[RD] Will Joe Biden Undo Errors of Past Governments?

[Kyriakos]

I don't think many people would support a cabinet position for her as she's too inexperienced.

And no cabinet seat for Bernie either, I suppose

 

[hobbsyoyo]

And no cabinet seat for Bernie either, I suppose

If he does not get to a tie in the Senate then no, Bernie will not get a seat. I sort of doubt he'd get a seat regardless of the Senate but I have no proof, just gut feeling.

 

[Kyriakos]

If he does not get to a tie in the Senate then no, Bernie will not get a seat. I sort of doubt he'd get a seat regardless of the Senate but I have no proof, just gut feeling.

Awfully convenient in both cases, don't you think?

 

[hobbsyoyo]

Awfully convenient in both cases, don't you think?

It's not a secret that Biden considers Bernie too far left on many issues. He ran explicitly on that premise, even as he reached out to Bernie on some issues.

And he pretty much had to distance himself. He lost votes in areas of Texas and Florida it seems due to being labeled a socialist by Trump. Had Bernie run or had Biden pivoted hard in his direction, he likely would have lost even more mainstream votes and maybe the election itself. The US is still a center right nation at the moment and it is very difficult to steer left.

 

[Kyriakos]

It's not a secret that Biden considers Bernie too far left on many issues. He ran explicitly on that premise, even as he reached out to Bernie on some issues.

And he pretty much had to distance himself. He lost votes in areas of Texas and Florida it seems due to being labeled a socialist by Trump. Had Bernie run or had Biden pivoted hard in his direction, he likely would have lost even more mainstream votes and maybe the election itself. The US is still a center right nation at the moment and it is very difficult to steer left.

That must be why all the Trump cabinet members were center-right

 

[hobbsyoyo]

Trump had the Senate, and a pretty far right one at that. He could nominate all the extremists he wanted, and he did just that. Biden does not face the same circumstances and it's unrealistic to expect him to somehow break out of that and nominate progressives.

And it's also worth pointing out that Trump's most extreme picks have been acting as illegal 'acting secretaries' that didn't get approval of any kind. Again, the Senate has allowed him to get away with it and the courts have been toothless even as they've upheld the fact that the appointments are in fact illegal.

 

[Kyriakos]

Trump had the Senate, and a pretty far right one at that. He could nominate all the extremists he wanted, and he did just that. Biden does not face the same circumstances and it's unrealistic to expect him to somehow break out of that and nominate progressives.

And it's also worth pointing out that Trump's most extreme picks have been acting as illegal 'acting secretaries' that didn't get approval of any kind. Again, the Senate has allowed him to get away with it and the courts have been toothless even as they've upheld the fact that the appointments are in fact illegal.

As you said yourself, it's not like the DNC wants to in the first place. Anyway, the way the senate and house went in this election too, it is pretty obvious that 2024 can bring another republican potus.

 

[Hygro]

Thread title looks like a Zeratul quote from sc2.

 

[Bugfatty300]

Who are his string pullers?

Well, it's those umm... like, you know that group of people who run the banks and want to enslave white men under bolshevism? You know... them.

Don't say it! Just say deep state or elites.

 

[Hygro]

Not the you-know-whos!

 

[mitsho]

Well, Biden certainly should try to open up a big (democratic) tent in his cabinet, but in any case, you wouldn't want Sanders OR AOC being one of them. For Sanders, besides the senate seat, there's the fact that he's at the end of his career and you would want a younger progressive to get the chance to make a name for her- or himself. That naturally leads to AOC, but she already has quite a name and probably would thrive in her role in congress for another few years. Why pull her out of a position where she can influence the public discussion? There surely would be other options from the progressive side.

With a real president at the helm, those positions don't matter all that much. It's not like under Trump where f.e. the Education secretary could do whatever she wanted because Trump just wasn't interested. So yes, I'd want progressives to put pressure on Biden, but I also want Biden to have a firm grasp on what he (and his wing) want. I'm not sure that extends to including a Republican in his cabinet, because as so many have pointed out: Why bother anymore? That seems like a tradition from a bygone era.

Which also gets back to the original question of this thread which has to be at least split up into two: Would they let Joe Biden undo them? And if he could, would he do it? Of course, the basic question is what are those Errors? Biden/Harris from their speeches seem to have identified four areas of action for now: Covid-Mitigation, Economic-Relief after Covid, Climate change, Racial Justice (and Police Reform). The basis on which that all rest is the reconstruction of a hollowed out administrative apparatus as well as normalization in international relations. Quite though to achieve. I'll guess no, Joe Biden will not be able to rectify everything in four years.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

As you said yourself, it's not like the DNC wants to in the first place. Anyway, the way the senate and house went in this election too, it is pretty obvious that 2024 can bring another republican potus.

I would not say it is 'pretty obvious' in the sense that a Republican is definitely going to win. It is clear that a Republican win in 2024 is definitely a possibility, at the very least.

The thing about Trump is that he drove GOP turnout to record highs, from an already high starting point. If another Republican reverts to the normal high and the Democrats 'only' achieve 2012 levels of turnout, the Democrats win hands down. It's not obvious that the next GOP candidate will rival Trump's turnout, nor is it obvious that the Democrat candidate of 2024 will perform as badly as Hillary 2016. Basically, a reversion to normal favors the Democrats in the presidential election of 2024. It would take a bad Democrat and a really good Republican to win.

 

[BvBPL]

In the interest of transparency and for the benefit of those who may not be as familiar with Mr. Biden’s record, I should note Biden originally supported all the policies highlighted in the first post. He sponsored the crime bill, voted for DOMA, voted for ‘96’s welfare reform, and claimed to have authored the PATRIOT Act. As chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, he also advocated heavily for the 2002 resolution that enabled the invasion of Iraq.