Yes, Biden Should Step Down—for the Sake of the Planet
When it comes to Ginsberg, Feinstein, and Biden, the problem is less with their absolute age than the bizarre idea that these figures have somehow earned the right to continue holding extraordinarily important posts until they drop dead, however impaired they might be. As we’ve seen over the last week, defending that position requires telling voters to ignore the obvious and root for government officials like superheroes: not as public servants with a distinct set of responsibilities, but as characters with backstories compelling enough to merit their showing up in the sequel. Trump has lent them a helping hand in providing a big boss scary enough to discipline dissenters within the Democrats’ ranks, casting criticisms of top Democrats’ policies and performance as boosts to the bad guys.
The nuance here is that climate policy has very likely benefited from Biden’s weakened state. Climate-conscious advisers have been granted leeway to help craft an “all of the above” approach to decarbonization. It’s an embarrassingly low bar to clear, but the Biden administration has almost certainly done more to reduce greenhouse gas emissions than any of its predecessors. That Biden has a relatively smart and competent team of climate advisers surrounding him is a terrible argument for keeping him around, though. However much they might have been able to do these last four years, steaming ahead as if nothing has changed—as if more than 50 million people haven’t seen Biden struggling—risks more than just losing to Trump in November. Since 2016, top Democrats have campaigned on the idea that nothing is more important than keeping Trump out of the Oval Office. The man they’re saying is up to the task publicly struggles to speak cogently.
Pretending nothing is wrong with Biden is an insult to voters’ intelligence. As genuinely grave a threat as another Trump administration is to U.S. climate policy, Democrats continuing to burn through their credibility—particularly with the younger, less enthusiastic voters who represent the party’s demographic future—could mean abdicating their chance to govern boldly (or at all) for the foreseeable future, let alone enact adequate climate policy. Talking up the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax credits for wind, solar, and electric vehicles won’t change that. It’s hard to make the case for a party whose headline offerings are a rambling octogenarian and the threat of something worse. As with rising temperatures, there’s no quick fix to prevent the catastrophe of Republican rule. An open convention is risky. So is passing the reins to Kamala Harris. Continuing to close ranks around Biden seems even riskier.
