On Sunday, I was sitting outside and listening to the radio when the news broke about President Joe Biden removing himself from the presidential race. Although the event was not unexpected, I was still upset.
Since the dismal debate at the end of June, the voices within the Democratic Party have been applying pressure on Biden to withdraw. At first, the voices that upset me the most were those of the anonymous, big-money donors (and apparently that of former President Barack Obama, sotto voce). Biden is the sitting president and had won the necessary votes and delegates in the primaries to garner the nomination. The voters spoke! Thus, those negative voices should have remained silent.
Worse, as Sunday wore on, and the accolades from fellow Democratic politicians poured in to honor Biden for his many accomplishments and long service to the country, I became quite angry. If he is so accomplished, why did he have to withdraw from the race? Why didn't the voices in the party stand up for Biden, instead of rudely shunting him toward the door?
As for the voices issuing those accolades, they made me recall Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," and of a scene between Albert Einstein and Oppie near the film's end. Einstein asks Oppie if he remembers a tribute that Oppie and other members of the younger generation of physicists held for him, Einstein (after they had shunted aside the older physicist years earlier).
SEND LETTERS TO: letters@suntimes.com. To be considered for publication, letters must include your full name, your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes. Letters should be a maximum of approximately 375 words.
The tribute and the accolades that the attendees bestowed really weren't for him, Einstein tells Oppie. That was all for them, to make themselves feel good, to let themselves off the hook. Einstein then presciently warns Oppie that the day will come when he, Oppie, will be given a similar tribute. He too will be served salmon and potato salad, Einstein wryly quips, but the awards and accolades that follow won't be about him, Oppie, they will be about those other attendees, as a way to let themselves off the hook for not standing up for him.
There's a lesson here for Vice President Kamala Harris: If you arrive at the convention in August, and if the accolades come pouring in (but perhaps not the nomination?) you shouldn't be surprised if you too find that salmon and potato salad are on the menu.
John Vukmirovich, Lemont
Regardless of your politics or affiliation, Joe Biden, one of the greatest public servants in our nation’s history, should be honored as a moral, decent human being with kindness and respect for his fellow man. Unfortunately, in the wake of his heart-wrenching decision to withdraw from the race, Republicans have taken every opportunity to attempt to denigrate his character. These are the same people who go out of the way to praise a convicted felon who is a pathological liar, a judiciously ruled rapist, an unethical businessman and a hater of civil rights and human freedoms. They continue to show an utter lack of respect for our constitutional rule of law, the principles of democracy and human decency.
Craig Jacobson, Skokie
So right after President Biden announces he’s dropping out of the race, Donald Trump issues a written statement insulting him (“crooked Joe Biden”) and repeating his usual baseless accusations in a vitriolic manner — taking one more opportunity to kick a man while he’s probably at his lowest. God help us if this man is elected president.
Mike Calcina, Dunning
A voter's dream team
Kamala Harris for president. Liz Cheney for vice president. Time for Democrats and real Republicans to come together and show that honesty, compassion, integrity and strength are the real cornerstones of our American democracy. Time for this new dynamic.
Dean Dudzinski, Monee
