After seeing the antics of a crazy old man clearly unfit for office, I want Vice President Kamala Harris to be president.
No, I don’t mean former President Donald Trump. I mean the other crazy old man: President Joe Biden. And I don’t mean Kamala should take office in January 2025. She should take office now because Biden is no longer mentally fit for office.
We all know what happened in the 2024 Trump-Biden debate: Trump played the usual bully, Biden seemed confused and inarticulate, and most outlets declared Trump the winner, while 60% of debate viewers wanted Biden replaced in the presidential race.
Presidential candidates often lose the spotlight after dropping out. They take a few weeks to nurse their pride and consider who to endorse, before finding an angle to pursue. But Biden is the first current president to withdraw from the election after receiving the nomination.
If Biden was not mentally fit to run for office in 2024, how can he be mentally fit to serve as president through January 2025?
Biden should step down from the presidency. His debate struggles and disappearance from the spotlight suggest he cannot reasonably run the country for the last few months of his term. Harris should take over.
I do not intend to vote for Harris in the 2024 election, as I do not approve of many of her policies. But I would rather have a mentally fit person in the White House who could be counted on in emergencies than Biden.
Last week, first lady Jill Biden attended the cabinet meeting to update it on initiatives for women’s health. This is not unusual, as first ladies regularly attend meetings to address their projects.
However, her attendance draws comparison to Edith Wilson, Woodrow Wilson’s wife who ran his presidency after his stroke and successfully fooled the cabinet into believing he was still fit for office, rather than let the vice president take over.
Jill Biden is not Edith Wilson. But we are confronted with the same question Americans faced in 1920: When should a president throw in the towel and allow the vice president to assume duties?
Taking over the presidency might damage Harris’ reputation or force her to take greater responsibility for current economic struggles, but that is a price she should be willing to pay for national security. If war breaks out in the Middle East or another pandemic breaks out in the mainland, I would rather Harris handle it than Biden.
Somebody should have taken over for president Wilson after his stroke in 1919. Instead, his wife quietly led the government and Wilson’s League of Nations idea fell apart without America’s support.
We do not need to repeat history. Biden should step down now and embrace his retirement. According to The National Desk, Biden has already spent 40% of his presidency away from the White House. It’s time he spend 100% of his time away from the White House and allow Harris to take the reins.
Either Harris will extend her administration after the election or Trump will succeed her. Both are better options than keeping Biden in office.
It’s possible Republicans would prefer Biden stay in office because he’s less likely to pass any progressive policies. That may be true, but that would also guarantee voters have a clearer idea of Harris’ priorities as president — something that might benefit both campaigns.
Kamala Harris should be our president. Whether she stays president would be up to the voters.
Nathan Stanish is a senior studying religion.
