Democrats' summer of discontent turns into a summer of love for both Biden and Harris

While Donald Trump says he took a bullet for democracy — he didn’t, of course — it is actually President Joe Biden, in a metaphorical sense, who took a bullet that might have saved democracy.

I can’t imagine the grueling, almost ego-shattering decision that the president made by dropping out of the race. That is courage personified. It is also heartbreaking. He has an unmatched career in politics. To have it end with age — and nothing else — is to be human. Any person half his age would be worn out after four years as president. The fact that he served — remarkably well — in his late 70s and early 80s is a true testament to his endurance as well as his character.

He will go down in history as a hero for the Democratic Party and hopefully for trading in his career and a second term so that democracy in the United States could extend beyond 248 years. I should imagine that it will be a profound and tear-jerking moment when he addresses the Democratic National Convention next month in Chicago.

In a month’s time, if there are no hiccups — with the way things have been going, this might be asking a lot — our summer of discontent should turn into a summer of love. If Vice President Kamala Harris gets what is rightfully hers and ascends to the top of the ticket, we should see dynamic change ahead.

In fact, Sunday, July 21, 2024, will be forever known as the day that the Democratic Party woke up with something much more than a spring in its step.

First, with the most obvious, polls measuring the enthusiasm among Democratic voters should start to rise. At the beginning of the month, only 18 percent of Democrats and 7 percent of independents, according to one poll, were very enthusiastic about the election. The bottom line on each and every poll was that the candidates, both Trump and Biden, were too old, especially for the president.

Voters, since the beginning of the year and even before that, were asking for, then pleading, then screaming for another option — someone younger, with spirit that could galvanize the electorate. Someone different. Well, now that it has happened, watch how those numbers start to rise.

Democratic leaders, as far down as precinct captains, around the country have had a very hard time signing up volunteers for the all-important tasks of going door-to-door, signing up new voters, working the phone banks, passing out signs — all rudimentary tasks that are crucial to a grassroots campaign. With new life at the top of the ticket, I suspect there will be a mad dash to the local campaign offices by Democrats eager to do their part.

Since the debate, donors, mostly mega-donors, have threatened to withhold funds until President Biden stepped aside. This has had a cascading effect on donations, which ultimately means that down-ballot candidates would be left holding crumbs as opposed to fistfuls of cash. Mega-donor George Clooney spoke for many in his earth-shaking op-ed in The New York Times. Say what you want about Clooney, but to me, that was the most powerful public call for Biden to step aside. Donors and the electorate don’t consider Clooney a bad guy, so him coming forward allowed others, mainly donors, to say no dough until Joe goes.

In the next few weeks, Democratic contributions should skyrocket, not only from major donors but smaller donations from the party’s bread-and-butter voters. If small donor numbers soar in the next two weeks, which by every indication they will, that not only represents more money in the coffers — it’s all about the money — but it’s an indication of excitement for the candidate among voters.

Moreover, funds already raised for the Biden-Harris ticket will be at Harris’s disposal if she takes the president’s place as the Democratic nominee. If someone else is chosen other than Harris, it would be a death knell for the party not only in morale but for funds already raised. Another candidate would have to start all over, and at this juncture, there’s no way they would be able to come close to the juggernaut that Republicans and Donald Trump have raised.

Black and women voters will most likely lead the pack in coming forward to volunteer and sending in $5-$50 checks. These two groups make up the main part of the Democratic base, and Harris leading the ticket sends an electrical charge through them.

To be sure, Harris, if she does take the top spot, will come under brutal assault by Trump and the Republicans. They wanted Biden to stay in this race, particularly after his frightening debate performance. We are likely to see a flurry of racist and misogynist ads, memes and rhetoric around Harris as the Democratic Party standard-bearer. I fear for her and for what’s about to come.

However, the amount of hate headed toward Harris is likely to inspire even more support for Harris among the Democratic Party and most especially moderate Republicans and independents who think Trump is too corrupt and mean. If Harris remains poised and defiant, this former prosecutor should be able to respond shrewdly and accordingly.

There are many pluses for Harris, as well as pitfalls ahead, but the bottom line is that Trump and Republicans’ constant bashing of Biden and his age is off the table. That was what was sustaining Trump in the polls. Voters were sending a clear message through their responses. They wanted Biden off the ticket — they want Trump off too, but that’s not going to happen.

So we have the dichotomy of a 78-year-old, twice-impeached, convicted felon and sex offender and avowed racist, against a 59-year-old Black woman who is a former prosecutor. Oh, the irony. The age dilemma is now a Republican issue and not a Democratic problem. As long as Trump keeps giving unhinged and nonsensical two-hour rally speeches, suddenly we’ll be talking about his mental acuity and not Biden’s.

History will never forget what Joe Biden has done. And history will not forget the volatile summer of 2024. And hopefully, Kamala Harris can make us forget — finally — Donald Trump. Let’s hope she comes out of the next month’s convention in a blaze of glory, “When,” as American poet Sarah Helen Whitman wrote, “summer gathers up her robes of glory, And, like a dream, glides away.”

John Casey is a senior editor at The Advocate.

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