1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

President Biden’s ego and Democrats’ cowardice is going to cost us the election. Back in 2020, I voted for the Joe,, and while I don’t agree with all of his decisions while in office (botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, no real consequences to much of Israel’s atrocities in Palestine), on balance, I think he’s made a good effort as president. However, part of my decision was based in the understanding - one he suggested in the last presidential election cycle - that he’d be a transitional president. Meaning that he’d right the course over these last 4 years and train the next generation of leaders to take over by 2024. Him running again, in the state that he demonstrated during the debate, is a slap in the face to my vote. Frankly, it feels like he lied. Beyond being disappointed in Joe’s greed, I’m honestly disappointed in Democrats on their spinelessness in this matter. How is this any more brave than droves of Republicans meekly falling in line behind Trump back in 2016, even though so many of them talked about wanting a better representative of their party? The American public isn’t blind or stupid. At this point, it’s obvious that Pres. Biden has - at best - lukewarm, tepid, reluctant support from politicians and congresspeople who come out claiming to be behind him. It’s obvious that Biden is just trying to stubbornly hold on until the convention. And if that’s the best you can muster in Washington, imagine how much less support you have among the wider population like myself. Regardless of whether you think that Biden is a better option than Trump, regardless of how afraid you might be about whatever project 2025 is, the reality is that people aren’t going to do all this work taking effort and time to support a candidate (or convince their friends/family to support a candidate) that doesn’t even inspire confidence that he’s fully functional now. After all, if Democrats aren’t afraid enough of Trump and Project 2025 to ensure we have a strong candidate running to defeat Trump, why should I be afraid enough to vote? I encouraged loved ones to vote for Joe last election; I won’t do so this time. Back in 2016 and 2020, I believed in considering who was the better of the two options. However, this is no longer simply that one party is competent with views you may not agree with and the other is maliciously incompetent. The average life expectancy in the U.S. is just below 80 years old. It is unfair of Democrats to complacently look past this reality and rest on the flimsy excuse of “at least it’s not Trump”. Kamala Harris isn’t Trump, Gavin Newsom isn’t Trump, Gretchen Whitmer isn’t Trump, Pete Buttigieg isn’t Trump. The list of non-Trump candidates is near endless. If Democrats keep Biden in office and lose this election, then politicians have absolutely no one to blame but themselves.