As a black man

[IluvPitties]

I find the attempt to bring down Biden by portraying him as a racist as laughable and stupid, at best. Dude was the man who helped Barack Obama become one of the most successful presidents in recent memory. I don't care about some Corn Pop guy or busing issues way before I was born.

I want to beat Trump, and I want a man that can appeal to Americans across the board. Someone who truly cares about people. I want a decent person with the experience and standing to erase a good portion of what Donald Trump has done, and that person is Joe Biden!

[OKNancy]

1. That Corn Pop story (which is true) was from 2017

and dug up in the attempt to ridicule Biden. It's being spread all over to attack him.
Disgusted

[IluvPitties]

2. It is pathetic.

It seems the other candidates do not have much in terms of substance and issues to attack Biden with.

[DownriverDem]

63. Folks need to wise up

Biden has been on our side and will continue to do so. Beating trump is all that matters.

[DownriverDem]

94. Foolish folks

Biden is our best candidate. I am disgusted too. I see us losing to trump again.

[DemocracyMouse]

107. We have half a dozen "best candidates."

I love this entire passage, and yet it applies EASILY to Warren, Harris, Booker, etc:

"I want to beat Trump, and I want a [wo]man that can appeal to Americans across the board. Someone who truly cares about people. I want a decent person with the experience and standing to erase a good portion of what Donald Trump has done, and that person is...."

[stonecutter357]

3. K&R

[LincolnRossiter]

4. Some left-leaning figures (in the party, media, and ordinary lay people) are doing their damned best

ensure division in the party. We have to try to be bigger than they are and spend more of our energy defending and supporting our candidate than attacking and tearing down other democrats.

It's tough at times to resist the temptation, though.

[intheflow]

98. Wait. Aren't Democrats supposed to be left-leaning?

And from our standpoint, it's the established Democratic party that is ensuring division by consistently dissing us "left-leaners" even though we have voted straight Dem tickets for decades (in my case). The Democratic Party should not exist for itself but for the people. Republicans embraced their far right wing and it gave them this nightmare presidency. Would that the Democratic leadership do the same with the far left. We'd be invincible then.

[LincolnRossiter]

99. Few things.

Wait. Aren't Democrats supposed to be left-leaning?

That's absolutely beside the point of my post. Democrats are supposed to be left of center, but let's not play stupid about the fact that there is a diversity of opinions about various issues under our tent. My point, though, is that it's mostly those farther to the left and their supporters who are constantly launching takedowns of other candidates. Biden, Buttigieg, Klobuchar, Bennet etc. and their supporters aren't doing what the progressive candidates and their supporters are doing.

Republicans embraced their far right wing and it gave them this nightmare presidency. Would that the Democratic leadership do the same with the far left. We'd be invincible then.

I think now I see your problem. Well one of them at least. You want some liberal version of Trumpism stamping out all opposition and running through Washington, Wall Street, and Main Street like a bull in a China shop--brooking no compromise, tolerating no dissent, and taking no prisoners.

That's not what most of us want, but thanks for your honesty. It's long been my suspicion.

[oldsoftie]

5. I wonder where most of these criticisms are coming from

[azureblue]

26. the tone and content gives it away

The tone, content, and repetition is what I see as a coordinated effort. GOP trolls who are trying to create division, chaos and hate, which they hope will end in apathy, and people not voting.

[BlueMississippi]

6. K&R

David Sirota the dirty trickster must have sent an urgent cry for help.

All the open and closeted supporters of one candidate are trying too hard to make it a false story when it has been verified as true by multiple news outlets including the head of the NAACP in the state.

Now, it will be verified again and will give major publicity to Biden while making asses of his detractors.

[FarRightLiberal]

7. From another time....

Is the explanation given for some of Biden's "mis-statements", BUT, I still think giving him a pass on sounding like a "bumbling old fool", is naive. I don't think Biden's racist, but he talks in a way that was probably perfectly normal in his early years. The problem is, will Republicans use his statements to diminish Trump's as as such, (THEY have the same early years) put them on the same level. Do you want to nominate a candidate so people can say, Trump said this racist thing, then they say Biden said THAT racist thing. So we are going to put someone up against accused racist Trump, who many DEMOCRATS have called racist, so he can tweet reminders of it, throughout the general? I wish the race issue was taken OUT of this race. Calling people who voted for Obama twice, racist, is PROBABLY going to backfire.

[Thekaspervote]

13. It doesn't matter who the nominee is, the rebups will be tearing them down

Don’t fool yourself

[FarRightLiberal]

106. I know that.....

But so far, this has been a successful attack on Trump. There are a lot of people who wouldn't vote for someone they believe is a bigot, what if they believe both are a couple of bigoted old white guys?

[Gothmog]

125. Opinion: There are more important things to worry about than Biden's gaffes

Link to tweet

My response to both was the same, as it was when I was asked about the Biden issue on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports.” There is a racist sitting in the Oval Office implementing a white supremacist policy agenda. So, you focus on Biden’s mouth marbles, and I’ll keep my eyes on the prize. The prize being the eviction of Trump from the White House.

As Waldman also wrote, Trump “is waging a reelection campaign based on racism and fear,” not to mention being “the most prolific liar in American political history (he just passed 12,000 false or misleading claims).” And what makes the focus on Biden’s mouth extra aggravating is how it wipes our memories of the moronic things said by this president, as my follower @absolut_irish was so kind to remind Biden’s critics.

Link to tweet

Some of these are funny. Some are worthy of a cocked eyebrow. But they are not nearly as consequential as the racist and white supremacist beliefs parroted by Trump and the right-wing echo chamber that found their way into the manifesto of the suspect in the El Paso mass shooting, who told police his target was "Mexicans.” The atmosphere of menace and danger is now indisputable. Your time would be better spent worrying about the shredding of our values, ideals and the rule of law than the flubs of a particular candidate who would put an end to this shameful chapter.

[Thekaspervote]

126. Your entitled to your opinion..and that's all it is...an opinion

[Hekate]

14. "Sounding like a bumbling old fool?" You should be ashamed

[azureblue]

28. seconded

That's a weak smear attempt. Making up a smear from a moment's misstep.

[True Blue American]

67. 100% agree!

[Hortensis]

81. Fourth-ed.

[MustLoveBeagles]

27. Bumbling old fool?

Don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel. The Republicans are going to trash our nominee no matter who it is, don't kid yourself. The democrats calling Joe a racist are full of it imho.

Welcome to DU I guess. Enjoy your stay.

[obnoxiousdrunk]

31. Welcome to DU

Far right liberal !

[oldsoftie]

39. Nice try, but you'll be eaten alive here being that obvious.

[MontanaMama]

71. "Bumbling old fool"?

Hmmm. I’d be careful saying that around here. So, Tulsi is your primary candidate choice? Do you agree with her that impeaching the president would “tear this country apart?’”

[FarRightLiberal]

108. Isn't this about winning?

I take a very technical view about how to win. When I look ahead to the general election, I realize we HAVE to energize the base, and win independent voters. Its very hard to beat an incumbent in any office. As for impeachment, Bill Clinton was re-elected after the house approved articles of impeachment for him, and the senate didn't convict, so we have historical reference that not a winning strategy. The reason I like Tulsi, is because I think she is a progressive who understands what it would take to win against Trump. A lot of democrats don't like Tulsi, because they think republicans like her, but she is very liberal, and I don't think any real republican would ever vote for her, but I think independents will. I support Tulsi, mostly because of strategy. I KNOW this is probably a very unpopular thing to say, but I believe Bernie Sanders would have beat Trump in 2016, I believe Tulsi can energize the people who were kind of disengaged when he lost. There is too much congressional tape of Biden sounding like Trump on policy issues, and I cringe now, imagining the ads that would be running against him. I'm REALLY, REALLY trying to think strategy, and which steps will lead to a win against Trump, and so far I'm not hearing a better strategy.

[Hekate]

111. Forgot to say welcome to DU

Do enjoy your stay

[BlueMississippi]

83. It is asinine to call Joe Biden a "bumbling old fool." nt

[Cha]

87. ..

Thank you!

[Gothmog]

124. Joe Biden's childhood struggle with a stutter: How he overcame it and how it shaped him

Joe is very well equipped to take on trump the bully

Link to tweet

Valerie Biden Owens, the former vice president’s younger sister, says that one lasting impact of his childhood stutter is that it has given him more empathy and compassion for others’ trials, and it uniquely equips him to handle Trump’s taunts.

“Trump is a bully, and Joe has been standing up to bullies his entire life,” Owens said in an interview. “Joe’s stuttering, I think, is one of the principal reasons — a major, major, major reason — that he is the good and compassionate and kind man that he is.”

About 3 million Americans suffer from the speech impediment of stuttering, marked by involuntary repetition of sounds, syllables or words. According to the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders, most children outgrow their stutter, but for 25% of them, stuttering is a lifelong challenge.

Biden has overcome the serious stutter of his youth, but remnants of it resurface on occasions such as when he is very tired, he said in a 2016 speech. Experts on stuttering who follow him closely say they have noticed it on several occasions during the campaign, such as an interview on “The View” when he addressed complaints about his tendency to touch and hug women while campaigning, and an April speech in Pittsburgh launching his campaign, when he struggled with words.

[Thekaspervote]

8. You're in good company!! Jim Clyburn and John Lewis have publicly pretty much the same thing!

[peggysue2]

9. Thank you for this!

Lest we forget, Donald Trump and his enablers are the true threat to the country. And to all of our futures. WINNING IS EVERYTHING in 2020 and yes, Joe Biden's wide reach and appeal can get us there. In addition, he brings on-the-ground foreign policy experience, a keen understanding of the issues at hand, integrity, decency and genuine compassion.

Is he perfect? No. But then, none of us are, politician or ordinary citizen alike.

[azureblue]

33. what they are doing

is launching these smear campaigns at all of the candidates. This is a test to see what works on all of them so the GOP and their Russian "help" will know what will work and what won't..... Look at the pattern --- You'll read a new smear and it will echo for a week or two then die out. then another one will start. Then another one, timed to keep the smears going. It's almost like you can set your clock by it. And as soon as one candidate starts to "pull ahead or get more limelight, The smear crew will turn on them to try to damp the momentum. It's freaking predicable as the
tides

[Cha]

133. Why is it so hard for people to grasp that Biden isn't just the most 'electable' but, rather, the...

Link to tweet

[oasis]

10. On any written exam on foreign and domestic policy, Biden would

outclass all of his rivals for the highest office. Joe and his team will solidify American democracy and his policies will benefit every American.

[Thekaspervote]

15. Indeed! Biden is the only candidate that leaders of the free world begged to run

[FarRightLiberal]

109. But begged by WHO?

[Thekaspervote]

127. Here's a link

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/434860-global-leaders-nudging-biden-to-enter-2020-race-report

[LakeArenal]

38. No matter: Biden remains the most qualified both nationally and globaly

No one else comes close.

He also is a decent man that is well liked.

[highplainsdem]

11. The Corn Pop story Biden tells is true, and the relevant details have been confirmed.

Corn Pop was a gang member, belonging to one of several gangs causing trouble in Wilmington at the time.

Biden was told Corn Pop was going to cut him for ordering him out of the pool where he was a lifeguard.

Biden was also told he couldn't call the police if he wanted to keep working there.

A mechanic working at the pool gave Biden a length of chain to wrap around his arm.

Biden went out to confront Corn Pop, but he also apologized to him, and kept talking. He ended up not only resolving that conflict without a fight, but earning Corn Pop's respect.

And that has been confirmed by a witness who's also a former head of the Delaware NAACP.

And it's a story that's been constantly told and retold by other witnesses in Wilmington, where the black community holds Joe Biden in the highest regard.

[Hekate]

16. Thank you. I never heard of that.

[MustLoveBeagles]

34. Thank you highplainsdem

[Kahuna7]

12. Thing is, Biden is a plain spoken man and doesn't try to finese..

how to put into words what he really believes. It's not what he believes that people have a problem with as much as how he expresses it.

For instance...Progressives get up in arms about how welfare reform destroys black families..... To me that's racist because you're inferring that blacks families cannot survive on their own...Which is no different than how Biden sloppily expressed some outdated (I admit it's outdated) stereotype about poor black families. But ya'll still say that.

Another hypocrisy on the left. Biden is racist when he writes a law and order bill because he's on the side of the victims and their families and expresses zero compassion for the criminals in no uncertain terms ('cause that's how he rolls)..... Then the progressives scream about how these people are poor innocent lambs that need to be understood

So, if Welfare reform and the crime bill discriminate against poor disadvantaged blacks, why get upset by the point Biden was attempting to get across. Don't get me wrong. I don't think he should have went there. But to call him racist when he attempts to pander to the progressive views on the under privileged is just hypocritical nonsense. And most blacks are smart enough to cut through the bull.

[Thekaspervote]

17. Well stated. And yes the AA voters are very savvy. They know a leader when they see one

[OKNancy]

19. and... he he was with friends in the two year old video

Telling the tale many already knew. He wasn't trying to be anything but friendly with that crowd of people who loved him.
They named the pool for him!!

[Kahuna7]

20. Right. He's the real deal. nt

[oldsoftie]

40. Its always amazed me how people get away with denigrating an entire race & never get called on it

Thank you for pointing out what hardly ANYONE ever does.

[Hekate]

18. Thank you. We are having a bad weekend here.

[MustLoveBeagles]

23. At first I thought I was being oversensitive

I'm glad it's not just me that sees it. It's been rather mean spirited the last couple of days even for this forum. I may have to invest in a pair hip-waders.

[MustLoveBeagles]

21. They don't call it silly season for nothing

It's been infuriating to read this forum the last couple of days. Thank you for offering your perspective.

[Scurrilous]

22. K&R

[kag]

24. Thank you for this.

I, too, have been frustrated by people trying to tear Joe Biden down by calling him "racist". It's ridiculous. Biden has long been a champion of civil rights, and everyone knows it.

I cringed when my own choice for Dem nominee called Biden out in the first debate. I thought it was a mistake.

I don't have a problem with our candidates debating each other on policy, but they need to leave these "racism" and other character attacks behind. Any of our candidates has more decent character in their tinies fingernail than Dump ever even tried to achieve.

[DrToast]

25. It's crazy, huh?

The guy was BFF with Obama for 8 years and people are digging up stories from decades ago.

[blm]

29. Definitely some wrongheadedness happening with attacks on Biden, Warren, Harris

Last edited Sun Sep 15, 2019, 07:36 PM - Edit history (1)

Sanders, Beto, Pete, and just any Dem who makes positive gains for our party. The US just has a particularly crappy political media.

[emulatorloo]

36. Well said. It's unfortunate that a handful of DU'ers are doing their best to amplify the

wrongheadedness of these attacks on all our candidates.

[The Mouth]

105. "Wrongheadedness"

We should be so lucky. 2 post Comrade troll upthread calling him a 'bumbling old fool' seems symptomatic of something besides mere wrongheadedness.

[Fiendish Thingy]

30. Other AA writers and voters disagree with you

https://www.theroot.com/post-debate-analysis-joe-biden-is-a-white-man-the-med-1838099542

https://verysmartbrothas.theroot.com/joe-biden-appears-to-be-the-last-person-to-realize-that-1838071894

[Drunken Irishman]

35. And most blacks appear to disagree with them...

So? I can find articles from blacks who called Obama a token negro. That doesn't validate their views, however.

The fact is, Biden's strongest support in this primary is coming from the black community. That tells me everything I need to know.

[StarfishSaver]

37. Some white people love Biden some can't stand him, some are ambivalent

In fact, most white voters disagree with the white voters who strongly support Biden. But we rarely see any white people singled out as somehow representative of the "white opinion" of Biden because people don't assume any individual white person speaks for ir is representative of the whole race.

[Drunken Irishman]

44. Not quite sure what your point is...

It's kind of a mess, tbh. The point here is that a huge chunk of black people clearly do not question Biden's intentions when it comes to race.

[StarfishSaver]

47. And a huge trunk of white people don't support Biden. So?

[Thekaspervote]

52. A larger "chunk" of people period, support Biden- black, white and a fair number of Latinos

The polls- be they state, early primary or Ntl bare this out

[StarfishSaver]

53. Actually a majority of Democrats don't support Biden

But that wasn't the point.

[Thekaspervote]

76. Well, the polls certainly don't back that up.

If you are saying his support does not equal the sum total of the other candidates, that may be true, but it isn’t going to equal a win for them.

If you look at where second choices go, then the margin for Biden makes it even harder for anyone to catch him.

If you would like that poll... happy to oblige

[oasis]

72. That fact speaks the loudest.

[Cha]

131. SMH.. Thank You!

kasper

[treestar]

55. I think I'm getting an idea

The point is to chide white liberal Democrats for being insensitive. The real racists in the Republican Party won’t listen or will be really mean. But we might listen. And worse, try to defend ourselves. Then we can be called out for white fragility.

This must make some people feel better because I’ll be darned if I can figure out how it alleviates racism or gets anyone to change their primary vote.

[treestar]

50. A lot of white people

Are friggin’ Republicans. In fact a majority voted for the Dotard. But you will not hold all of us as responsible for that.

[StarfishSaver]

51. A majority of white Democrats don't support Biden

It's just that white people aren't lumped together the way you people of color are

[treestar]

58. Then are you

Resenting anyone trying to get the black vote. Since it is not fair to do this lumping together. It is wrong to make a voting block of people who are Democrats generally? Is t it over 80%? And understandably so. Given the Republicans propensity to ignore racism or even engage in it. It almost appears the real problem is white liberals.

[StarfishSaver]

61. Oh, please. There's no way you can reasonably infer that from what I've written

My point is that I'm tired of watching black voters being trotted out to offset or discount the views of other black voters when they don't do the same for white voters.

Trying to dismiss the views of black voters who have a problem with Biden by pointing to black voters who love him is ridiculous and insulting. Black voters are no more a monolith than white voters are and the fact that some (or even a majority of) black voters love Biden doesn't make the views of other black voters less relevant, credible or valuable - any more than the fact that a majority of white Democrats don't support Biden means that the minority of white Democrats who do support him should be dismissed.

[BlueWI]

113. THIS.

It's a competitive primary. A plurality, not a majority, of black voters support Biden, and Biden doesn't have a single delegate yet. This is the perfect time to discuss the merits of all major candidates.

I hear you on the way that black voters are reduced to debating points on this forum. Unless, of course, they don't support Biden. Then they're marginalized or accused of being trolls.

Fortunately, the Democrats I interact with in my county and state party are more respectful and savvy than the tone reflected on this forum, especially among the pro-Biden posters lately. And that's a good thing.

[StarfishSaver]

114. Thank you

[BlueWI]

115. You know it!

Thanks for your voice.

[Thekaspervote]

77. One way or the other no democrat has or will win without the AA vote

It’s a moot point

[Thekaspervote]

48. Indeed!

[Thekaspervote]

78. SC is the bellwether for the AA voter -the Ntl polls reflect the polls in SC

https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-primaries/democratic/south-carolina/

[aeromanKC]

32. I think the Corn Pop story is awesome

First of all, Corn Pop. How awesome of a name is that. But it seemed initially both guys puffed up their feathers and in the end they acknowledged each other side. I just read it quickly, but that is what I got out of it.

[betsuni]

41. But it worked on our nominee last time to a certain extent.

The propaganda will hit hard on this. Democrats are corrupt corporatists and racists, vote third party or don't vote at all.

[ms liberty]

100. They began that propaganda in 1991, though

The reason Hillary couldn't win big enough to overcome election theft is that the right has been smearing her for nearly 30 years. Back in the early 90's they were ramping up hatred of her as a presidential candidate. That was one of their earliest continuing smears. She had the ambition, and they knew it. And the consequence was that there were voters who had been raised knowing that someday Hillary Clinton would run for President, and they had to vote against her. The propaganda worked perfectly in 16 because it had all that time to percolate.

[betsuni]

110. Young people fall for the new propaganda of "Democrats are the real racists."

It's Republicans who believe all the old crap about Hillary, and it didn't include racism to a large extent.

"Among the most unjust consequences of Sanders' branding Clinton as an establishment tool was the effect on young African-Americans. Their parents -- particularly their mothers -- were virtually solid in their support for Ciinton, and that wasn't the result of her racial 'pandering' (as Trump later suggested) but rather Hillary's quiet, steady work over decades .. . The history was either unknown or ignored by many Sanders supporters. Clinton 'has to be willing to get out of what's comfortable and get on the streets' said one, obviously ignorant of the fact that at the age of twenty-one, Hillary had been a civil rights activist who went undercover to investigate discrimination in public schools. Hillary was also the first candidate to pay attention to the Flint, Michigan water crisis, joining forces with Flint's mayor long before Bernie showed up in town. ... Sanders made sure that '1993 Crime Bill' and 'super predator' defined Clinton on racial issues, especially for those active in the Black Lives Matter movement, who were influential in shaping the perceptions of other young black activists."

Susan Bordo

[WheelWalker]

42. Damn straight !

[Sloumeau]

43. Thanks for your posting.

I believe that Joe Biden cares about everyone, and especially about the working class men and women in the U.S., a lot of whom are Black. You keep on expressing your opinion, and I'll keep rooting for Biden.

[onetexan]

59. Ditto!

[IronLionZion]

45. You know who doesn't appeal to Americans across the board?

Doesn't care about people and has no decency at all? Trump! Yet somehow he's president.

Our candidate needs to inspire large turnout from liberals and be as different from Trump as possible. Our side needs minorities to turn out to vote in a big blue wave. If Biden can do that, then great.

[bigtree]

46. except that almost every critic of Biden's statements has stressed they don't believe he's a racist

...I find the effort to make it appear people are calling him a racist laughable.

[treestar]

60. Come on. That is passive aggressive

He’s at least insensitive. He’s being called out for this and that and things after thing. It’s clear that the purpose is to get to his black supporters.

[bigtree]

62. I speak from my heart on race

...you're out of line, and really don't deserve a conversation from people you express such contempt for.

Blocking treestar...

[Cha]

88. lol@"Blocking treestar".. so nice of you to announce it..

right after you insult her.

[treestar]

90. This is all that poster has!

Insults! Cha!

[Cha]

91. It's bizarre, treestar!

[Me.]

104. Didn't He Just Go After Hortensis Recently?

Hmmmm

aloha hoa

[Cha]

112. Definitely.

Thanks for the reminder, Me.

Alohahoa

[treestar]

89. So all you can do is be personal on it

And still have no good arguments for Harris. And she's doing no better.

[ehrnst]

93. Does it hurt less if you tell someone before you do it?

[ehrnst]

120. So you're not putting them on ignore? Why would you care if they stalked you if

you didn't see their posts?

[treestar]

123. GDP isn't that big

how is someone stalking you if they tend to disagree with you? And you make a lot of posts. The more you make, the more disagreement.

[emulatorloo]

65. "Biden's a racist" may be unspoken here, but there's been daily insinuation and innuendo from

a noisy handful of unscrupulous posters.

I am sure you are aware that’s how character assassinatation works. Insinuation and innuendo.

[Skittles]

49. I know he isn't racist

I also know he's prone to gaffes that bring this kind of shit to him

[underpants]

56. Listen, as a white guy...

I agree

[mfcorey1]

57. I totally agree!!!!

[aikoaiko]

64. Of course, nobody who has worked for a Black employer can be racist.

I'm not saying Biden is racist or that you should care about the reported incidents, but I don't think your rationale holds up as a defense.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

66. We know Trump is a racist because racists think he's a racist.

I haven't heard of any avowed racists endorsing, praising or retweeting anybody but Trump. If David Duke endorses Biden or any of the other Democrats I'd want to know about it but I'm not holding my breath.

[JI7]

68. well, there was Tulsi Gabbard

hopefully we won't have to hear much from her anymore.

[Gothmog]

69. Barack Obama was a great president. We don't say that enough.

Link to tweet

[njhoneybadger]

70. Thanks for the post

It's turning into a witch-hunt here

[NYMinute]

73. Most African-Americans are as astute as you are

and I appreciate you verbalizing it.

[Jake Stern]

74. I want someone who can hit the ground running

Cleaning up after the devastating shitstorm known as the Trump administration is no time for presidential OJT.

[Hortensis]

75. I miss the missing folk who, imo, made the AA forum the

single best and most thoughtful of DU back in 2016. Plenty of opinions, but also plenty of your sort.

[betsuni]

79. The AA group was the best.

I miss the missing.

[emulatorloo]

80. I miss those great posters as well. So thoughtful and insightful.

Too bad so many were driven away by posters acting in bad faith.

[Hortensis]

82. Yes.

[betsuni]

86. I learned a lot and they were almost always right.

They were driven away.

[wellst0nev0ter]

84. As a black man, I'm in the minority of blacks

Since polls show that most blacks support Biden. I'm also worried about the Trump campaign digging up old quotes (which there are plenty of) that paint Biden in a bad light in terms of race relations.

Then we'll have a repeat of 2016 where black turnout is down, giving Trump the room to squeak by again.

[oasis]

128. Can you name a candidate the Trump campaign won't paint in a bad light

"in terms of race relations"?

[live love laugh]

85. Biden isn't my 1st choice but I'm voting blue ...and

as a person of color I don’t think he is racist.

[LincolnRossiter]

102. You may as well really show out and just vote for Trump, pal.

Because this....

I will stay at home and not vote for the Democratic nominee unless they work for my vote and not past me for the white, blue collar vote.

Is absolutely unimaginable to me in the age of Trump.

[Ferrets are Cool]

96. "and I want a man"

That one excerpt says volumes.

[ms liberty]

97. Yea, I saw that too. n/t

[demmiblue]

101. +1

[mountain grammy]

103. I completely agree with your first paragraph

but I think a woman can also appeal to Americans across the board.

I will gladly support, campaign and vote for Joe Biden if he's our candidate.

[Tarheel_Dem]

116. I'm AA & I'm right there with you. We obviously didn't learn a lot from 2016, when some people....

took assholery to a whole new level by making such declarations as "I don't vote with my ovaries", and we wound up with a serial sexual assaulter on the USSC. Trump has reshaped the federal courts for possibly a generation. Why people keep trying to weaken the guy who is most likely going to be our party's nominee is beyond ridiculous. I have absolutely no respect for them. They're writing the headlines that Russia will pound us with, and we're giving them the sledgehammer.

[betsuni]

117. Your last sentence:

Yes. We know what's going to happen. I have no faith in people anymore.

[Tarheel_Dem]

118. The smear attempts are both laughable and despressing at the same time.

[betsuni]

119. Laughable and depressing is exactly how to describe it.

It should be fun to mock because it's so stupid, but so many people believe it that it ends up being depressing.

[Kind of Blue]

121. We want the same thing except

that the nominee is a man. But you have to GOTV the men you know to elect your choice, or just vote, because the last I heard black men came out in lower numbers than we black women did in '16.

[Gothmog]

129. Very interesting article

Link to tweet

Biden consistently has commanded a staggering lead among black voters. Two-thirds of black voters over 65 are backing Biden, as well as 42 percent of black voters overall; Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) comes in a distant second with about 12 percent support. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is down at 8 percent and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg is not even registering at 1 percent.

This sounds like a pretty interesting story. Instead, “frontrunner, but …” is a common refrain. Consider the new Axios-NewsWhip 2020 tracker that found Biden has been bombarded by negative coverage. Of the 100 stories about Biden that got the most social media attention, 77 were negative. Presumably, the same is true of cable news.

Even with the magnification of Biden’s gaffe-du-jour and the flow of media admiration of Warren’s surge — both of which reflect a true story — Biden’s backers are the most committed. Nearly 65 percent of his supporters say they’ll definitely support him, as opposed to just 34 percent of those who support other candidates.....

Why is it so hard for people to grasp that Biden isn’t just the most “electable” but, rather, the candidate with positions most in line with Democrats’ preferences? His platform is made up of policies that poll incredibly well and his supporters aren’t masking their love for progressives in favor of a safe bet. They like Joe.

[Cha]

132. "The belittling of Biden's support reeks of privilege.."

Link to tweet

TY,Goth

[Gothmog]

130. Biden's Electability Advantage Will Be Hard to Shake Among Risk-Averse Democrats

Link to tweet

The most obvious is Biden’s consistent strength in head-to-head polls against Trump. You can remind people all day long that these are unreliable indicators of how a general-election campaign will actually play out, but they won’t be able to ignore them. And Biden’s advantage here is significant. There is not a single poll in the RealClearPolitics database of 2020 trial heats between Biden and Trump in which Biden does not lead. His current lead in RCP’s polling averages is an enormous 11.5 percent (Sanders’s is 7.0 percent, and Warren’s is 5.2 percent, but both have trailed Trump in some surveys).

A second factor making Biden Mr. Electable is the widespread belief among pundits and voters alike that, all things being equal, proximity to the political “center” is a general-election asset. The more we approach a three-candidate nominating contest in which Biden’s only real challenge comes from Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, the more Biden’s relative “moderation” will become evident. That may hurt him with some primary voters, but it could at the same time enhance his perceived electability.

A third factor some analysts focus on is the practical ability to win voters the party lost in 2016 — either to Trump or to third parties or to the living-room couch. There’s at best limited evidence that Biden is more popular than other Democrats in the much-chewed-over white working-class demographic (especially Obama-Trump voters). But he certainly talks about his focus on these voters a lot, which enhances the perception they are his people. And he certainly has conspicuous strength among African-American voters, whose fall-off in turnout was a big problem for Hillary Clinton in 2016. Biden does not look like a good bet to energize younger voters, but Trump might well do that for him...…

“Risk-averse” is probably the most important term to remember in assessing Democratic voters heading toward 2020. They still don’t entirely understand how Hillary Clinton managed to lose to Donald Trump in 2016, but they aren’t inclined to take anything for granted this time around. And that will make it difficult for candidates other than Biden to convince Democrats their other qualities are worth taking a bit of a risk on. Sure, Biden could in theory blow himself up with some high-profile gaffe that undermines the very premise of his candidacy. But that’s not within anyone else’s control.