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OPINION | Why does Biden have what it takes to beat Trump?

2020-07-02T22:38:04.922Z


These skills have contributed to the leadership Biden has opened up against Trump in almost every recent poll.


Editor's Note: Lincoln Mitchell teaches in the Department of Political Science at Columbia University. His most recent book is "San Francisco Year Zero: Political Upheaval Punk Rock and a Third Place Baseball Team". (Rutgers University Press, 2019) Follow him on Twitter @LincolnMitchell. The opinions expressed here are his. Read more opinion on CNN.

(CNN) - Joe Biden showed American voters Tuesday that he is a smart politician. The suspected Democratic presidential candidate, standing in front of an American flag, delivered a speech once proving that, while he may not be an inspiring speaker, he knows how to play all the right notes.

Biden recognized the terrible impact that covid-19 has had in the United States, expressed empathy for those who lost family or friends, mocked Donald Trump, "our wartime president who has left the battlefield" and "puts everything in his terms ”in his refusal to wear a mask. "The president talks about masculinity and strength, and he doesn't need the mask."

The former vice president went on to accuse the current president of breach of duty for his failure to respond to intelligence reports that Moscow was offering rewards to the Taliban for killing US coalition soldiers and others in Afghanistan.

This was not the kind of rhetoric Democrats have seen since President Barack Obama or, for a previous generation, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, but it was solid. Not a home run, but a single in the middle. He highlighted Biden's core strengths, showing decades of experience that allowed him to quickly gain the support of his former Democratic rivals after they left the race in February and March.

His Tuesday speech showed it by offering practical, even common sense, ideas about the virus to a country that appears to want useful leadership at this difficult time. "Wear a mask. It's not just about you. It's about your family. It's about your neighbors. It's about your colleagues. It's about keeping other people safe, ”not exactly Churchillian, but good advice at the moment.

Another important Biden political asset found in the speech was his temperament. He may not be the most dynamic speaker or the most innovative policy thinker, but to many Americans he rightly seems like a decent, moderate man. This not only provides, so far, a winning contrast to Trump, but also helps to inoculate Biden against future attacks from extremist views.

In a recent interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News, Trump himself acknowledged that "I don't think Biden is the radical left." Biden's essentially moderate temperament was evident throughout his Wilmington speech, but particularly in his comments on why the government should protect statues of historical figures such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

These skills have contributed to the leadership Biden has opened up against Trump in almost every recent poll. If the campaign continues like this, they will most likely help bring Biden to the White House. This is good news for Democrats and others who want to see the Trump era end in January. The bad news for Democrats is that the elections are still just over four months away and a smart Trump campaign could change this.

For Trump, the strategy itself is not that complicated. As any political consultant would probably tell you, the quickest way to change your campaign would be to campaign less at your base and focus more on those voters who have not yet made up their minds or are only committed to Biden. This is obvious, but Trump's failure to do this is extraordinary. Trump's tweets, public statements, and responses to everything from the covid-19 pandemic to race riots seem designed to enthuse the 40% who say they support him rather than increasing that number to 50%.

Take the recent Trump rally in Tulsa. While much was done in the media about the low turnout at the rally, the most important question, the purpose of the rally, was largely ignored. Political rallies, particularly those of Trump, speak almost entirely to those engaged, so even if the rally had been well attended, it would have done little more than highlight Trump's enduring popularity with his staunch supporters.

Trump's strategists might tell him that it would be wise not to hold further rallies for a while and instead try to present himself as a hard-working president at a difficult time. That would free his campaign team to focus on communications via television, social media, direct mail and other means targeting specific groups of undecided voters. Announcements and messages aimed at persuading voters that Trump was a good steward of the pre-covid-19 economy, that he could help the United States recover after a vaccine was discovered, that its tax reform put money in the hands of Americans or who have strengthened the United States Army are more likely to win over undecided voters than another rally in which the president is seen as, what could be charitably described, out of message.

But there is little evidence that Trump has the capacity for this type of campaign. Trump always seems to be at the center of every story. He constantly makes comments and tweets that turn out to be damaging news, and he hasn't shown a real ability to speak fluently on any topic, with the possible exception of the stock market. He usually responds to news he doesn't like with disbelief and anger at whoever has it and dismissing advisers who dare to disagree with him. This is evident in his personal attacks on journalists and their media and even in recent comments on Fox News, a network that is generally friendly to the president, when he reported polls showing Trump behind Biden, as well as in the deal derogatory of Trump against powerful members of the administration such as James Mattis and Rex Tillerson. (Biden, by contrast, was determined to be warm and friendly to reporters who questioned him on Tuesday.)

Trump's characteristics that, despite the occasional retraction of a reckless retuit, seem immutable, so he is unlikely to follow simple campaign advice. And that may allow Biden's temperament and political skills to take him to the top in November.

Donald TrumpJoe Biden

Source: cnnespanol

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