It’s been a few days since that unmitigated disaster of a debate, during which time I’ve listened to countless pundits opining on whether the Democrats should a) urge Biden to step down and replace him with a different nominee, or b) rally the party behind him and go full steam ahead with Biden at the helm. 

A few important considerations: 

1. Biden has been an excellent president. He inherited a broken country suffering through economic insecurity, intense racial conflict, and a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. He expanded overtime pay, pushed for an over-the-counter birth control pill to counterbalance the effects of Roe v Wade being overturned. 

1. He established the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. He’s passed landmark legislation to address climate change. Has everything been perfect? Ah, no. But on balance, his has been a successful presidency.

3. The presumptive nominee to replace him would be Kamala Harris. Which, great. I like her, but I know a lot of people feel like she’s been totally off the radar as VP – except, unfortunately, for her not-super-well-received efforts at the border. 

I don’t question that she’d do a good job. I just question her electability, because invisibility plus misogyny plus racism doesn’t seem to bode well. But I’ve been surprised before. 

4. People are allowed to have bad nights. Biden claimed to have a cold and to have over prepared, and…you know, not the ideal night for a seriously sub-par performance, but to give that greater weight than his accomplishments over the past three years seems uncharitable.

5. That said, should we be charitable about Bien when what’s on the line is the actual future of democracy? That I don’t know. I know I’m fully behind Biden, and that if Biden should step down – because it is his choice – I will get fully behind whomever replaces him. This election is just too important. 

What I dearly wish Biden had said, straight into the camera: “I know I’m old. I know I’m probably not your first choice. But I love this country. I can do this job, and I can do it well. Most importantly, I believe in democracy – in the freedom of you, the citizens of this country. My opponent believes only in himself. 

I know this is not the election you hoped for. But it is the election we have. And I swear to you that I will protect our constitution, and our country, and its people. This man will only bring chaos, danger, and autocracy. 

He did have a comeback of sorts at a rally the next day, but truly: The damage was already done. That said, I want to leave you with a positive thought: This back-and-forth Democrats are having? The “panic attacks” that they’re allegedly having trying to figure out how to proceed? This is how democracy is supposed to work. It shouldn’t entail slavish devotion to a single leader, paired with a willingness to ignore reality and disseminate lies. It should be a conversation. A choice. That’s what the American experiment really is. 

I hope it continues past January.