What Biden has going for him (Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post)

[highplainsdem]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/12/17/what-biden-has-going-him/

-snip-

The most extraordinary feature of Biden’s polling is his share of African American voters. In the Quinnipiac poll, he has 52 percent of African Americans; the next highest, Sanders, has 14 percent. Among nonwhite voters in the Fox poll, Biden gets 35 percent; Sanders is next, but remains far behind at 22 percent. (Perhaps Biden’s underperformance in New Hampshire and Iowa has more to do with the low number of African American voters than any perceived shortcomings in his performance, a favorite topic in national media coverage.)

Biden is also having success pulling in liberal voters (perhaps those who have gotten nervous about the electability of Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts). In the Fox poll, Biden leads among these voters with 26 percent; in the Quinnipiac poll, he also draws 26 percent (although he claims only 15 percent among very liberal voters). The IBD/TIPP poll points out: “Before the 2020 Democratic primaries begin, Biden gets just 17% of liberal support, vs. 21% for Sanders and 23% for Warren. The elusive, but much-coveted moderate voter, favors Biden by 31%, Sanders by 21% and Warren by 23%.” Put those liberal or somewhat liberal voters together with moderate voters who favor him overwhelmingly, and Biden has broad ideological support to go with his racially diverse base.

In additional to Biden’s relatively broad base, he has another couple of things going for him. First, the other candidates are fighting among themselves, leaving him out of it. The subject of a lot of the sniping between Warren and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg over their work for corporate America does not affect Biden, who has released his taxes going back decades and has spent virtually his whole adult life in the public sector.

Second, as the Boston Globe’s Michael Cohen points out: “Seeing Biden on the stump is a constant reminder that for all his faults — his verbal gaffes, his meandering speeches, his often uninspiring debate performances, the creeping sense that politics has passed him by — Uncle Joe is, at his core, a good guy.” Cohen concludes, “There is perhaps no simpler explanation for why, in a campaign where so much of the attention has been focused on his political rivals, Biden remains the Democratic front-runner and the candidate best positioned to not only win his party’s nomination but become the next president of the United States.”

Emotional connection. Affection. No other candidate, with the exception of Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) who left the race, is so engaged at a visceral level with voters. Warren rattles off her list of proposals. Sanders prides himself on being a grouch and wants voters to do the talking about their struggles. Buttigieg is a cheery whiz kid, but not the kind to grab voters by their shoulders and stare intently at them while sharing stories of loss.

Gut-level emotion, hugging and back patting (remember when Biden was in trouble for that?) may not be every voter’s cup of tea, but plainly an awful lot of voters, especially African American voters, feel comfortable with him. If Buttigieg is most akin to the cool, cerebral President Obama, then Biden might be in the mold of another successful Democrat: President Bill Clinton. He too felt voters’ pain, won over African Americans and cornered the market on moderate Democrats. That coalition elected him. Twice.

Emphasis added.

[NewJeffCT]

1. I will be happy to vote for Biden

if he wins the nomination. I'm worried about the other Dems in the race being able to turn out African American voters, who are a vital part of the Democratic base.

[tiredtoo]

2. You do realize

this lady is a conservative (republican) don't you?

[highplainsdem]

3. You do realize she's a strong critic of Trump who appears often on MSNBC, don't you?

She wants the Democratic nominee to beat Trump.

[tiredtoo]

7. yes i do

MSNBC is loaded with republicans that do not like trump. She appears to want a specific Democratic nominee to beat trump.

[highplainsdem]

8. Rubin's said positive things about a number of Democratic candidates besides Biden, particularly

Klobuchar and Buttigieg. She's been critical of Biden at times, and she's said more than once there's no clear front-runner.

She has criticized Warren at times, but she's also praised her:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/08/new-hampshires-democratic-convention-explains-lot/

Please remember that you don't have to be a Republican to prefer less leftist Democratic candidates to more leftist ones. The same is true for lots of Democrats, maybe the majority of them.

Rubin also wrote a column on Stacey Abrams saying the most impressive Democrat may not be running for president.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/29/most-popular-democrat-isnt-running-president/

[Demsrule86]

12. She wants a candidate who can win a general...some are to caught up in admiration for their chosen

candidate IMHO...we need someone why can win...and like it or not the UK election showed the pitfalls of running a left leaning candidate. I will vote blue no matter who but I do not believe any candidate can beat Trump...probably only Biden. We take a terrible risk with any other candidate as losing the election would have huge consequences.

[tiredtoo]

21. There is another republican strategist

On MSNBC right now. Talking to Katy Tur. I missed her name and re-wind is currently disabled but she is also pushing against Bernie and Elizabeth.
The republicans are supporting what they consider the lesser of 3 evils.

[highplainsdem]

4. Rubin: The only way to purge the GOP of Trump is to burn down the Republican Party

MSNBC video here:


https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/08/27/jennifer_rubin_only_way_to_purge_gop_of_trump_is_to_burn_down_the_republican_party_with_no_survivors.html

[Wellstone ruled]

5. Just stay on message

and be empathic and compassionate to your audience. Yelling at people will not work. Lying to people will not work. Just keep your eye on the prize..

After this next debate,the messaging has to be expose everything Trump and the Rethugs 24/7,no holds barred.

[PatSeg]

6. "Buttigieg is a cheery whiz kid"

She certainly does have a way with words.

[highplainsdem]

9. If you google "buttigieg whiz kid" you'll get nearly 80,000 results.

Rubin's hardly the only one in the media who's called him that.

[PatSeg]

13. Seriously?

How funny! I didn't really know how to describe Buttigieg, "whiz kid" really works.

[highplainsdem]

16. I just tried it again, this time got 69,000 results. Earlier it was nearly 77,000 results.

Not sure why there was that much of a difference. It looks like the same top results both times.

[PatSeg]

18. Just tried it

I got 69,000 results as well.

[highplainsdem]

11. Btw, if you check the list of all of Rubin's columns at the Post, you'll see a lot of positive

columns about Buttigieg.

Including one that was just posted here at DU today:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287384382

[PatSeg]

14. Thanks

I like Buttigieg, but I just don't see him as presidential. Maybe in a few more years. Meanwhile, I think he'd make a great senatorial candidate. Its still early though, I can't say that I saw Obama as presidential at this point in the race in 2007.

[highplainsdem]

17. Agree completely about Buttigieg. And yes, I'd like to see him in the Senate, or maybe as governor,

but the problem there is how conservative Indiana tends to be in statewide races.

Still, he might be able to win a statewide race there despite that.

And then I'd like to see him run for president again when he has at least 4 and preferably 8 more years of experience.

[PatSeg]

19. I agree with everything you said

As for a statewide race, I wonder how he polls in his home state.

[PhoenixDem]

10. K&R n/t

[Cha]

20. The most extraordinary feature of Biden's polling is his share of African American voters

The most extraordinary feature of Biden’s polling is his share of African American voters. In the Quinnipiac poll, he has 52 percent of African Americans; the next highest, Sanders, has 14 percent. Among nonwhite voters in the Fox poll, Biden gets 35 percent; Sanders is next, but remains far behind at 22 percent. (Perhaps Biden’s underperformance in New Hampshire and Iowa has more to do with the low number of African American voters than any perceived shortcomings in his performance, a favorite topic in national media coverage.)

Thank you for this, hpd!

[tiredtoo]

22. Well

If you folks want the republicans to select our next president, so be it. Oh by the way, how's that been working out for you?

[highplainsdem]

24. What a strange comment, when Biden's the front-runner among Democrats who are polled,

and when the attacks on Biden from Trump and the GOP show he's the candidate they're most afraid of.

[Gothmog]

23. Joe Biden is the Democratic Party's most electable candidate

[emmaverybo]

27. And most qualified and experienced. Proven leadership ability. Strong AA support. A message

of unity, healing, and giving no haven to hate that so many Americans want to hear.

[Tarheel_Dem]

25. K&R

[flamingdem]

26. Biden is COOL