American Democracy, Joe Biden, and Nikki Haley

In the 2024 election, I will enthusiastically vote for Joe Biden.  

First, to repeat, Biden is a good man and good politician who has been a history-making successful President during a time of crisis. He did not have to learn on the job. As a result, America is vaccinated; our economy is the envy of our competitors; and America again leads the free world.  He has passed more bi-partisan legislation than any other president in decades and made amazing progress on hard problems like climate change.  

While I am a staunch supporter of Biden and hope he will win a second term, I also provided financial support to Nikki Haley’s super PAC even though some polls show Haley doing better than Trump in a general election against Biden.  

I did so because my first priority is American democracy and the integrity of our legal system.  That means my first priority is to defeat Trump, and the primary is the first of two chances to do so.  

Sadly, if Trump is the nominee, he will have a coin-flip chance of winning. As the nominee, Trump will get loyal support from the massive national Republican apparatus, and billions of dollars of financial support.  His campaign will be a campaign against American democracy and our rule of law system.  And, as in 2016 and 2020, the election will be decided by a few tens of thousands of votes in states such as Arizona, Wisconsin, and Georgia. 

I agree with The Economist that a Trump re-election is the greatest threat the world faces in 2024, and with The Atlantic that a second Trump term would pose an “existential threat to America and to the ideas that animate it.” Those of us who believe in America must link arms to block Donald Trump from regaining the White House. 

America needs both major parties to nominate sane people who will honor their oath of office. 

So why Nikki Haley?  

Plainly, because Governor Haley is also the only Republican nominee other than Trump with any chance of winning the GOP nomination. 

Nikki Haley has disappointed me with her inconsistency in denouncing Trump, especially after the violence of January 6, and I disagree with a wide swath of her policy views.  Yet, American politics are in crisis. While we are fighting to defend the idea of America from the threat of Trumpism, we need to engage with people with whom we disagree about many areas of policy and culture. Nikki Haley would not be as good for America as Joe Biden, but America would survive her administration.  

If America is to avoid another Trump presidency, it will be because Trump loses an election next year. If he is to lose, it will either be to Nikki Haley in the primary, or Joe Biden in the general. I have invested in the Stand for America PAC supporting Nikki Haley because I agree with Jamie Dimon’s recent comments that Democrats should support Haley in the primary and Biden in the general election.