Many said that Joe Biden was just a puppet candidate in 2020. His purpose, they insisted, was to play the role of a “compromise” candidate who could win over independents and help the Democrats oust President Trump. They believed that after an acceptable period of time (six months, a year, two years), he would resign for health reasons or the 26th Amendment would be invoked. Kamala Harris, a San Francisco liberal, would then ascend to the presidency—something she could never do on her merits.
Biden insists that he’s running again in 2024, so assuming his health stays roughly where it’s at now (which is still arguably not good) we can assume he’ll serve out a full term as long as he wants to. So how about the 25th Amendment?
Some Republicans are floating the idea of invoking the 25th Amendment to oust Biden. The fall of Afghanistan sure feels like a watershed moment that could spell the early demise of the Biden presidency. Reliably left-wing networks are covering the deteriorating situation, and while they’re trying to spread some of the blame around, Biden is getting plenty of criticism. Even those not willing to fully blame Biden cannot deny that this situation has happened on Biden’s watch, and he’ll be blamed for it by the public.
But is this the beginning of the end of the Biden presidency? I’m not so sure. Under certain circumstances, this seems like the ideal impetus for Biden to be pushed aside and for Kamala to ascend to the presidency, but there are a few problems.
First, Harris is incredibly unpopular. Her RealClearPolitics average favorable rating is 45.3 percent and her unfavorable rating is 48.3 percent. No other vice president has polled underwater at this stage. Mike Pence, Joe Biden, Dick Cheney, Al Gore, Dan Quayle, George H.W. Bush, and even Walter Mondale had higher ratings. If Joe Biden leaves before 2024, Kamala is the one the Democrats have to run. It’s bad enough that she’ll own the mistakes of the Biden administration. On Afghanistan, in particular, Harris tried to take credit for the decision to withdraw. Back in April, Harris personally confirmed to CNN’s Dana Bash that she was the last person in the room with Biden before the decision to withdraw was made. She can’t exactly distance herself from the situation unfolding in Afghanistan now any more than Joe Biden can.
Make no mistake, the Democrats don’t want to risk the next presidential election with Kamala Harris as their candidate.
But that is arguably a moot point. While many on both sides of the aisle are highly critical of Biden’s lack of leadership at the moment, he apparently still has the support of Democrat leadership. According to Nancy Pelosi, Biden “is to be commended for the clarity of purpose of his statement on Afghanistan and the actions he has taken.”
Seriously?
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who praised Biden’s “careful and thought-out plan” for Afghanistan back in April, hasn’t criticized what’s happening now either.
While it’s been refreshing to see the media holding Biden accountable for Afghanistan, Democrats in Congress will never hold Biden accountable. They’ll keep Biden in place as long as possible. For now, they’re gonna own the Afghanistan situation and do their best to spin it. Democrats put their chips on being the party that got us out of Afghanistan, and they have to own it now.
Related: The Price of Incompetence: Biden Is Losing the Never-Trumpers
