This is the next of our series of missives on our unfinished work to restore the promise of our country and its government. Each will focus on a single element of the many opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. Each will provide three steps we can all take to build upon our huge victories winning back the House in 2018 and the Presidency in 2020.
Please click here to be added to our list. You can also follow me on Facebook where you can read and share these messages. The more people we can reach, the more we contribute to this growing movement. We share these posts on our blog, Our Unfinished Work, every three to four weeks.
Dear President Joe Biden,
First, I want to thank you for being President of the United States. You took office at an extraordinarily difficult time, beating a candidate who sought to overthrow our government. You have restored the NATO alliance and led the international effort to defend Ukraine from Russia and Vladimir Putin. Working with the narrowest of margins in the House and the Senate, you secured the enactment of consequential new programs to rebuild our infrastructure, fight climate change, increase international competitiveness, and reduce child poverty. It was the most successful legislative session since the New Deal, and it would not have happened without you.
I am writing today to ask you not to seek re-election. Undoubtedly this is a difficult decision for you. You have had a fifty-year career in American politics because you are always ready for the next challenge. You are ready to go today, and you would relish a rematch with Donald Trump.
However, Donald Trump is not going to be the Republican candidate. He will be indicted by the Justice Department. His support will continue to fall away. Instead, Republicans will nominate someone at least a generation younger. The Democratic Party should do that too.
Mr. President, if you were to win, you would be 82 years old when you started your second term and 86 at the end. That means there are two huge risks for us related to your prospective candidacy. First, we run the risk that our citizens will be so concerned about your health and longevity that they will be unwilling to elect you. Second, if you were to be elected, the odds are considerable that you would be unable to serve with the focus or energy that the job requires. Not even presidents are exempt from the inescapable truths of aging.
Perhaps it is the hardest job in the world from which to walk away. Nonetheless, we need you to hold your head high and do exactly that. It is that time in American history that we can’t afford to lose the presidency or have a president who is not fully capable of serving.
Once we lost the House (albeit narrowly) and Kevin McCarthy sold every bit of his soul to the “Freedom” Caucus, the dangers of serving as a lame duck diminished. You will be able to do your international work relatively free from McCarthy’s puppet masters, who won’t be able to alter the efforts to help Ukraine. On domestic issues, you will be playing defense the whole two years, whether you are a lame duck or not. You can use your considerable skills in working across the aisle to get a budget deal and avoid a government shutdown.
We are not shying away from you. You can help spur the younger talent that is emerging, especially among American governors. All the potential candidates are your political children. Amy Klobuchar is 62, and Michelle Obama is just turning 60. The compelling new Maryland governor Wes Moore is 44 and Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer is 51. Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro is 48, Gavin Newsom 55, and the eloquent Cory Booker is 53. Kamala Harris is 62 and Pete Buttigieg is the youngster at 40.
We can win with a new generation of leaders. Please walk out the door proudly and help us get this done. In the meantime, we will do all that we can to help you, while Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries deal with the dumpster fire which is the House Republican caucus.
Thanks for all your hard work on our behalf.
David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington
And furthermore…
While Joe Biden is considering what activists across the country would or would not prefer for him to do, we have before us the challenges presented by a House of Representatives uncommonly steered by its worst members. Even with his distressing concessions (and those we don’t know about) the way the House works will automatically make McCarthy a powerful figure. This is because the speaker has a huge impact on what gets put before the House, how it is framed and debated, and what amendments will be entertained.
True, McCarthy sacrificed some of his flexibility on this front, notably with regard to the upcoming battle over the debt ceiling, in which he promised framing that will make it much more difficult to avoid government closure. But it is not clear that he had any other path. There are hardly any moderates, just conservatives that differ as to tactics, their support of the Defense budget, and whether they have any regard for Congress as an institution. There is a misconception that the non-maniacal members of the Caucus could have banded with 10 Democrats to elect McCarthy speaker and avoid all the concessions. That could never have happened, because it would have cost McCarthy fifty Republican votes from members who would have been horrified at such a thing.
There’s plenty to do in preparing for the 2024 election, in which we will be electing a President, taking back the House and defending a number of swing district Democratic Senators, like Jon Tester in Montana and (yes) Joe Manchin in West Virginia. What to do now about House Republicans, besides watching Jim Jordan overreach and thus offer us some campaign themes for 2024? Here are three non-spendy things to take care of well in advance of supporting campaigns.
| 1) Talk to Your Realtor Today | |
 | Accountable has done an excellent job of identifying companies who continue to support election deniers. Surprisingly, the top giver to deniers in this election cycle was the National Association of Realtors, which sent $821,000 to members of Congress who continue to promote the big lie. This is not a distant organization unfamiliar to your favorite local realtor. With a million and half members, it is your local realtor! Call one or more who you know and see if they know what their national organization is doing. Send your realtor friend this handy contact form so they can contact NAR with ease. |
2) Exhort the Problem Solvers Caucus | |
 | It would be inaccurate to say that the process for selecting the Speaker of the House de-fanged the bi-partisan Problem Solvers Caucus because they were never fanged in the first place. Nonetheless, those who signed up for this organization of 28 Republican and 28 Democratic House Members openly consort with each other on policy issues! You could elect to get their news alerts just to see what they are addressing. An even more focused approach would be to write Republican co-chair Brian Fitzpatrick and urge him to be everywhere in resolving the upcoming debt limit crisis. He has already said that defaulting on any part of the debt is unthinkable, so let him know you are with him. Here’s his handy contact form which does not disqualify you if you aren’t from Pennsylvania. |
3) Protect Medicare | |
 | Whether or not you are a beneficiary, you want the upcoming debt ceiling battle to protect Medicare, which is a key element of the social safety net with Medicaid and Social Security. Many House Republicans want to put Medicare on the table as a part of the debt ceiling discussions. At the same time, they want to cut the new Internal Revenue Service positions which will generate $110 billion in new revenue. Ways and Means Committee Republican member and conservative Drew Ferguson of Georgia says Medicare ought to be protected. Call his district office at 770-683-2033 and tell them he is right about that. |
Don’t let these be the dog days of political activism. The turmoil is in the Republican Party, and it isn’t going away any time soon. Let’s take advantage.
David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington
