Instead of having to defend himself against a tsunami of attack ads about his declining mental capacity, Biden could hit the airwaves with a series of arguments that could respond to Trump’s lies while reminding voters that the reason they elected him in 2020 was because they knew that America can only remain great if led by a unifier, not an avenger.
An ad could start with one of Trump’s most blatant lies from last Thursday’s debate, about how the US economy has been a disaster since Biden entered the White House. Biden could say:
You know, Donald, I read that you have to pay $88.3 million in damages for sexual abuse and defamation E. Jean Carroll. I just did some rough math: If you invested $88.3 million in an S&P index fund on the day I took office, it would have grown currently about 40 percent. About $35 million, Donald. What a disaster! Think of the legal bills you might have to pay!
Another ad might quote Trump’s comments about how he could work with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a way Biden never could. Biden might say:
Donald, do you know why, if Putin could vote in our election, he would vote for you? Because he knows one thing about you: that you could never assemble the kind of coalitions that I have put together to get him out of Ukraine and contain China. You will only throw away those coalitions because you can only envision transactional relationships. A lasting alliance, Donald, is like a lasting marriage. It’s not a transactional relationship. It’s one that’s underpinned by shared values. You treat our allies like shoe stores in some Trump Tower lobby who don’t pay enough rent. Yes, you not only lied about how much our allies contributed to Ukraine — bulk — you have no idea how much they amplify America’s power and values.
Rebuttals like this to Trump would be the best parting gift Biden could give to his party and to the American people.
Gautam Mukunda, a presidential scholar and author of “Choose President,” pointed out to me the other day that “in 1783, when George Washington announced he was surrendering his commission, King George III of England—whose empire he had destroyed— speak that if he did this, ‘he would be the greatest man in the world.’ Fourteen years later, Washington did it again, voluntarily relinquishing the presidency when he could easily have been president for life himself. The father of our nation affirmed his greatness by showing that sometimes the best thing a president can do for his country is to give up the presidency. Today, in the face of the worst threat to our democracy since the Civil War, Joe Biden can cement his legacy by following Washington’s example.”
Biden, in addition to being a good man, is a president of real consequence. He deserves to be remembered as a leader who saved the country from Trump in 2020, brought us out of the dark days of the Covid pandemic, passed crucial legislation to rebuild America’s infrastructure, restored dignity to work, accelerated the transition to a green economy—and, ultimately, knew when and how to say goodbye.
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