Feeling lukewarm about Biden? Here's what made me decide.

[thesquanderer]

I wanted Warren in 2016, and when she didn't run, I switched to Sanders. I wanted Warren in 2020, and when she dropped out, I switched to Biden. I thought that posting about why might help some other people on the fence feel better about supporting Biden.

1. I think Biden will be stronger against Trump in November.

This is one of the main reasons I supported Sanders last time... polls showed he was strongest against Trump. This time, that honor falls to Biden. Not by as much, but the advantage is there, both overall and in key swing states. Also, unlike Sanders, Biden will welcome (and therefore presumably take best advantage of) Bloomberg's support, and those resources will be of additional help in beating Trump. And while neither Joe nor Bernie are debate powerhouses (and I have doubts that Trump will debate anyone anyway), if there is to be a debate, I think Joe will be stronger than Bernie. I think he comes across as more well versed on a wider variety of issues, and has a more statesman like demeanor.

2. Oval office experience.

The Obama administration tried to hand Trump a well-oiled machine, but according to reports, the Trump people basically ignored the attempts their predecessors made to get them up to speed, and in fact, many long time (multi-administration) knowledgable people were let go. I do not expect the Trump administration to be of much help to the next incoming administration, nor will the new president be inheriting as many highly capable people, as Trump seems to have made a hobby out of appointing department heads whose goals are largely at odds with those departments. So a new Dem president next January is going to largely be on his own in creating a working administration from scratch, and he'll have to do it quickly. I think Biden's experience in the Obama WH makes him better equipped to do this.

3. Biden's policies have been moving in the right (left) direction.

As Joe said in the last debate, he and Bernie agree about most goals, even if differing in how to get there. And one of Bernie's counters has been that Joe is relatively new to supporting some of the ideas, that he doesn't have as consistent a long term record of being for these things... but really, the fact that you wanted free public college or higher minimum wage or whatever some number of years sooner has no value beyond brownie points. If the next president believes in Elizabeth Warren's bankruptcy reform plan (as Joe has endorsed), in the end, it really makes absolutely no difference whether he's only believed in it for a few months or if he's believed in it for 15 years, the end result will be exactly the same. If these are the policies he runs on and wins on, I am confident that these are the policies he will try to enact. Would I rather Biden had a stronger history on the death penalty, the Iraq war, abortion, etc.? Sure... but we're not electing him to implement his ideas of 20, 30, or 40 years ago. His platform today is perfectly acceptable, and I believe that if that's the Biden we elect, that's the Biden we will get.

4. Biden has the stronger foreign policy credentials.

After Trump has turned our foreign relations topsy turvy, righting that ship will be yet another major priority for the next president, and I think Biden has the experience and relationships to do this most quickly and most smoothly.

No, Biden is not perfect. But perfect isn't on the menu. There's a lot I like about Bernie Sanders, but in the end, I think Biden is our stronger candidate.