An open letter to Joe Biden: Don't quit. Run again in 2024 — Mike Kelly

Dear Mr. President,

The messages are piling up. Lots of voters say you’re too old, too cranky, too feeble. Many are raising questions about whether you have the stamina and the cognitive juices to run for a second presidential term.

FOX News is on a bender. The Wall Street Journal editorial board is practically salivating over the prospect that you will throw in the political towel and not seek reelection. And The New York Times seems intent on talking to every Democratic hotshot who raises a “concern” about your age.

Well, here’s my two cents: Don’t quit.  

We all know the facts — and they don’t line up well for you.

You’re already the nation’s oldest president. You’re turning 80 in November. If you run again and win, you’ll be 82 when you take the oath on the steps of the U.S. Capitol and the Marine band plays “Hail to the Chief.”  You’ll be 86 when you walk out the door of the White House for a final time.

But what's so bad about being old? Think like Mick Jagger and Paul McCartney. And take some inspiration from that old Biblical dude, Abraham.

Other numbers are also worrisome, though.

Inflation is hovering in the 10% range — and everyone seems to blame you. Meanwhile, the latest New York Times/ Siena College poll found that 64% of Democratic voters want the party to nominate someone else for the 2024 presidential election. And, let’s not overlook those approval ratings in all kinds of polls that show only one-third of Americans think you’re doing a good job.

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Keep an eye on your allies

As if that’s not enough, you seem to be surrounded by alleged political allies who behave more like wolves, most of them licking their chops at the prospect of seeing you resign. 

Some have even called on Hillary Clinton to run again. (She’s about to turn 75.)  As if that’s not weird enough, a group aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders, the perpetually dour Vermont independent who tried twice and failed in his runs for president and claims to be your friend, is about to launch a #DontRunJoe campaign. By the way, it’s worth noting that cranky Bernie is about to turn 82. (My suggestion: Challenge Bernie to a 100-yard sprint. If he loses, he promises to shut up — forever.)

As for the other Democrats who ran against you — and lost — in the 2020 primaries, they’re not exactly rushing to the microphones to give you a boost. Silence is the new Brutus-like stab in the political back.

Et tu, Pete Buttigieg? Et tu, Amy Klobuchar? Et tu, Kamala Harris, your vice president, who recently offered this cryptic and pathetic statement of alleged support to the New York Times: “The president intends to run and if he does, I will be his ticket mate. We will run together.”

If Biden runs? Is that the best Harris could offer? If Donald Trump runs, no Democrat — except you — will beat him. Democrats know that. So why are they trying to set up America for another Trump presidency?

Let’s also talk about factors that are difficult to measure.

For example, the media world recently went into video overdrive after you fell off your bicycle while trying to “un-clip” your cycling shoe from its pedal as you stopped to talk to some constituents.

Seriously, folks, this is not so bad.  I’ve done the same, falling like a sack of cement on the asphalt and feeling like a fool after a ride when my cycling shoe wouldn’t unclip easily. The point here is that you’re not a true cyclist until you’ve fallen off your bike and scraped your knees.

There was also your much-photographed stumble on the steps of Air Force One.  Also, you’re not exactly a master of the teleprompter when you deliver speeches. You tend to go off-script. Hey, I bet you even misplace those cool-Joe Ray-Ban aviator sun glasses all the time too. And let’s not talk about those off-the-cuff gaffes.

So what?

Everybody trips now and then. As for teleprompters, who needs them anyway? Abraham Lincoln read the “Gettysburg Address” the old fashioned way — from paper. And gaffes? Welcome to reality, Joe. Everybody gaffes.

You don’t possess Lincoln’s eloquence.  Or John F. Kennedy’s easy humor. Or Ronald Reagan’s aw-shucks style. Or Barack Obama's rhetorical fluency.

You’re a “Joe” kind of guy. Be honest about it.

Why we need you to run again, Mr. President

This brings me to why you should run again.

America needs an ordinary Joe. The Democratic presidential bench doesn’t even measure up to a bottom-of-the-heap JV team. The Kamala-Pete-Amy collection seems more akin to the Pee-Wee league circuit. Each candidate has enormous gifts. But none is ready for prime time — not yet. And let’s not even talk about another hyper-caffeinated run by Elizabeth Warren. And could we all please keep California Gov. Gavin Newsom in California?

Second, you need to get back to being Joe Biden. You cast yourself — correctly — as just a regular guy. You’re more comfortable sipping coffee in a diner or in a firehouse than trying to give a solemn speech in front of a row of flags at the White House. Why do you seem so trapped in the White House?

Tell your handlers to get their hands off you and turn you loose. Take more walks on the beach in Delaware. Take a Sunday stroll on the streets around the White House now and then. Get out for dinner — in a diner — with your wife, Jill.

In fact, turn Jill Biden loose too. Why is that bright, friendly and insightful woman hiding? America needs to hear from her.  

Next, tell the progressives to shut up. Yes, shut up. 

The climate change gang still does not concede that America runs on fossil fuel — and probably will for decades. Set them straight.

The same is true of so-called immigration “advocates.” While America is a nation of immigrants, it is also a nation whose citizens want secure borders and laws that monitor who crosses those borders. You are not a racist if you offer some measured approach to immigration, especially the chaos along the southern border with Mexico.

Finally, re-calibrate your agenda.  You can’t do everything. And you shouldn’t listen to everyone who is hollering for attention. 

Remember what you've gotten done

But consider what you’ve accomplished. 

First, you signed into law the biggest infrastructure improvement package in decades.  Much more needs to be done, of course. But consider this: Work is about to begin on the Gateway Tunnel under the Hudson River to support railroad traffic along the East Coast. Republicans blocked this for years. Under your administration, it’s happening. That’s no small victory. 

You also managed to convince Congress to pass the first gun safety legislation in decades. The bill that you signed is far from perfect. But in these times, let’s take a glass half-full rather than emptiness. 

Overseas, you outsmarted Vladimir Putin and managed to begin the much-delayed strengthening of NATO. In the end, Ukraine may lose its war with Russia. But without you, Putin would have crushed Ukraine like a gnat. What did Trump do with Ukraine? He tried to extort its president.

Finally, your administration is running smoothly. There are no scandals — not yet anyway. No reports of cabinet members misusing government jetliners. The secretary of state is not muttering that you are a “moron.” The Pentagon generals are not worried you're going to push the nuke button. You're not going through chiefs of staff like they are relief pitchers for the New York Yankees. One of your close aides is not declaring that you can spy on people through microwave ovens. And you’re not seizing the podium in the White House press room to declare that America should drink bleach to get rid of COVID. 

In short, the White House is no longer the political equivalent of "Animal House."

Joe, you brought some measure of sanity back to the presidency. You don’t tweet all night.  And, thankfully, there is no equivalent of a Rudy Giuliani or Roger Stone offering advice. 

Normalcy reigns — for the most part.

Keep going — and get out and see the nation

In the coming months, get out of the White House. Don't just hang with Democrats. Rub shoulders with Republicans too. Invite Mitch McConnell for drinks -- not at the White House, but at a local bar. Take a bus ride through Ohio, a subway ride in New York City. Go back Uvalde, Texas, and talk to the parents of the murdered kids.  Visit coal mines in West Virginia. And senior centers in Florida. And farms in Nebraska. And the Jersey Shore.

You’re good at speaking like an ordinary guy to ordinary people who often face extraordinary pain and worry in their lives. Do that more often. With inflation out of control and vast swaths of America concerned about the economy -- and, by extension, "The American Dream" -- you can lead just by listening more.

Don’t quit.

Make old age cool again. Keep running.

Mike Kelly is an award-winning columnist for the USA TODAY Network and NorthJersey.com, as well as the author of three critically acclaimed non-fiction books and a podcast and a documentary film producer. To get unlimited access to his insightful thoughts on how we live life in New Jersey, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kellym@northjersey.com