On Monday night, there was a clue as to why Donald Trump remains obsessed with President Biden, even though he is now running against Vice President Kamala Harris. When Biden appeared on stage at the Democratic National Convention on Monday, a packed auditorium gave him a standing ovation that lasted more than four minutes. We heard deafening chants of “We love Joe” and saw tears from the most powerful person on the planet.
Trump sees in Biden everything that Trump is not.
Opinion columnist
Granderson Landing Station
LZ Granderson writes about culture, politics, sports, and navigating life in America.
Remember that for the former president, the idea of losing the White House was so painful that he tried to pressure elected officials to overturn the results. Instead of stopping the January 6 attack on the Capitol, he watched it on television. When he was told that then-Vice President Mike Pence had been moved to a secure location, he said, “So what?”
Trump remains obsessed with Biden after the president stepped aside because Trump would never do something as selfless as what Biden did. For someone like the Republican nominee, who has spent 50 years seeking acceptance, celebrity and the adulation of high society, scenes like the one Biden received on Monday are a lifelong dream. They are the reason he runs for office. It is inconceivable that a narcissist like Trump would consider patriotism more important.
It's true that in the golf cart video that leaked after the two men's disastrous debate, Trump said he thought Biden would resign. But considering the tantrum Trump has thrown for three weeks since the president stepped aside, it's now clear that the former president didn't think Biden would actually do so.
Unlike Biden, Trump will always look for more moments like the one Biden had on Monday night. The touching tribute videos, the praise from congressional colleagues on stage, the words “I love you” coming from the running mate who is also a family friend. Unlike the awkward poses with a random senator from Ohio not long ago I compared you to Hitler.
This isn’t to say that Biden doesn’t have an ego or that his facts don’t need to be checked. Of course he does. But leaders don’t get a four-minute standing ovation from their colleagues if their ego and half-truths are all they’re known for.
“I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I gave them my best,” Biden said toward the end of the evening. “For 50 years, like so many of you, I have given my heart and soul to our nation. And in return I have been blessed a million times over with the support of the American people.”
It’s unclear how much the president will be able to accomplish in his remaining five months. Before he took the stage, thousands of people gathered in a nearby park to protest the war in Gaza, and specifically the Biden-Harris administration’s role in providing Israel with weaponry that has led to the deaths of innocent Palestinians. Biden acknowledged during his speech that the protesters were right, no doubt encouraged by earlier news that Israel had agreed to a transitional proposal for a ceasefire.
Stopping the war has been a priority on Biden’s agenda since last fall and may be the key to Harris being elected this fall. Many of the protesters I spoke to indicated that their decision on whether to vote for Harris in November would be tied to Gaza. While they acknowledged that not voting in the election could allow Trump to return to the White House, they also said they were not comfortable voting for what they consider the same policy.
For me, the differences between Trump and the Biden-Harris brand were captured in the final moments of the convention’s opening night. The president’s daughter recounted the day her father took a train from Washington just to wish his little girl a happy birthday before heading back to work. The first lady described the moments when Biden decided to step away from the campaign trail. The humble beginnings of blended families gathered on that stage in Chicago. For Biden-Harris, it’s clear that America’s greatness lies in our willingness to sacrifice for one another.
Today, millennials outnumber baby boomers, and 1 in 5 Gen Z adults are LGBTQ+. In 20 years, no racial group will be a majority in this country. Book bans, attempts to turn “diversity, equity and inclusion” into an insult, attempts to police women’s bodies — these represent the last vestiges of America’s ugly past. For the second time in three presidential elections, a woman heads the Democratic ticket. For the third time in five elections, a person of color is a major party’s presidential nominee. To borrow a line from Hillary Clinton’s convention speech on Monday: “My friends, the future is here.”
None of this can be said enough.
In what has essentially become a fight for white working-class voters in battleground states, Republican candidates are banking on fear: desperately shouting that America was better “back then” without clarifying when “back then” was, for obvious reasons. Meanwhile, Democrats, with Harris’ help, are gleefully making a case for the future.
When your entire platform is based on personal grievances, there isn't much room for laughter and joy. There's no opportunity for a celebration like Monday night.
For Trump, Monday nights are for him and him alone.
What Biden demonstrated in a half-century of service, by stepping aside and endorsing Harris, is that nights like Monday are for all of us.
