Part 4: Healer in Chief
Character is the most important quality of a president. Since the beginning of the 2020 election cycle, former Vice President Joe Biden has made character a key issue of his platform.
In his campaign launch video for the 2020 presidential race, Biden said, “If we give Donald Trump eight years in the White House, he will forever and fundamentally alter the character of this nation.”
Biden’s message played to patriotism with a simple idea: America is, at its core, a nation of values and strong moral character. If Trump gets four more years, the previous statement may no longer be true.
I agree with Biden on the first part. I believe America is the land of limitless possibilities and a beacon of hope for all who dream of a better life. That is who we are.
Trump has torn apart our nation’s fabric by using divisive, inflammatory rhetoric without even a nod to bipartisanship or inclusion. Our nation’s values are under attack and will be in critical condition if Trump gets four more years.
Biden is the candidate to restore those values and heal our nation’s wounds.
Brayden Harrington, a 13-year-old who spoke at the Democratic National Convention this year, met Biden at a campaign event. Biden offered Harrington heartfelt encouragement on how to overcome his stutter, and even got Harrington’s phone number so he could help him more.
When Biden meets someone who is grieving, he is known for giving out his personal phone number if the person wants to call for support.
A woman named Catherine Cooke tweeted out a letter Biden sent to her mother in 2002. The letter was an apology from Biden, whose campaign team had been sending mail to her deceased father. In Biden’s letter, he assured Cooke’s mother she “will reach that day of healing.”
Democrats and Republicans agree on very few things. But, both sides can see that Biden is a man with strong character who can heal our nation.
Former President Barack Obama said Biden has “the character and the experience to make us a better country.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said, “If you can’t admire Joe Biden as a person … you need to do some self-evaluation.”
Former Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., recently released an ad announcing his support for Biden, the first Democrat he has supported in a presidential election. Flake emphasized the importance of “character, moral leadership and integrity” when voting for a president.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said Biden would “heal the soul of our nation” and “end the hate and division Trump has created.”
When it comes to character, supporting Biden is not settling at all — it is reaching. You would be hard-pressed to find another viable presidential candidate whom Graham, Flake, Obama and Sanders would all have good things to say about.
You might critique his position on health care or his record in the Senate, but personal attacks against Biden fall flat. It is hard to demonize a genuine and caring man.
Right now, America does not need a divisive ideologue who would rather chase quixotic policy goals than unify the country.
At a time when a deadly virus has killed more than 225,000 Americans, we need a president with a strong character who can heal the nation. There is no better man to assume that role than Joe Biden.
