The Patriot Post® · Who Will Biden Choose?

Presumed Democrat presidential nominee Joe Biden has made it clear that he is “woke” and therefore will uphold the Left’s standards of identity politics and consider only a woman as his running mate. Given that Biden is arguably a placeholder and the running mate is actually the one for whom Democrats are voting, his choice is incredibly important. So, who are some of women Biden may be considering?

A popular opinion is that Biden will choose a minority woman and likely a black woman in an effort to shore up the black vote, which may be a wise move given that President Donald Trump has seen his favorability growing with black Americans. In fact, many political pundits believe that if Trump were to get 18% the the black vote, then his reelection would be a done deal.

However, playing the game of identity politics comes with the danger of unintentionally alienating other “victim” groups. As NPR observers, “[Biden’s] facing pressure to pick a black woman, but during the primary he also had relative deficiencies with Latino voters. He has to consider the progressive left, given that he was not progressives’ preferred candidate and some of them didn’t turn out for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 general election.” Thus the inherent problem with playing identity politics — it undercuts a message on policy ideas that benefit a wider swath of Americans in favor of messaging catering to minority special interests. As a result, someone will always feel left out.

Here’s a short list of possible Biden running mates in no particular order:

Stacey Abrams: She checks off the minority box and ran a surprisingly competitive race for Georgia governor. Her being on the ticket might put Georgia in play for Biden as well as increase voter enthusiasm among blacks — something that Hillary Clinton failed to generate.

Tammy Duckworth: The Illinois Senator is an Iraq war veteran, who served in the Army as a helicopter pilot and was shot down in theater losing both her legs. She’s also of Thai lineage, checking off the minority box. However, she is not well known, and may be too moderate to excite the Democrat base.

Gretchen Whitmer: The Michigan Governor was rumored to be high on Biden’s short list prior to the China Virus pandemic, however, subsequent bad press over her overly restrictive lockdown measures may have diminished her chances. Yet, with Michigan being a must-win state for Biden, Whitmer may still be in the running.

Susan Rice: As Barack Obama’s former national security advisor, Rice is nationally known and may excite Democrats with reminders of the White House before Trump. Furthermore, Rice also ticks off the minority box. However, Rice’s name is tied to the brewing Obamagate scandal, which may have Biden looking to distance himself.

Kamala Harris: Biden’s former foe has become one of this biggest advocates, and the senator from California would certainly be a fiery defender for Biden. She’s nationally known and checks the minority box, though her tough-on-crime crackdown as California’s chief prosecutor may turn off some — especially, ironically, blacks. Furthermore, as a Left Coast elitist, she does little to help Biden secure middle America.

Amy Klobuchar: The Minnesota senator ran a surprisingly competitive campaign and she could help Biden secure wins in the Midwest. However, she fails to tick the minority box, and might be considered too moderate by the party’s leftist base.

Elizabeth Warren: A clear darling of the hard left, the senator from Massachusetts may encourage those fans of Bernie Sanders to actually consider Biden. By choosing her, Biden would reaffirm his commitment to incorporating the hard-left social agenda into his policy plans. Warren also checks the minority… oh, right, never mind. Also, Warren, like Harris, may only reinforce the stereotype that the Democrat party is a party of coastal leftists.

Again, given his advanced age and his clearly diminishing mental acuity, Democrats may rightly conclude the choice of a running mate would quickly end up becoming the president should Biden win the election. That may in fact be the biggest consideration for Biden and Democrats.

(Edited.)