped out shortly after it began after he placed fifth in the Iowa Caucuses. He did, however, find his place on the big stage as vice president in 2008 in the Barack Obama administration, a seat he held until Donald Trump’s January 2017 inauguration. Then… things changed.
Donald Trump, a Republican who, while he technically ran for president in 2000, has only been a successful political figure since around 2015, announced his plans to run for the presidency on the Republican ticket when he descended his Trump Tower escalator. He won the election against Hillary Clinton, and, since that time, it’s been a controversial administration in new ways almost daily. While the economy has been steadily rising, as is one of Trump’s campaign promises, numerous controversies going anywhere from leaked footage of Trump using explicitly sexual language on a hot mic from 2005 to a scandal involving the incumbent Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, which led to his impeachment and subsequent acquittal by the Senate. Trump’s judgement has often been criticized, as he often speaks with seemingly no filter, which leads to offensive comments.
But 2020 is the true tell-all of the current administration. The country has been rocked by the Coronavirus, and our leader is not taking proper precautions while millions are infected and hundreds of thousands die, even after he, himself, contracted it and recovered. Racial injustice has come to a boiling point, and riots and protests are seemingly endless. The economy is struggling, and people are losing their jobs and their way of life. And with comments at his rallies and on Twitter such as, “You have to be calm. It’ll go away,” the president seemingly denies the effects of this pandemic.
This is where Joe Biden comes in. Joe is someone who has proven himself to be a competent and honest leader and steady figure through over half a decade in politics, including his 8-year stint as Vice President. While his career has received some backlash since he began running for office, his tone and demeanor have reflected a man far more responsible in leading our country, especially in our current political climate, than Donald Trump. He is able to appeal to many, from Conservatives to Liberals, and has a long track record of bridging those political divides.
He may not be the flashiest or most exciting solution to problems our nations has faced, but sometimes you just have to start the healing process. Don’t underestimate the importance of putting on a bandage to cover the wound. It’s wear the healing process begins, lest that wound becomes worse. I know, not exactly a ringing endorsement, but nonetheless, we need to bandage the wound, and Joe Biden is the best place to start.
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