The Democratic National Committee must follow the directions of Candidate Biden
If the presidential candidate resigns, who replaces him? If President Joe Biden decides to withdraw from the election for health reasons The rules of theDemocratic Party are pretty clear: “The members of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) choose the new nominee during a special session called by the chair. The DNC chair is required to consult with Democratic congressional leadership and the Democratic Governors Association, and then reports to DNC members who choose.”
Of course, this is the procedure, but there is no doubt that a choice that would disregard the current vice president Kamala Harris, part of the current ticket, would be risky and perhaps hardly acceptable to those who voted for her in the Democratic primaries. Because let’s not forget, in the primaries people also vote for the VP candidate: If the other candidates did not have the approval and some did not show up, it is not clear why they should be chosen.
Unfortunately, there are no precedents to be used in this area. Thomas Francis Eagleton, George McGovern’s vice presidential candidate, is perhaps the only case of a change of election ticket taking place. But Eagleton was chronically depressed.
A neurologist at Sapienza University, Ugo Cerletti and his assistant Lucio Bini were convinced that electroshock was the right therapy to treat depression. Eagleton, a vice presidential candidate with George McGovern, used it repeatedly. A detail that is perhaps not irrelevant, Eagleton “forgot” to tell that to McGovern when the presidential candidate chose his running mate. However, the possibility that an Acting President, should McGovern as President won and then had to step aside, would have to resort to electroshock to overcome his depression did not prevent McGovern from claiming after the revelation that Eagleton had voluntarily kept his usual depressive state under wraps and that he was 1000% behind Eagleton.
Public support from politicians should never exceed the 100% threshold which is already a good reference. When they go beyond 100%, dangers arise. And so it happened that the 1000% behind turned into the substitute Sargent Shriver, founder of the Peace Corp, who was not depressed and was also the husband of Eunice Kennedy, sister of John and Robert, which certainly helped.
Of course, Eagleton didn’t take it well and gave a right-wing journalist the following “confidential” information about McGovern. “The people don’t know McGovern is for amnesty for “Draft Dodgers”, abortion, and legalization of pot.” Confidential, of course, meant that an immediate publication was required, which came with the addition—that, “Once American voters—Catholic middle America, in particular—finds this out, he’s dead.”
That was 50 years ago. Issues have much changed in half a century? Not too much. It seems that Eagleton would be an excellent candidate for Donald Trump today, depression aside.
But with all due respect to the official formulas, it is clear that in the case of Biden’s voluntary resignation it should not be able to ignore his personal indications. And it is hard to believe that Biden is now changing his mind having himself chosen his replacement for President being Kamala — for reasons of quality repeatedly reiterated, and often demonstrated by the VP, with that discretion that American practice rightly demands of the Vice President.
It should therefore be remembered that if Biden were to give up the competition, he would not do so out of depression. Biden is not depressed at all, on the contrary, he is lucid, and only physically tired, and as such it is clear that he cannot leave the competitors the benefit of his physical fatigue. Harris is therefore the only real substitute. No doubt should exist, it’s just a matter of giving her all the cards to win: To choose the partner of the ticket herself and to work for three months as President.
Biden is a well-established, lucid and visionary statesman. That is why his resignation as President, in addition to being an extraordinary act of statesmanship, would be of great help to the clarity of the replacement. Kamala as President now is a “must”.