moderate in a party that had moved dramatically to the left, and an old-school pol in a digital age. The Democratic Party was
seeking a fresh leader to take on Trump and redefine the future of the party and had no interest in a fogey who had done his time and had noth- ing new to say. The voters agreed. In the
February 2020 Iowa caucuses, Biden finished fourth behind Pete Buttigieg, a millennial former South Bend, Indiana, mayor with a stellar resume (Harvard, Oxford, Navy, Wunderkind); Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a socialist septuagenarian with the man- nerisms of a cranky grandpa and the devil-may-care insou- ciance of a punk rocker, whose cool indifference to political norms and appeal to hipsters and bros neutralized his own age constraints; and no-non- sense Massachusetts Sen.
Elizabeth Warren. Biden just squeaked ahead of savvy Min- nesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar. In New Hampshire the fol-
lowing week, Biden’s show- ing was even worse, left in the dust behind Sanders, But- tigieg, Klobuchar, and War- ren. Biden clawed back to win South Carolina, but with Super Tuesday looming on March 3, he was in danger of elimination altogether. This prospect created pan-
ic among elite Democrats, who feared the remaining establishment candidates would split the vote, thus al- lowing hyper-progressive Sanders to snag the nomina- tion — and then face a total wipeout against Trump in the general election. Obama, who never had
faith in Biden’s skills as a candidate or his prospects for victory, agreed to put all the chips on Joe, even though he suspected from their long per-
Two weeks after Super Tuesday, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the United States, impelling quarantines, social distancing, and the suspension of most campaign activities.
sonal history that Biden was not quite qualified for the job of presidential candidate or president. Obama helped persuade
Buttigieg and Klobuchar to withdraw from the race, ef- fectively clearing the field for Biden. At the time of their departures from the contest, both Buttigieg and Klobuchar had significant support, mon- ey in the bank, momentum, and decent chances to win. Mayor Pete dropped out on
March 1, 2020. The next day, March 2, Klobuchar suspend- ed her campaign and endorsed Biden. To exit a presidential race with such well-stocked arsenals was unheard of. Only Obama was strong enough to manage this heavy lift. It was the start of an elec-
tion contest dominated by bi- zarre twists of fate, and wheth- er Biden, visibly frail in 2020, would have had the stamina to compete in a typical presi- dential campaign four years ago, will remain a mystery evermore. Two weeks after Super Tuesday, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the United States, impelling quaran- tines, social distancing, and
AUGUST 2024 | NEWSMAX 65
PEOPLE/TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES / TRUMP/PETE MAROVICH/GETTY IMAGES
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
