The battle for the soul of America: Round 2  

The latest ABC/Washington Post poll shocked Democrats and gave Republicans reason to cheer. Unlike most polls that suggest a presidential contest between Joe Biden and Donald Trump is too close to call, this outlier has the current president trailing the indicted former president by 9 points. Equally troubling, 74 percent of all respondents said Biden, 80, is too old to serve another term. If all that wasn’t bad enough, the presidential election of 2024 promises to be one of the most consequential in American history.  

Many Democrats and independents are frustrated, if not terrified, by the thought of a Biden/Harris ticket versus a Trump/mini-Trump ticket. Not surprisingly, the recent ABC/Washington Post poll found that 62 percent of all Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents want the Democrats to pick a different nominee.   

Biden’s hopes for reelection seem to be fading rapidly. But, he can turn things around if he makes some bold moves.  

First and foremost, he has to deal with the “old age” problem head on. He can defuse some of the public’s concern about his age by selecting a new running mate, one who has the experience, skills, and intelligence needed to assure voters that a capable individual is ready to step in as president should the need arise. Possible replacements include excellent governors like Gavin Newsom, Wes Moore, Gretchen Whitmer and Josh Shapiro, as well as accomplished legislators such as Amy Klobuchar and Elissa Slotkin.   

To win in November 2024, Biden has to turn his “old age” negative into an “experienced and accomplished” positive. He can pull this off by celebrating his age rather than hiding from it. President Biden’s age and experience are powerful reasons to vote for him, not against him. 

Biden was first elected to the Senate in 1972. In the decades since, he has racked up numerous accomplishments, as a senator, vice president and president. No candidate in either party can match Biden when it comes to political achievements, policy-making or understanding not just how government works but also how Americans think.  

In the Senate, he served with distinction on the Judiciary and Foreign Affairs committees. He fought hard — and successfully — for new policies involving civil rights, gun control, immigration and women’s rights. As president, he battled the COVID pandemic, rallied allies to help Ukraine fight Russian aggression, improved the American economy, initiated projects to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, advanced health care, and pushed environmental policies to combat climate change.   

Interestingly, the upcoming presidential election in 2024 offers the experienced Biden an important new challenge. The octogenarian candidate has the unique opportunity to take on America’s final frontier for equal opportunity: Old Age.   

Over the last several decades, equal opportunity campaigns have been waged to help women, people of color and various individuals and groups based on religious beliefs, gender preferences and more. Yet, despite America’s impressive march toward liberty, justice and equality for all, there are still far too many people in this country who believe that senior citizens should not be granted equal opportunities in the workplace.  

Really? After all the steps America has taken over the past 70 years to expand equal opportunity to more and more citizens, does anyone actually want to make an argument that a presidential candidate should be judged by his or her age rather than ability to do the job?   

Before answering that question, every current or aspiring politician should take note that the 2020 Census revealed that approximately 17 percent of the nation’s population is over the age of 65. Politicians also should be reminded that seniors love to vote and all those who cast a ballot for Biden would be sending the important message that that age discrimination has no place in modern America.  

The presidential election of 2024 will not just be about age, though. America is in trouble. Most of the political, social and cultural institutions that bind Americans together have unraveled over the past decade. Americans have spiraled downward into despair and division over issues involving abortion, the border crisis, race, gender and more. At this crucial moment, a vote for the experienced and accomplished Biden not only is the country’s best chance to turn back the rising tide of authoritarianism, but also offers the best hope for workable solutions to deal with immigration reform, gun violence, unfair tax structures, crises in public education, and other pressing issues that Republicans talk about incessantly but do little to solve.   

Given all the problems the country now faces, America needs a talented and tested leader like Joe Biden more than ever. Voters need to focus on Biden’s accomplishments and judge him on his ability to do the job, not the date on his birth certificate.   

Approximately one year ago, on Sept. 1, 2022, President Biden gave a heartfelt speech in Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, where America declared its independence in 1776 and later wrote and debated the U.S. Constitution. The words he spoke that evening are just as valid today as they were then.  

“I ran for President because I believed we were in a battle for the soul of this nation,” he told his audience. “I still believe that to be true.” Biden defined the “soul of America” as “the sacred proposition that all are created equal in the image of God. That all are entitled to be treated with decency, dignity, and respect.  That all deserve justice and a shot at lives of prosperity and consequence. And that democracy… must be defended, for democracy makes all these things possible.”   

Although Joe Biden is now a year older and may have lost a step or two, his mind is still sharp and he’s more determined than ever to protect American democracy. His knowledge, experience, compassion and political skills will enable him — and the nation — to win the Battle for the Soul of America, Round 2, in November 2024. Like President Biden said a year ago in Independence Hall, “Folks … it’s up to us.”  

Richard Aquila is a professor emeritus of history at Penn State University, the Behrend College and a distinguished lecturer of the Organization of American Historians. A specialist in U.S. history and culture, his latest book is the award-winning “Rock & Roll in Kennedy’s America: A Cultural History of the Early 1960s.”