How will historians judge Joseph Robinette Biden? Will they say that the 46th president of the United States had misunderstood his era? Whether fairly or not, his apparent physical fragility mattered: It stood out, like a sign of being out of step, in the world of bullies present at the end of the last quarter-century. He belonged to the “before” generation. One for whom political rivals were not enemies, and lying still had its limits. For whom the country’s interests were not confused with those of big business. For whom politeness and a sense of decency in exercising power were not signs of weakness, but went with the job.
Donald Trump has succeeded him. A convict, he embodies the new era: vulgarity, excessive lies, contempt for the Constitution, insulting treatment of the opposition and threats of “revenge” against them, crony capitalism. Through the Supreme Court’s complicity, Trump has not been tried for his role in the crime of January 6, 2021. Indeed, as a final slight for the justice system, he has just pardoned the 1,500 violent protesters convicted of having stormed the Capitol that day – in order to try to cancel Biden’s November 2020 victory.
The truth is cruel: Biden doesn’t not have nothing to do with Trump’s return to the White House. He bears his share of responsibility for the Republican’s success in the November 2024 election. In poll after poll, Democratic voters said they didn’t want a second Biden candidacy. They condemned his 82-year age. Whether out of undue pride or the tragedy of old age, or both, Biden didn’t withdraw his candidacy until the summer of 2024.
Vice President Kamala Harris thus had less than 100 days to campaign. She achieved a more than respectable score, just 1.6 points below Trump’s in the popular vote. The Republican’s victory was not inevitable.
The recently concluded ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas has corroborated, whether rightly or not, the feeling that Biden had lacked determination. The agreement had been ready since the end of May 2024, put together by the American diplomatic corps. However, it took the tandem formed together with the Trump team to exert the necessary pressure and thus obtain Benjamin Netanyahu’s endorsement.
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