Dem
51
GOP
49
Joe Biden is angry. At the leaders of his own party. Barack Obama didn't have the guts to tell him to his face that the show was over and he had to leave. Instead, he worked behind the scenes to get rid of Biden. Biden is angry with Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for ruthlessly trying to get rid of him and essentially blackmailing him. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) wasn't any better. The reality is that nobody dares to walk up to any sitting president and say: "Sir, you are old and feeble and your presence on the ticket will be a disaster for our party and the country."
Biden told one of his close associates: "Pelosi cares about the party, not feelings." Surprise. You don't get to be one of the most powerful speakers since maybe Joe Cannon if you don't put the party (and country) above anybody's feelings. In the early phase of The Great Removal, if Biden had taken the hint and gone gentle into that good night, there wouldn't have had to be a later phase. But he kept deluding himself, refusing to see what everybody else saw plainly: With him in the race, Trump would win in a landslide. In fairness, no one knew that Kamala Harris would be a spectacularly good candidate, and that Democrats would quickly coalesce behind her, but everyone knew Biden was a spectacularly bad one. Under those conditions, the upside of a swap clearly outweighed the downside, but Biden simply refused to see it. What every president needs is a court jester. In the olde days, kings had a court jester to amuse them and tell jokes. Tradition was that the jester, alone, was allowed to make jokes about the king. Anyone else who said what the jester said would be beheaded within the hour, but the jester could tell the truth, disguised as a joke, and it was tolerated.
Biden is so angry that he hasn't spoken to Pelosi since he ended his reelection bid. She probably doesn't care, as she is no doubt spending all her time trying to do what she can for the Democrats to capture the House. No time for soothing his feelings. And the more Harris soars, the more obvious it becomes that Pelosi was absolutely right and Biden was wrong. That can't feel good for the President. In particular, recall when Pelosi appeared on Morning Joe after the debate and clearly implied that he had to go, but without saying the quiet part out loud. Nobody attuned to politics could have missed the message. Watch at 5:33:
Biden is especially pained that Obama publicly supported him after the horrendous debate but privately told everyone Biden had to go. Their relationship went south at the end of Obama's second term. That's when Obama did his best to make sure Hillary Clinton would be the Democratic nominee in 2016 and not the sitting vice president (Biden). Normally, the president supports the vice president he chose himself. Obama clearly had his doubts about Biden even in 2016. That has to hurt.
On Monday, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Biden respects Pelosi and has no hard feelings. The latter part of that is simply a lie. She did what was needed for the Democratic Party and the country, his feelings be damned. She is doing a book tour this week and is suggesting that Biden be put on Mt. Rushmore. She doesn't mean it for a second, but she is trying to act like she wants to make amends. When you stay past your "best by" date in politics, this is what you get. Biden should have known that. (V)