General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Does Nina Turner want to primary Biden... HERSELF? [View all]karynnj
(59,498 posts)Even if nothing in BBB passes, the worst possible case, if you look at everything Biden has done vis executive order or through legislation, he is at least above average on getting progressive things done. If, as is more likely, he gets either a very pared down BBB or a few stand alone bills from the more passable BBB pieces, he could be one of the best Democratic Presidents in the last several decades. This in spite of VERY narrow margins (LBJ had well north of 60 Senators!) and a bad hand of pressing problems including the difficulty of dealing with COVID when a large part of the country is actively working against his efforts.
What exactly would Turner run on? That with 50 senators, Biden could not restructure the civil justice system or pass a voting rights bill? That Biden, like at least GWB and Obama, both with bigger margins and less polarized parties, could not get systemic immigration legislation? How exactly would she or anyone on the left suggest that they could have achieved these goals? I know that the President does have considerable sway in what his party does in Congress, but it only goes so far.
Look, I know that when the idea that we could have a 6 trillion dollar human infrastructure bill, there was joy at seeing bills that were long wanted, but never seen as likely. To some degree, it is possible that Biden will suffer on the left from raised expectations not be missed -- even as the set of things being done exceed what most people would have thought likely in November 2020.