Getting his head handed to him today by 77-year-old former Vice President Joe Biden (D-Del.), it’s time for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to gracefully bow out of the 2020 Democratic presidential race. Democrat voters have lined up behind Joe to take on 73-year-old President Donald Trump. No only does Bernie have no mathematical way to defeat Biden, he’s interfering with the Party’s need to unify behind one candidate to defeat Trump in November. Bernie always said he’d back whoever wins his Party’s nomination with the goal of beating Trump. When Bernie and Joe met for a CNN-sponsored two-man debate March 15, it was a complete waste of time. Democratic votes have moved on to back Biden’s candidacy. Bernie didn’t do anything wrong other than sell ideas too revolutionary for mainstream voters, with his signature issues of Medicare for all and free college tuition.
Battling the novel coronavirus now, the country needs to focus now not on Democratic primaries but on defeating an existential threat stemming from the most contagious virus since the 1918 H!N1 Spanish Flu that infected 500 million, killing around 20-50 million. If Bernie suspends his campaign, there’s no need to hold more primaries, other than letting Democratic primary voters vote by mail to spare the risk of spreading SARS CoV-2. No one from the Geneva-based World Health Organization [WHO] or Washington-based Center for Disease Control [CDC] knows how long Covid-19 will last, some speculate in July or August. State and Federal Election officials should move to absentee ballots for all voters if the virus persists beyond August. If Bernie does the right thing and suspends his campaign tomorrow, State Democrat Party officials can work toward paper ballots.
Like an aging athlete that refuses to throw-in-the-towel, Bernie must suck it up and quit the race. There’s simply too much at stake now than business-as-usual politics. Democratic Party voters have made up their minds that Joe, during the 2020 election, is the best candidate to go up against Trump. Whether he wins in November is anyone’s guess. Some think Covid-19’s already damage to the U.S. economy gives Joe the edge heading into November. But elections are funny things, with voters capable of flip-flopping between now and next the Election. One thing’s for sure: Neither Trump nor Biden will ever have to debate each other. Voters have made their preferences known without witnessing the indignity to watch the two go after each other. If the virus threat persists, both will be robbed before the November election of conventional campaigning, something that hurts Trump more.
Democrat voters spoke last week in Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota and Washington State, handing Joe a decisive victory. By all accounts, Bernie should have dropped out last week but instead held on today, losing Illinois, Florida and Arizona, with Ohio postponing due to coronavirus. Bernie held on to debate Joe Sunday night, March 15, with viewership at an all-time low. Bernie hasn’t caught on yet that his second run for the president is over, leaving Biden the last man standing. Given the historic nature of SARS CoV-2, the public has no stomach for more politics until the General Election Nov. 3. “Today, it looks like once again, in Florida and Illinois—we’re still awaiting to hear from Arizona—our campaign has had a very good night,” Biden told his supporters. But the real one he should convince is Bernie, who must end his campaign for the good of the Party.
Bernie always said that as important as his progressive views, it’s far more important to beat Trump in the fall. To accomplish that goal, Bernie needs to end his campaign tomorrow, letting Biden unify the Party. Truth be told, the Party’s already unified behind Biden with the No. 1 mission of beating Trump in the fall. “Sanders and his supporters have brought a remarkable passion and tenacity to all of these issues. Together, they have shifted the fundamental conversation of our country,” Biden said, hinting that he’ll pick someone progressive for his running mate. While there’s been much speculation, it looks like Joe might tap Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) who’s a tough campaigner who doesn’t pull her punches. Warren hit 78-year-old billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg with a knockout punch in the Feb. 20 ABC News debate in Columbia, SC.
Bernie’s got a big decision to make tomorrow for the good of the Party. It’s time for him to end his 2020 presidential bid. At 78-years-of age and a recent heart attack he gave it everything he had but fell short. Bernie fell short not because his ideas were too radical but because Democrat voters decided after Biden’s big win in South Carolina that he’s the right guy to go up against Trump. Since then. Biden’s swept everything including tonight’s contests giving him an insurmountable delegate lead. With CoV-2 spiraling out of control, the country’s in survival mode, no longer focused on politics while the nation confronts the worst health and economic crisis in modern times. Democratic and Republican Party officials must follow WHO and the CDC’s advice, to make sure that future primaries or the General Election don’t spread the virus, demanding that future voting is done by mail.
