This is an opinion column.
The young preacher stood on the stage Sunday morning and read scripture. In it, God speaks to Joshua, informing him that Moses, who led the Israelites to the precipice of the Promised Land at the Jordan River, had passed on; it was now up to Joshua lead them across.
“Arise,” God commands.
“Help me share the title of my sermon,” the young preacher implored of the congregants.
“I Think It’s Time…,” he continued and paused, “… to Move On.”
Less than an hour later, almost synchronized with the young preacher wrapping the sermon, Joe Biden announced that he was moving on. That he would not seek re-election as President of the United States. That, at 81 years old and amid an unyielding turbulence stirred by his disastrous June 27 debate performance, it was “in the best interest of [the Democratic] party and the country for me to stand down.”
To put patriotism above pride. To put wisdom over wounds. To move on.
“A sign of maturity as believers,” at one crescendo the young preacher charged, “is when you allow God to interrupt your plan with His.”
Now, it’s time for the rest of us to move on, too.
Move on towards the most bizarre—and most consequential—presidential election I’ve seen in my lifetime. And I’ve seen a few; 17, if someone’s counting. Though, the first (a rematch between Republican incumbent Gen. Dwight Eisenhower and Democrat Adlai Sevenson) occurred when I was just eight months old. I may have slept through it.
Move on towards what will no doubt be the ugliest, most predictably banal presidential election in my lifetime. One pitting a 78-year-old Republican/convicted felon with barely a passing relationship with truth against (most likely) a 59-year-old Democrat/vice president who gives many Americans pause because of her tenure as California prosecutor, her flailed and failed 2020 presidential bid, and her stilted role coordinating international efforts to address the “root causes” of migration at the southern border.
Move on towards Donald Trump vs. Kamala Harris 2024.
That’s not official, of course, and won’t be until 4,700 delegates vote at the Democratic National Convention next month in Chicago (at least two states, Louisiana and North Carolina met Sunday night and unanimously voted to support Harris). Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison asserts there will be no Olympian baton-handoff in this race. “In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward,” he said in a statement. “This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.”
Yeah, okay; the wagons are clearly circling and fueling in support of the vice president.
Biden quickly endorsed Harris, triggering rolling waves of callouts from almost every Democratic nook and crevice (save some curious yet powerful holdouts) and a tsunami of money. By 9:30p Sunday, just hours after Biden’s letter was posted on X, ActBlue, the Democratic online grassroots fundraising platform, had hauled in more than $52 million and counting, the most in any single day since the death of former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2020, according to Dem strategist Matt McDermott.
Senior Trump campaign advisor Jason Miller on NBC says that a major issue liability for @KamalaHarris is that “she wants to ban plastic straws.”
— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) July 21, 2024
Republicans are completely lost right now.
Before I went to bed, tallies noted that more than $67 million was raised. And counting.
Much of it as more than 44,000 Black women (the Dems’ most formidable constituency) convened on a Zoom hosted by Win with Black Women for more than four hours, purportedly to hear speakers talk about rules governing the Democratic party’s nomination process (wink). That’s all I know because men were not allowed to join (cameras had to be on) and my wife won’t break the thick black line’s sister-code of silence.
(Not that I was trying to listen through the wall, but by the end of the call, those sisters were having chuch—Ebonics for church. And passing the plate. Before logging off, they announced in social media having raised more than $1.5 million among participants, in increments as small as $3.)
The most prominent voice that has not yet hoisted Harris belongs to Barack Obama. The former president released a statement speaking glowingly of his former VP yet did not mention Harris’ name.
“We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead,” he stated in part. “But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.”
It makes you go—with apologies to Arsenio Hall—hmmm, but if you think Michelle is striding through the door to save the Dems, spare yourself the disappointment.
The young preacher exclaimed: “You can’t let mourning keep you from moving…”
It will get ugly, but we’re used to ugly.
FILE - Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the International Conference of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, July 14, 2022, in Orlando, Fla. President Joe Biden has repeatedly insisted he will run for reelection. But should he decide to step aside, a host of younger Democrats could be in contention including Harris, who is 57. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)AP
Republicans have been throwing spit-wads at Harris for weeks, like petulant school bullies (who are usually more scared of their own shadow than their target). They’ve long labeled her a “DEI VP,” a cute effort to taint her credentials. Meanwhile, Trump picks a 39-year-old self-proclaimed hillbilly from Ohio to presumably be inclusive of, well, Ohio hillbillies and millennials.
And in a clear sign of desperation, major Trump campaign advisor Jason Miller reportedly told NBA that one of Harris’ major issues is that “she wants to ban plastic straws,” again according to Matt McDermott.
Yes, I am going to use the cliché: That’s the kind of grasping-at-plastic-straws we can expect to entertain us in the next three-plus months.
We’ve never elected a female president, shamefully so. We pride ourselves on being a global leader while being a global laggard in electing a female leader.
There are today 27 female elected or appointed chief executives around the world. That doesn’t include two presidents-elect — Halla Tómasdóttir of Iceland and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum — who won races earlier this year and will soon assume office. Almost 30 nations have done what we have not. Not officially. In 2016, Sen. Hilary Clinton got more votes than the other guy in 2016— 65,853,514 to 62,984,828—yet lost due to our outdated election Abacus, a.k.a. the Electoral College.
So don’t tell me Harris can’t win. She can. America is ready to elect a female president—especially in an election against a party that has stripped women of their most preciously personal right with systemic intent. (Anything they say attempting to dispute that is, yes, grasping at plastic straws.)
It won’t be easy. It will be work. And it will be ugly.
Failing a two-strikes-two-out-bottom-of-the-ninth-swing for the fence strategy, Harris, who vowed to “earn and win,” will all but certainly choose a white male running mate to satiate those who still need that comfort food before marking their ballot.
He’ll be, yeah, a “DEI” pick, chosen to help secure a vital swing state like Pennsylvania, North Carolina, or Indiana.
“Maybe your current path is the method, not the mission,” the young preacher said. “We marry methods instead of missions. We must hold methods loosely but hold the mission tightly. God may call you to divorce a method so you can marry a mission.”
And the chuch said … time on move on.
And get to work.
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I was raised by good people who encouraged me to be a good man and surround myself with good people. If I did, they said, good things would happen. I am a member of the National Association of Black Journalists’ Hall of Fame, an Edward R. Murrow Award winner, and a Pulitzer Prize finalist for commentary. My column appears on AL.com, and digital editions of The Birmingham News, Huntsville Times, and Mobile Press-Register. Tell me what you think at rjohnson@al.com, and follow me at twitter.com/roysj, or on Instagram @roysj.