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Joe Biden is a stronger candidate than many in the media initially wanted to acknowledge. The association with Obama is probably the single most valuable asset any candidate can have in a presidential primary race. He's not "Hillary 2.0" either. My item: spectator.us/joe-biden-2020…
I should say, this isn't really an "item." It's a pretty long essay. I also think it's notable that whenever you say something "positive" about Biden on Twitter, even if you're just trying to be descriptive rather than normative, tweet-engagement goes way down. Telling!
As I discuss in the essay, one key early Biden endorser who hasn't gotten much attention is Rep. Don McEachin (D-VA). McEachin is heading House candidate recruitment for Dems in 2020. So there will be subtle (or not so subtle) pressures for these candidates to endorse Biden
Example of the impotence of Biden's opposition: today people on Twitter are raging about some policy he put forward. Maybe it's good, maybe it's bad. It doesn't matter. The policies voters associate with him are those enacted under the 8-year Obama presidency. Accept that or lose
Another key advantage Biden has that Hillary lacked:
And another advantage I forgot to mention in the piece: Biden recently shut down his personal "foundation," which was nowhere near the scope of the Clinton Foundation -- which the Clintons refused to shut down in 2016, leading to (accurate) accusations of nepotism and corruption
It’s amazing to me how quick people are to scream that I’m somehow “shilling” for Biden, as if I suddenly decided that I love him and want him to be president. No, I’m just trying to describe the dynamics operative in a Democratic primary. Descriptive vs normative: look it up
Hillary didn't benefit from her association with Obama nearly as much as Biden because 1) she ran against Obama in 2008 and attacked him viciously 2) She wasn't elected twice on the same ticket as Obama, unlike Biden 3) Biden's personal relationship with Obama is much closer
According to a study of Facebook sentiment data in 2014, Biden was the most popular Democrat in the country. The study showed that 67% of the conversation on Facebook about him was positive, far outscoring Hillary on that metric buzzfeednews.com/article/bensmi…
That will probably drop somewhat as he participates in a contentious primary race. But it indicates that the baseline of "positivity" Democrats feel toward him is much higher than Hillary's ever was, which is yet another major strength he possesses relative to Hillary
I think pundits really underrate the appeal of returning to "normalcy" for Democratic primary voters. That's been the refrain under Trump: THIS IS NOT NORMAL. How better to restore the "normal" order of things then to nominate the last "normal" president's trusty, avuncular VP?
One irony of Biden benefiting greatly from his unparalleled association with Obama is that the operatives, lobbyists, and consultants who comprise "Obama World" didn't particularly want him to run. They largely ranged from agnostic to hostile. Interesting dynamic to keep in mind
Also note that I am NOT saying Bernie has no chance, or that Biden is somehow a shoe-in for the nomination. I still think Bernie has many unique strengths and is well-positioned to win in a lot of ways. My purpose is to outline the dynamics that could give rise to a Biden victory
Good item here illustrating the unique value of the Vice Presidency in equipping candidates to obtain their Party's nomination, and why Biden's two previous failed runs are basically irrelevant now. Accords with the reasoning I laid out in my essay crystalball.centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/ar… 
Note in particular that Biden's approval rating was substantially *higher* than Obama's when they left office in 2017. I find it really weird that pundits are so reluctant to acknowledge the obvious political strengths conferred to Biden by the Vice Presidency
Illustrative piece on the relative coolness of the Obama alumni world toward Biden. Note, not a single one of them is even considering Bernie. (Also note that Obama approved of Biden using Obama's voice in a campaign ad, which is significant) washingtonpost.com/politics/as-jo…
