Mayor Michael Bloomberg will surpass Joe Biden.
9
As an Irishman I have to honestly say Joe Biden isn’t the person to run against Trump. He’s gaffe prone and can open his mouth so wide that he can stick both feet in there. There are better men and women capable of walloping Trumpass. Does America want to inflict the ginger abomination on not only the US but on the whole world. I hope not.
10
A 'late start'! April 2019? No that had zero influence on this caucus vote down. His son Hunter's actions in Ukraine and his failure to act killed his election potential. Sign off gracefully,Joe, and support Senator Warren for President. She can beat Trump in November you cannot.
11
What if nothing went wrong for Biden but everything went right for Trump?
Sometimes the obvious is obvious.
Joe Biden is lying again (the way he did in the 80s on his first presidential run) about his involvement in the civil rights movement in Delaware in the 60s. This is something that has been proven and that he admitted on national television after he dropped out of that first race. It is shameful and offensive to all people who actually risked a lot for that movement, but especially to his current African American base. It is tantamount to stolen valor. I hate that no one’s talking about it except fringe, INDEPENDENT journalists. Every news outlet not reporting it is complicit in the sham.
7
It's not complicated, really.
Joe Biden is an old political plughorse, a vestige of the ancien regime of backslap politicking who is out of energy, out of ideas and out of friends.
And it shows, glaringly.
9
I don't believe that with Biden we'd ever get public healthcare for all of us, so I couldn't possibly support him. In this rich country people are dying rather than getting the treatment they need, surgeries, for instance -- for fear of bankrupting their families.
5
Mr. Biden seems like a decent man who wants to bring us back to a time when the Dems and GOP negotiated with one another. Initially I thought this might work. But, McConnell's strangle hold on the process is not one he will relinquish. None of the candidates inspire. I suspect Bernie is the only one who motivates crowds but do they really understand his views? Bloomberg can go toe to toe with Trump, has the money and resources to run a campaign and his stand of issues is sane.
10
I don't think that this has mainly to do with Iowa, I think the situation is much worse.
The more the GOP cultivates cynicism, the more it fires up its base, which is already driven by an "anti-government" feeling.
For Democrats, however, increasing cynicism is mortal, as Democrats show up to vote because they believe that the government CAN make a huge difference and truly allow us to "put America first", rather than a wealthy and corrupt minority - but they only show up when they believe that this or that candidate has both charisma and an image of honesty, sincerity, and passion for ending all corruption.
That makes it much easier for the GOP to win elections (at least as long as massive fake news can hide the fact that once in DC, they don't do anything of what their own base wants, quite on the contrary).
The problem with Bernie is that he constantly suggests the same message: those who don't promise radical change overnight, do so NOT because in a democracy ALL radical change is step by step change, compromise after compromise, election after election, MUST be somehow corrupt.
So all it took for the GOP to attack Biden was to reinforce his main rival's message ... . And that is what asking the president of Ukraine to SUGGEST that he'd start in investigation into the Bidens, would inevitably do. It's certainly also what the impeachment process has done.
Their next challenge: sowing doubt about Buttigieg, so that people start thinking that he too MIGHT be corrupt...
3
Message to my fellow progressives.
Look at all the radical legislative change that we have obtained ever since his country was founded.
Not ONE single president has EVER been able to achieve radical change overnight - in other words, in one term or after one election only.
You always see the same pattern (from social security and civil rights to labor rights and HC): first, a president manages to get a bill through Congress that represents a U-turn, lays the foundation for radical change, and already improves the lives of tens of millions of people. Then, during the next 2-3 terms, new bills build on the progress made, until we end up where we wanted to be in the first place.
Why is change that truly benefits ordinary citizens and puts America first, so slow?
Because in a democracy, you HAVE to compromise, in Congress, with people who think differently. In the meanwhile, each U-turn in itself produces a change of hearts and minds, which then allows us to add new bills, based on a new and broader consensus.
That is why the Constitution writes that a government FOR the people is necessarily a government BY the people.
It's also why calling Biden a "centrist" or "moderate", is utterly misleading. He clearly has the same ideals as Warren or Bernie. He simply has the guts to NOT over-promise, just to try to fire up the base and win elections.
And obviously, believing he's corrupt while even Republicans admit that he REDUCED corruption in Ukraine, is absurd too...
7
Socrates -
Yes, yes, and yes.
I'm from Pennsylvania.
I left ten years ago.
Lunch Bucket Joe -
long before that.
2
Joe Biden was terrific as Barack Obama's Vice President. That is over. He probably made a mistake by not running in 2016. He is certainly making a mistake by running in 2020. If he somehow becomes the nominee, I see him doing better than Mondale did in 1984 but not as well as Kerry did in 2004.
4
Biden needs to do one simple thing.......He needs to stand up and declare that that he is a true progressive (which he is) and that he takes a backseat to no one when it comes to championing the issues that Democrats care about.
Republicans are going to call our nominee every name in the book and declare the nominee a "socialist" whether they really are or not.
Biden needs to stop trying to appeal to a mythical "middle" that doesn't actually exist.
3
Incredible that this article omits any mention of Biden’s ideas and what he represented politically as the greatest flaw in his campaign.
The greatest substance of his campaign seemed to revolve around the image of really nice old guy. The logic was, we need a really nice guy to beat the nasty man in the White House. Indeed Biden's strongest message sounds more like a fable for children than a political campaign. Simply a lack of any substantive idea or vision may have contributed to Biden’s loss.
3
He never answers a question, he only deflects.
Iowa has a system that doesn't match votes to delegates. It seems like the democrats are just as undemocratic as the republicans.
2
"a relentless assault from Republicans over his son’s dealings in Ukraine."
If we think it's relentless now, if by some miracle Biden wins the nomination, he will be pummeled by Trump & Co. over Hunter and Ukraine.
And should he then win the Presidency, well, Impeachment IV here we come. We'll never hear the end of the Biden/Ukraine controversy.
Trump or no Trump, the country needs to move on from Ukraine but with the cloud of the Bidens in the picture, we never will.
2
I'm not sure the retail politics approach would have helped Biden. At the request of his campaign, I introduced him at an appearance before a gathering in Iowa in 2007. He met with me and two other potential supporters a half an hour before his talk on rural issues. He asked one question then did a lengthy monologue about his dad and other lessons from his youth. It went on for 20 minutes. Felt longer. That was thirteen years years ago.
5
Seems like every Presidential primary season too much is made of the small non-representative early voting states. Why not be realistic and wait until the more representative states have their votes before pronouncing verdicts of doom?
Biden was never going to do well in Iowa, so before preparing a funeral why not wait until the South and the big states vote?
Though Bernie has been an energetic effective candidate with a very loyal following and probably would have beaten Trump in 2016 if he had been the nominee, let's not forget what happened in 1972 to George McGovern, a much more congenial, charming, and likable progressive candidate.
This article reveals what has always been the case. Joe Biden represents the old Democratic politics; his is an effort to take us BACK to a time that some Democrats remember fondly - even as recently as 2012, Barack Obama’s second victory. What most moderate Democrats fail to understand is that we have entered an era when there is no going back, when most younger Americans do not WANT to go back to anything. They want to go forward to something new, something free of the taint of “business as usual” of dealmaking, backscratching, secret back room discussions, taking care of those with the money and existing power. Biden is the old dog who is not, at this point, going to learn new tricks. He has proven it time and again. The fact that his son took a spot on the Burisma board is emblematic of the way the old politics worked. If connections could buy you an advantage, then take it. The effort to make a deal with Amy Klobuchar about supporting each other is another holdover from the old politics also. There are people who want to leave such “deals” behind and let every voter have a clear and equal voice without such tactics.
While moderate Democrats are dithering around worrying about who can defeat Donald Trump and concluding that only a moderate can do so, others of us are worried about who can defeat Donald Trump and actually take the country where it needs to go in terms of dealing with the issues that got us to Donald Trump in the first place.
8
@Karen
With all respect, as a progressie I couldn't disagree more, and am convinced that history has proven beyond any doubt that the conception of political change that you propose here, is utterly false and counterproductive.
Here's why.
In a democracy, ALL real, radical, lasting, non-violent, democratic change, is step by step change, compromise after compromise, election after election.
That's why ordinary citizens HAVE to be in it for the long haul, instead of hoping that some extraordinary human being will save us and achieve radical change overnight.
At the same time, creating such compromises in Congress is a VERY difficult job, so having decades of experience is crucial here, to get something done.
It's why Obama and Pelosi have been so effective (Obama precisely thanks to having picked Biden as his VP).
It's also why Trump failed to sign ANY of his major campaign promises into law (wall, replacing Obamacare, comprehensive immigration reform, infrastructure), and why the GOP didn't manage to pass a bill either, except for their tax cuts for the wealthiest.
So as Saul Alinsky already wrote (father of community organizing): in a democracy, "compromise" is NOT a dirty word, it's only a dirty word in a dictatorship. In a democracy, it is THE engine of ALL radical change.
Now look at Biden's record, and you cannot but admit that he knows how to obtain real change. Look at his campaign platform, and you see that it ONLY takes us forward, instead of back...
3
There is something to be said about "presumptive" leaders and winners: things don't always turn out in their favor and they don't always win. Unlike in 2016 with Hillary Clinton, in Iowa the polls didn't lie, and the results were somewhat predictable, notwithstanding the vote counting debacle that turned out to define the Iowa primaries.
Joe Biden has a lot to offer the country, and his genial, compassionate personality is surely one of those things. But we live in an era where being nice isn't sufficient, or perhaps even necessary, to win elections.
No doubt Joe will try to redefine himself, and show a tougher and more aggressive persona going forward. The risk to his candidacy in doing so, however, will be a repudiation of one of his central arguments in favor of his "decency candidacy," and it appears with increasing odds that he may, unfortunately for himself and the country, prove that nice guys do finish last.
1
What went wrong for Joe Biden? Trump's attacks worked. Polls showed Biden was the only candidate able to beat Trump, so Trump's organization went on the attack, sowing seeds of doubt, focusing attention on any perceived weakness. Now that Trump is acquitted, expect to see all strong candidates sidelined. Trump would like nothing more than to run against Bernie Sanders; if Bernie wins the nomination, we'll know exactly why.
4
I like Joe Biden, I really do but I fear his time is past. I think if he ran last time he could have won. But instead Hillary ran a kind of entitled campaign and look where we ended up. The world is a different place already and Trump will be re-elected. Hopefully the damage done will heal, the pendulum will swing back to a more middle ground and we’ll have someone smart and with integrity next time! Although - what about a bipartisan ticket - Romney- Bloomberg??
7
The problem with the Biden candidacy does not lie with the campaign manager nor the staffers. It lies solely with the candidate who has yet to acknowledge that there are better choices available to those looking for a nominee.
8
Trump’s fear of Biden is not irrational - he is the person Trump fears most in November and The Ukraine scandal is proof of Trump’s concern. Trump craftily pushed the “Uncle Joe” label to his followers; it gained traction across the aisle and many oblivious Democrats succumbed to Trump’s narrative. Biden’s character is the antidote to our national malady.
3
Hillary Clinton 2.0. The "machine's" candidate and the "machine" is yet again finding out that few people like them. When will they every learn and back a candidate who has a vision? Some energy? Less than 100 years old?
6
Trump succeeded in making Biden appear corrupt. Of course, Trump made himself look like a hero. So who won the Ukraine "war"? Trump did, like he planned all along.
3
Really? What went wrong? All the negative publicity that was spawned by trump. Throughout this entire impeachment process all we kept hearing about was Biden, Biden, Biden and it had a negative effect, just the way trump wanted it to, well played mr president, well played. You managed to poison the well against a political rival just as you meant to do in the first place.
4
Unfortunately Joe is likely done and has Hunter Biden to thank for it. Trump and the Republicans will not let this go. I suspect Trump will ratchet up the pressure given the impeachment acquittal. Trump never forgets and will hammer this forever.
The country loses because, despite his warts, Joe represented one of the best opportunities to defeat Trump. I only wish Amy could gain momentum but that seems unrealistic. Next up is Bloomberg. He’s got the best chance. Despite what progressives want to believe, Sanders and Warren will not succeed because they will not be able to escape the socialist label, true or false. Buttigieg will fail as Republicans constantly tell their constituents they will not discuss the fact he is gay. Sorry, but it is undeniable the undercurrent will doom him. The religious and conservative right simply will not accept this. Buttigieg’s time has not yet come.
C’mon Mike, get into the forefront and beat Trump! Build the necessary momentum before it is too late.
2
I love how Biden is taking credit for the Dems taking back the House in 2018 because he campaigned for them.
I guess that when they lost it in 2010 and then again in 2012, 2014, and 2016, Biden didn't care whether they had the House or not.
Well I guess he his memory is no worse than Warren's who's claiming that women are always victorious in general elections.
1
Biden is a nice guy but so representative of the status quo. The status quo is NOT going to work any longer and progressive Democrats know that.
Sorry, Joe. You served us well but you are not what we need. End your campaign and find a humanitarian cause to support.
8
What Went Wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa? Age and lack of a coherent message defining the difference he would make.
5
"No Malarkey" on an a campaign bus, is all you need to know why Smilin' Joe is going down in flames. Is this the 1950s?
When Sanders can have a cardiac incident, at his age, and bounces back like nothing happened, game over Joe, game over.
13
Hunter Biden is what wrong with father. The name Hunter is now part of the lexicon of the cowards of the Republican Party.
7
What went wrong?
1) 2016 was his chance, not 2020. He blew it.
2) he's out of touch, and shows it
3) remember that Iraq War vote? I do
4) "Malarkey" ? Really?
5) Anita Hill
15
What went wrong for Joe was trump and the fear of what Joe might encounter as a candidate for president. The Ukraine strategy has worked and Joe will not be the Democratic candidate in November. This despite clear and compelling evidence that trump, and his coterie of sycophants or enablers, attempted to coerce the Ukrainian government to slander Joe Biden. Are there enough decent citizens in america to thwart trump? I fear not.
4
@Doug
Exposure of true facts is not slander.
Definition of slander
"the action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person's reputation."
2
The Democrats would be going into November with one hand tied behind their back in a Biden-Trump contest. Anyone remember Hillary and the emails? The foul and disgusting Republican playbook is there for all to see. They swiftboated Kerry in 2004. They benghazied Hillary in 2016. There will be relentless ads and screaming on Fox and right wing radio about Ukraine and Hunter and Burisma Holdings. For what end? Because Joe is the best we can put up against the most evil President in history?
11
As another op ed points out though, Trump will slime any candidate - true or not, projection usually- and we have to be ready for that and not fooled, deflected or cast down.
1
Biden has too much baggage and his time has passed.
Unfortunately, the DNC is swollen with dead-enders who are determined to thwart the country's hunger for a real draining of the swamp.
When the DNC realizes they can't hold up this pathetic scare crow they will pivot to Bloomberg. His largess will let them feed at the trough a little longer.
But change will come.
6
When Trump was whistleblewed, it resulted in everyone finding out about Joe & Hunter in Ukraine. End of Joe. So Trump got what he wanted anyway.
5
Joe avoided the whole Burisma thing. Vague denial, nothing else. with a screaming baboon like Trump, that's not nearly enough to get him through the campaign. Trump needs to be put on the absolute defensive and shut up--by Biden, no one else. Joe didn't even counter-attack Trump's freeloading kids. His silence let Trump hammer the whole "Biden Issue" (which doesn't consist of anything) into the public's ears. That's all we hear about. And that was precisely Trump's point in raising the Burisma thing in the first place. Just announcing it, accusing Biden, is all he really wanted. And he got it. Joe's possibly dignified responses only buried him.
5
What went wrong with Joe Biden, and what will go wrong for the rest of the candidates is simple. Donald Trump, who will be elected President, again, in November.
1
Please wake me up when we have results from an actual primary that is administered properly and where every vote counts. Rather ironic to see Democrats, who constantly opine against the electoral college and inclusiveness, rely in any way on Iowa’s incomprehensible process and non-representative population - that is unless the purported results fit their particular preference of candidate.
78
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa? The caucus system. We, like many, are older voters who are firm, enthusiastic Biden supporters -- and, we're in it for the long haul. However, we are older. That means we, along with many Biden supporters, don't participate in caucuses. Think about it -- it would have been surprising for as many 65+ people to go to a caucus as under 65 people. Hopefully, Biden knows this and will persist through Bernie's next door neighbor, New Hampshire. In our opinion, things won't begin to get real until at least Nevada, but really in South Carolina. Go, Joe!
27
Joe has become the Democratic Mitt Romney of 2016 - out of touch, stumbling, and worst of all in the Age of Distractibility, BORING.
That’s why Sanders has momentum - his fuming, raging delivery provides live audiences and media clips with a passionate message, passionately delivered, and irresistibly entertaining, whether or not one agrees. McLuhan was prescient - the medium has become the message,
3
He should have run 2016, but that bus left. He has gotten "old", in the interim. All the "old" guys and gals should get out of the way, including Trump who is pre-senile, but has residual bombast. The fact that we have these two demagogues, Trump and Sanders, who do great imitations of Mark Anthony's "Friends, Romans, countrymen" speech, "full of sound and fury signifying nothing", and yet drowning out any serious political discourse, is pretty sad in the oldest democracy. Perhaps, the fact that we didn't let women vote (This year is the 100th anniversary) for about 140 years after inventing democracy, makes that either more or less relevant in 2020 where gerrymandering and Electoral College continues to thwart the political will of the people. Being spitefully split in two seems dangerous to me. We shouldn't tolerate it. How about some younger candidates?
4
No one I know is excited about Biden. He is the combination of old, lots of baggage, and been there, done that. Maybe he beats Trump in the early polls, but you do need someone people are passionate about too in a campaign.
5
When Biden said that China didn’t pose a commercial threat to the USA and that coal miners could become software programmers it was obvious that he is completely out of touch. I also think that the Ukraine impeachment fiasco was an operation designed to publicize the Hunter problem and to wreck his candidacy. Why else would they persist in a losing effort from the start? Strange times.
5
A 'centrist' cannot solve our problems. A party that wants to be all things to all persons cannot solve our problems. We need Bernie or Liz, both of whom will shake up the status-quo system run by the super-rich.
7
The only thing that Biden had this time running, that he hadn’t previously, was he had been Obama’s VP.
All the other weaknesses, the poor judgment, charisma, etc., that prevented him from being nominated in the past, remained.
Even Obama warned him against running, but Biden’s own lack of self awareness is as telling about his judgement as anything.
16
What did Biden do wrong, the two previous times he ran for the nomination? Biden was the candidate who was supposed to unify instead of divide. Good Luck with that! If he can't even get a moderate state like Iowa to go his way, forget about it.
Please don't blame the people who make up the Democratic party. It is what it is and there are many good reasons for it. Most notably because America is a two party system and one side is a monolith of white voters sans diversity!
This is a long process. I would not write off Biden as yet, especially given what conspired in Iowa. The Democratic primary process needs a "big" start with many more states in contention. Wait till Super Tuesday to write Biden off.
1
Maybe its time to recognize that the torch has been passed on. Perennial candidates sometimes believe in divine rights as if they are owed the nomination. The number of times at bat does not a winner always make.
Listen to that inner voice.
10
VP Biden is always going to do better in the general election than primaries, as the Lefties dominate the latter. A Biden-Warren ticket is the best option for Democrats, as you get those who only vote for men, the African-American community that adores him, and many of the Obama to Trump voters so critical to victory.
2
It’s ridiculous how much power Iowa has on our election process. Because it goes first it’s seen as a bellwether for the whole country. That’s just wrong.
On the other hand, Biden is low energy and has a speech defect. He also has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth. I’m afraid that despite the fact that he is the best candidate on paper, this will doom his candidacy.
I’m also afraid that Sanders, Warren and Mayor Pete can’t beat Trump. And while Bloomberg can, Democrats won’t nominate him.
So where does that leave us? Four more years?
3
What went wrong for Biden:
1. He's a vestige of the past.
2. Hunter
3. Record of non-electability for president.
4. Hunter
15
Watching Joe Biden these last few months the only word that comes to mind: tentative. I don’t think he really wants it.
7
Not much has changed over the past 32 years when he first made a run in 1988. The term late start is used in the article --April 2019 was almost 10 months ago. Let's be serious, it is the style, substance and organization of Mr. Biden's campaign that it is holding it back--the best place to point the blame is at the candidate.
A lot of people like the idea of a Biden campaign 12 months ago, but the reality of it is far different.
Time for Joe to go home.
2
All these subjective rationales for what went wrong with the
biden campaign. It;s not that complicated. Perhaps voters are a little more intelligent than we give them credit for; and were able to assess Bidens history of questionable judgement and policy vacillations that no level of campaign organization could mitigate.
10
Klobuchar and Biden should become a ticket, with either of them as VP. A "progressive" agenda is worthless unless it actually becomes law. Klobuchar and Biden know how to get laws passed.
Klobuchar and Biden could co-opt Republican messages in ways that Sanders and Warren can't. E.g., they could argue for regulatory reform, because some (many) regulations are ridiculous--poorly written, hopelessly complex, ambiguous, overburdensome, and outdated--but other regulations are absolutely necessary. Sanders and Warren just seem to want to regulate more.
A Klobuchar and Biden ticket could popularize what we now sorely lack--the notion of a common good, requiring some laws, some taxes, some regulations, but also governmental responsibility. Their ticket would manifest: one of them put aside personal gain for our greater good.
Sanders has the right ideas, but how will he pass progressive legislation in the face of a Democratic establishment that seems to unjustly loathe him. He can bank on Republican obstinance that wouldn't even convict Trump.
Warren's ideas aren't exactly revolutionary. Her healthcare plan essentially assumes scaling up the ridiculous healthcare system we now have, which is like painting a wingless plane and hoping it flies. How is even an admirably accomplished mayor of a smallish midwest town ready to jump to a presidency?
Klobuchar and Biden are the ticket. They should join forces now to concentrate Democrats on the task: beating Trump.
5
What went wrong for Joe Biden was the impeachment. Most Americans saw Trump's so-called quid pro quo as, at worst, a non issue, and as virtually certain proof of shady dealings on the part of Biden during his tenure as Vice President. But the Democrats couldn't let go. Desperate to terminate Trump before a 2020 victory, they had to turn a tempest in a teapot into a heavyweight bout whose only loser was Biden, and by extension the Democrat Party. As a result, Democrats are now pigeonholed as terminally leftist thereby guarantying a Republican victory in the House, Senate and White House come November. Couple this with the massive influx of Conservative Federal judges, and America is set to restore its faith in itself.
10
Biden pretty much lost me when he said that ex-coal miners can solve their employment problem by learning to program (code), which according to him any miner can do.
As so often happens, Biden takes a complex problem and sounds as if he doesn't get it, through reckless, simplistic statements. At any rate, this is the same old globalist line that job-exporting neo-liberals have been spouting for years. I mean the Clintons, Gore, Kerry, Obama, Biden. Their indifference and incompetence on this issue helped get Trump elected. Sanders is the only one who has shown real concern for such abandoned workers.
Admittedly a transition from the current Walmart economy back to pre-globalist health will not be easy. It will be painful for those who are used to high-tech toys sold at slave-labor prices. Neither Mein Trumpf nor Biden are the right ones to manage this transition. Sanders (or Bloomberg?) should at least be allowed to try.
My support for Sanders is wavering, though. He needs to acknowledge how awful, bureaucratic, and rigid Medicare / Medicaid can be, and fix them before he extends their dubious blessings to the rest of the population.
And I fear that "single payer", which may be a good idea, will lead to "single provider," which may not be. Bye-bye, Mayo and Cleveland Clinics?
Also, there is the heart attack, bless him...
The Democrats are so good at committing suicide that we may well get "four more years" of The Donald after all.
God help us...
8
@FM Sard
Aging politicians should retire from active pursuit of elective office and learn how to become cable news political commenters.
2
If the Democrats had never made that Ukraine phone call into an impeachment case, few people would have been aware of Hunter Biden and how he makes a lucrative living.
So, by going after Trump on this phone call, the underlying ethical mess came to light and was in the newspapers and media daily for weeks. In response, a lot of people's support of Joe Biden eroded away.
Ironic that in going after the President for his effort to undermine a political rival, the Democrats themselves undermined the very same person.
I am uncertain whether this was intended, or the result of bumbling. I call it political "friendly fire".
7
Biden has many impressive strengths, and serious shortcomings too. But Iowa voters are prima donnas. They expect bespoke attention,and their undeserved status as first deciders should have ended long ago.
7
They guy’s theme on his bus was ‘No Malarkey!’ What campaign advisor OK’d that!? I mean, if that doesn’t illustrate this guy’s still running a campaign from 40 years ago... I don’t know what does. I am glad the polls were wrong and Iowans chose more inspiring and durable candidates.
9
Only about 170,000 Iowa Democrats participated in this Caucus. And it isn’t a secret ballot, you publicly declare support and can lobby other participants to join your side. As the article reflects, winning in Iowa requires you to campaign constantly and turn out people who passionately support you. Since Sanders is a demagogue with a Marxist personality cult, he does well in these type of contests.
Let’s wait till you get to states like California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Georgia before you write off Biden or anyone else. Places where people can go to a voting site that’s actually open from morning till night or vote absentee or participate in early voting. The limited Iowa caucus hours are fine for college students but not for many shift workers.
1
folks, please ask yourself why Putin and Trump have gone after Biden. They are fearful of him. he has the international reputation to bring America back from the brink of destruction by those two.
tonight I heard him speak at a town hall meeting in New Hampshire. he talked in depth about his plans regarding education, health care, stuttering , Putin, college support, but most of all, he had humor, and he was passionate in talking on topics that he has experience , as well aspens to bring back our standing in the world.
I was not as enthusiastic when he first entered the race. Tonight gave me a different perspective after hearing him. vi heard the others as well. he made me feel safe with what he will do. yes, i know about the past decisions he made that upset me such as the Anita Hill thing....I understood the desire to have a black man on the court. All our candidates have faults, have made decisions that i may not agree with, presented plans that were incomplete, but i keep coming back to the question.... Why are Putin and Trump so afraid of him, and not the others.Notice they are not saying much about the other candidates.... just Biden.
4
The problem with Joe Biden is Joe Biden, not his staff. Just listen to him speak. He seems bereft of ideas and a reason for running aside from his not being Trump. Moreover, his awkward performance, frequent gaffes garbled syntax give rise to serious concerns about his fitness for office. He had his chance and he let it go by. Now it is someone else's turn. He should withdraw and concentrate on attacking Trump's reality show from the sidelines as a respected elder and decent person where he can be the most useful.
14
I saw Mr. Biden speak at a campaign event out here in Nevada. It was, indeed, a rambling mess. I’m not sure how he would win over anyone with what he had to offer as a speaker, and, let’s face it, that’s still very important these days. Really though, I think he’s had a wonderful career as a politician, and he’s done a lot of good, but his time has passed. Personally, I want a candidate with a strong vision for a better future. I don’t want status quo. Nothing is going to get better if we don’t get someone who can inspire the dreamers — young and old.
5
I have always loved Joe Biden and always will. He was vibrant and brilliant in a Joe Biden way. But he did not appear to be up to this task from the get-go. I used to think Trump was going after the wrong candidate. Trump didn't bring him down as much as he'd like to believe that. Joe Biden will remain a highly admired man.
3
Let’s wait until we get to South Carolina to see if anything is wrong. Iowa which isn’t voting Democratic and then New Hampshire which are Warren's and Bernie's backyard aren’t even close to important as South Carolina, Nevada, California, Michigan, Wisconsin or Pennsylvania. I’ll wait to talk about a struggle until those votes are counted.
5
Nothing went wrong. He did as was expected even though liberal news sources tried hard to push him onto us. IA showed us that it didn't work and he is not a viable candidate. But, that is not news.
15
Too much past, not enough presence and unlikely much future. He’s a decent, loyal guy. Electability is not policy. I wish him well.
10
I think it is very likely you could have four winners in the first four contests - Sanders is likely to win New Hampshire, Biden may win SC, who knows in NC. It's very muddles. I think Biden's time has passed. He doesn't come across as energetic. Even though Bloomberg is in the same age group, he seems much more dynamic and can make a better case for the moderate sector. I hope Sander's doesn't get the nomination because I don't think he can win a national election. Democrats don't have a focus at this point though - and there are so many factions. Unfortunately this is typical and doesn't bode well for November.
3
Reality Check Jill stein is true democrat She represents those who stil believe we came in to this world en enjoy freedoms we should leave this world better place for our children. Cant say choices american people have to vote for have done anything to ensure freedoms we have our passed down to next generation if not better.
3
@jerry lee
Reality check. Trump is gutting the Clean Water Act and Migratory Bird Act. Walked out of the Paris agreement.
All while you tell us to vote for someone who will never have an impact on any of these things in reality.
Ideology doesn't mean actuality.
4
Once again:
Who Cares What Iowa Thinks?
The largest city in the unpopulated state has a lower population than my local school district.
It has no secret ballot.
The scary thing isn’t Biden going down, it’s two unelectable Democrats “Socialist” Bernie, who hasn’t had a new thought since 1980, and Little Mayor Pete, who has no knowledge of international affairs - and is about as prepared for the White House as Donald Trump, though he is more honest.
Then again that’s doing a limbo dance under the pole-vault bar.
America to Iowa - vote near last and in secret.
8
@Eatoin Shrdlu
Iowa is very white. The picture shows elderly white people. If there were crowds of young voters, they were not in evidence. Sanders will probably have more young people knocking on doors; however, Bernie will not win a national election against hard core Republican operatives. The Democratic Party does not have a young , smart and charming candidate. Trump is tough and dirty; he will use anything to win. We can be tough without being dirty; I don't see another Obama in the wings; and that is what we need. Biden is just too old; Buttigeig is too inexperienced; Warren is knowledgeable, but she hasn't hit all States; Sanders is too old. We are not going to win by nominating a placeholder. Somehow, my large diverse Party has managed to fail in the Iowa caucuses; it would do better to hold caucuses in NY, NJ, PA or CA where diversity is a given, not a fringe element. I am an old voter, and not inspired by Biden et al. Another 4 yrs of Trump and his cult of anti-taxers is in the future. If he wins, Iran better step up its diplomatic game.
1
It is pretty clear that voters want change, just by looking at the top three winners in Iowa. (At least, as far as we know the winners from the still incomplete results). Joe Biden does not represent change at all. When asked about climate change, Biden responded, dismissively, "Yeah, yeah, we'll get around to that." In addition, he is clearly showing his age, and stumbling through debates.
I talk to people about politics frequently, and no one has been enthusiastic about Biden. He may hang on for a while, but the writing is on the wall.
11
You will notice there isn't one article in the universe discussing the fact that Joe and Hunter Biden did not survive a Donald Trump arrow to their jugular- in the form of a Hillary style character assassination. That's what Donald does best, and it works very well. So he'll continue to do it . But, there will be a day when his mojo dries up. That day will not be pretty.
5
Mark my word - end of February will be a headline
"Biden gone- what went wrong?"
Readers will recall I had urged Joe not to jump in.
Today's Democrats are neither Hillary nor even Obama Democrats.
Today's Democrats are Trump hating Democrats - at least in primaries.
Nixon famously said "it's ok for others to hate you, but when hate them - you destroy yourself"
Today's Democrats are on a Kamakazi mission.
They want no Democrat who was even slightly tainted by being a bi partisan as Joe boasts to be.
Today's Democrats have even thrown Obama under the bus by denouncing Obamacare as simply another accommodation with Republicans.
What they want is a Revolution and not incremental progress.
An old horse like Joe ain't gonna win this Churchill Downs - heck, I predict he may not be in the show (that is 1,2 or 3) in any of succeeding primaries.
New Hampshire for sure. Nevada - a highly iffy.
And if Bloomberg connects - with his billions - the Super Tuesday headline will be
"Bloomberg arrives"
Myself a septuagenarian - I urge Joe to get out before we will even remember his an ex VP or even a "towering" senate leader.
5
Maybe pundits should not have spent the year BEFORE the first vote was even cast crowning a victor.
6
I want a YOUNG person, male or female, to represent the Dems. No more old white men please.
Amy and Pete
Pete and Amy
Let's go!
3
Is this a factor? Can N.Y. Times investigate if this happened in iowa
'Operation Chaos': Republican voters aim to skew South Carolina Democratic primary
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/02/05/south-carolina-democratic-primary-date-february-29-republican-voters/4665916002/
3
@Cosmotopper
Wow. Thank you sharing this link. It never stops, does it.
Biden belongs to a time when you voted for war no matter what, when your loyalty to fellow senators was so important that you wouldn’t think about not voting for Clarence Thomas no matter who got hurt. Biden doesn’t seem able to connect with real people. Obama didn’t either but he could act the part as did Clinton. But, what really bothers me in this story is that Biden “ripped” into his campaign manager. The boss from hell blaming everyone around him for his own shortcomings.
15
@Jc
Obama had Michelle; Jill Biden is not Michelle. Sanders' wife has VT baggage dragging behind them, e.g. worthless beachfront property sold to a struggling university. Wives make a subtle difference; Laura Bush made a difference. Trump has a model wife who struggles with English, and no one mentions that communication skills are important for a First Lady. The WH Christmas decorations looked like a hired 2nd class decorator did them. The Bushes had a real tree and a cute dog. Jackie Kennedy knew how to entertain a crowd with small tables which allowed for conversation; she also organized large trips very well. What has Jill Biden shown?
2
Biden, even with his name recognition, couldn't even get enough caucus supporters to form a viable preference group. We had over a thousand people at the precinct caucus, four hundred more than in 2016. Nevertheless, Biden couldn't bring in enough supporters to be viable.
12
Nothing went wrong as he was never the peoples pick but rather the dnc establishment and corporate America pick
19
So the polls are all rigged. got it.
2
@Louis He did well in the early polls because of name recognition, but when people see how he compares with the other candidates....well, that’s when things start to go south.
4
All Trump has to do is play some ads of Biden selling us on GWB and invading Iraq. More republican than Trump...
2
I'm really surprised at the almost universally scathing reader comments about Biden. NYT readers are normally smart and insightful. Get a grip on yourselves.
You act like the curtain has been pulled back and Biden has been outed as a fraud. "He's only propped up by the establishment!" "Put him out to pasture!"
The truth is that he placed fourth in the primaries of a state that has no significance other than that it goes first.
The latest national poll (YouGov, today) has him up by 5 over Bernie. Ipsos (yesterday) has him up by 3. RealClearPolitics average of all polls has him up by 5 and leading since the beginning. He polls stronger than any other Democrat against Trump in the key swing states.
I happen to prefer someone else too, but I'll vote for him if he's the nominee, and I hope you will too. Meanwhile, some of you folks need to splash some water on your faces and take a deep breath. You're acting like kindergartners.
15
A big chunk of Biden's support comes from older black voters, i.e. people who don't live in Iowa.
5
What I do know: I donated a small, but not insignificant, amount of money to Biden when he first announced that he was a candidate. Received one "junk mail" communication from his campaign but no - ZERO - further communication.
In contrast, I bought a small piece of merchandise from Bloomberg. Have not been bombarded - but have received interesting encouraging invites to participate in his efforts. One thing that seems to be wrong with Joe is that he does not have a an effective media savvy campaign organization. This is unfortunate and sad.
15
@MB California I made a couple of $28 contributions to Sanders over the last election and this election. I also made a $35 contribution to Trump. Bernie's people were pretty aggressive in asking for more by telling me what they stood for. Trump's people followed up twice by asking me to complete a survey on the issues and offering merchandise. Very sophisticated surveys, they asked me to rank my top ten issues that I wanted Trump to address and they offered merchandise. They seem to know what they're doing.
2
The idea seemed good at the beginning. Biden the Trump slayer. But when we got into the first chapter, it started to look like it wasn’t going to be a page turner. Now we have to go back to chapter one to figure out why we were excited about this story in the first place.
I like Joe..he’s a good man. But his physical appearance has become a problem because he’s beginning to look like he might belong in a rest home. He appears feeble and when he messes up the point he’s trying to make, it’s past time to have made it, and that just adds to the “too old” image.
I’m in my mid seventies and I can’t even imagine possibly going through all this at this age. And running a Country afterwards? Nope. No way.
Give yourself a break, Joe. Retire and go enjoy your family while you have the chance and the time. We’ll take care of Trump. We got this.
22
If Biden was a product brand I wouldn’t buy it with your money much less my own...
6
What went wrong for Joe Biden?
Nothing really! It is just that Mayor Pete is far better than any other candidate running. That is not fault of the candidates. We haven't had a such a superb candidate like Mayor Pete for a long time!
9
Time for Biden to go back to retirement. He does not have what it takes. Even in the whitest oldest least progressive primary state he came in 4th. With the world in crisis, headed towards a recession and a global pandemic we will need strong leadership and clear vision. Biden cannot provide either.
7
Joe Biden lacks charisma...end of story.
11
Burisma + the DNC wanting another "diversity" candidate.
4
Joe’s heart is just not in it - and everyone can see that. For sure, no one blames him after the emotional wrenching he’s been through. No doubt, he wants Trump out of there. But, without incredible intestinal fortitude - you have to want this so badly that you’ll give up your life for a year or two just to campaign. And then to do that at 78-79 years old? I don’t think so - and most voters (not the pundits yet, though) agree.
5
@Michael Lindsay
Agree. Obama left office with grey hair; Michelle said she wanted a break from politics, and she was good at it. The Presidency is a pressure cooker; we don't want another Bush who prefers home to the WH, or another Trump who prefers a private golf club to the WH. We need a President who lives in the WH, uses Camp David to relax, and who actually understands how government works. Politics is an honorable profession when practiced with intelligence and empathy. Remember the real tears Obama shed when speaking to the Sandy Hook families? Remember Trump playing golf on a course next to a memorial for dead young people murdered in a school massacre? I do.
2
What went wrong? Biden is Hillary 2.0 and the strategy to tell potential voters asking about his policies at town halls if they didn't like them vote for somebody else, is not exactly the way to win voters confidence and it seems many did decide to vote for someone else and will continue to do so.
Unfortunately, Biden was just another failed "annointed" choice of the corporate/establishment DNC who learned nothing from the 2016 election that got Trump elected in the first place. An old guard neo-liberal democrat with no policies basing his candidacy solely on the idea that he is the best one to beat Trump, is and was a sham right from the outset.
18
Biden’s chances are not over because of one primary. This is just the beginning
5
What went wrong is that Joe Biden entered the race at all. Too big to ignore. Too weak to stand on his own.
Biden has good name recognition for serving well as Pres. Obama's vice president and benefits from the overflow of good will towards Obama.
But Biden has been around a long time and has a lot of baggage. There are good reasons his earlier runs failed. His jumping in here may have knocked out other centrist candidates who might have gotten more traction had he stayed out.
The important thing is to fight it out during the primaries and then unite behind 2020 Democratic candidate. Eyes on the prize.
6
Because there's another moderate Democrat from Indiana who happens to be way younger? Hence why he's' winning in Iowa.
6
Wrong man for the job, obviously. He needs to get out of the way.
7
It's pretty clear, to me at least, that Trump and Republican party is heading towards a massive defeat in Nov election. GOP will lose Senate majority while the house majority will probably grow for the Dems. A powerful lobby within GOP is and will continue to work tirelessly to defeat Trump and his most militant surrogates in the party and during election.
Now the question is- will the victorious Democrats change laws and norms in a way to uphold truth and justice in the country than playing the same politics of status-quo and promote "elitism". The signals are not that great at this time. An influential section of Democratic establishment seem to be tactically downplaying, if not sabotaging, Progressive campaigns in general and Sanders campaign in particular. They are promoting Biden and few such status-quo politicians even though Iowa caucus result indicates that those status-quo Dem presidential contenders are not much liked by the voters.
4
@Jackson, Not really. I never liked her from the very beginning!
@Jackson
Hillary did win the popular vote by approx. 3M votes. Don't forget that. If she had campaigned in 'Blue' States, MI, WI, PA, and ILL, she would be President via the Electoral College. FDR was a master at retail politics; Truman won a lot of voters with his whistle stop tour; voters don't like to be ignored; Trump uses rallies of the faithful; perhaps a Democrat might consider a few of those.
Oh come on, Times, get off your high horse. What went wrong for Joe Biden was that Big Media decided he was boring and then proceeded to make him as boring as possible with constant references to him being bumbling, out of touch, and old, despite being younger than Bernie.
The Republicans simultaneously carried on a sneaky campaign—forget the phone call which was just a way to grab the Media’s attention—to make Joe appear to be dishonest and the Media took the bait. Denying the charges was ineffective. With so much press attention to the Ukraine fable, Joe’s goose was cooked.
The truth is that Joe Biden was the only Democratic candidate who, according to all the polls, could have defeated Trump in the swing states, the only states that count. The African-American community knew this, but allowed itself to be swayed by the Media. Now we’re all done for. Say hello to President Trump 2020.
9
All is not lost for Biden or any of the candidates at this point in time. This is a marathon not a sprint. By March 3rd, we'll all have a better sense of this election on Super Tuesday. That's a month away. In the meantime, we all need to relax and watch an amazing process unfold that will hopefully lead to the next president of the United States.
5
If you cannot run a disciplined campaign, how are you going to run a country? Especially in times such as now, when so much is at stake for Democrats and the country is so divided it feels at times we live in 2 different countries. Maybe we do need someone more energetic (and someone younger) who can lean in 100% and energize the voters. I am leaning toward Klobuchar.
10
Oh who didn't see it coming?! Joe Biden has nothing...He had a dozen opportunities and he whiffed at all of them. No guts, no glory, Joe -- go sit on the bench with the rest of the establishment democrats who have done a lot better for themselves and their families than the country. If Joe had only stood up and said: "CALL ME AND JOHN BOLTON AS WITNESSES...I got nothing to hide." Then I would look at him different. Too late. It's always too late with this guy. Give me Bernie or give me Bloomberg.
10
Biden threw Anita Hill under the bus and gave Clarence Thomas a free pass to sit on SCOTUS until Thomas breathes his last, which might be a couple of decades away.
Thomas, a mean bitter gift to Americans, will die with his robe on one day.
For that alone, Biden is not fit to be America's president. In addition, Biden is a brittle man that Trump would snap in two for an appy in a debate.
14
@On a Small Island
Anita Hill was either lying about Thomas or neglient for not reporting him at time of the alledged incidents. As a lawyer and officer of the court that was her duty. Either way she is a disgrace.
2
@Reader In Wash, DC Come on now. Are you really saying any women who fails to report sexual harrassment is a disgrace? I think you might find that it is a pretty big list of people. I myself find it easy to believe that a young women, early in her career and in a subordinate position to a man might decide to grit her teeth and bear it rather than destroying her career. Have some compassion.
11
I'm bothered by so many negative comments targeting Biden as if he's the antithesis of Democratic values when in fact he exemplifies them and has a track record to prove it. I see increasing intolerance from the most "progressive" wing of the party, and I fear if they prevail they will abet Trump's reelection.
I rarely see the progressives discuss how Bernie/Warren will get their legislative agendas passed if Mitch McConnel and the Republicans maintain control of the Senate, which seems likely.
Many Americans actually want to see Democrats and Republicans work together; yet many progressives consider Biden's willingness to reach across the aisle a "sin." So, the idea is to keep hunkering down on divisiveness and partisanship? How about collaboration and restoration of our ideals as a "new" idea? I guess that's not negative enough.
I also have had it with Iowa's outsized influence in our political process, with the ridiculous caucus system, and after last night's fiasco, it's time for the DNC to put an end to its prominence.
10
a liar should NOT be president
6
Well we have a serial liar as president right now. Like him?
3
Bloomberg/Booker 2020
5
Anyone watching the CNN town hall with Biden tonight where he rambled on for over twenty minutes about stuttering could not have come away thinking he’s like someone’s elderly uncle who takes up an idea and gets completely carried away relating it to any tangential and obscure connections that passes through his cranial synapses. It was so embarrassing and all I wanted was for someone to gently lead him off the stage and take him home to a glass of warm milk and tuck him in bed. He is totally incapable of running the country.
20
Another Canadian weighing in on our election. Guess you lack sufficient problems to deal with in your own country. Get back to us after you have solved them.
2
@Marylou You sound personally insulted. Many of us enjoy the perspectives of our neighbors and allies around the world. I for one, agree with this commenter and appreciate the opinion.
4
His speech on Iowa's caucus night is why he's not getting elected. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vy9DiE2z6a4
5
Enough Joe. It’s done. Move on
7
Wait, people still care about Biden? I prefer my crazy old dudes socialist-and-not-senile style.
7
Joe, do the country a favor and drop out. We need more than you.
5
It’s sad to think that any Democrat running could actually lose to a racist, bigot, narcissistic, xenophobic, con man, grifter, blow hard, who has now lied over 16,000 times.
13
Maybe it was Obama's dagger in Biden's back that did it. So much for loyalty to your VP.
2
Perhaps Obama feels that it is up to the voters to decide the nominee, not a former president.
He and Michelle have publicly stated early on that their intent is to support whomever is selected as the party’s nominee. Most sensible voters would agree with Obama’s position.
7
Let’s see here. Sanders who has little record of accomplishments gets more votes in Iowa but
get a second place win. Mayor Pete with no real experience but with unquestionable history as a mayor from a dinky town in Indiana and who has an incredible lack of sincerity and very questionable ties to the Corporate state gets less votes but comes in first place. Warren who is smart as a whip and has a list of accomplishments but men think her voice is aggravating when she’s not being called racist names by Trump receives 32,000 votes and is granted a sliver of delegates. And then there’s Biden who has been taking a punch in the face for months after being dragged into a fictional corruption story and put in the spotlight by Trump, pig farmer Jodi Ernst and the GOP cult still manages to crawl from the wreckage and come away with more votes and delegates then Amy Kay!
With straw men, hucksters, liars, stingy polls, his name in the news daily during the house impeachment and the phony trial in the senate the man is still standing. How many other people do you know or any candidate how could handle that tarring. And to be attacked by Trump’ daily tweets, Fox News, the Republican party and even some of his primary opponents yet Joe Biden still keeps moving on is an enormous feat that Joe has managed.
The more the punches come in the more I like the man. Call Joe what you will but the man has a lot of steel in him. He is tried, true, courageous and tough. Biden 2020: Never Say Die
6
Unlike others I'm not as shocked that Biden finished fourth in Iowa. But then I am not impressed with the Dem candidates running. Not impressed is actually a big understatement. I want a hard charger for our President, someone that will fight for Americans and what I believe are American values. And I think Trump has shown us just how effective he is at pushing for results. And I want results. I want a president who is all in, pragmatic and effective and willing to work hard to get results. And that's not Biden. Compare Biden's campaign effort to Trump's campaign to get elected in the first place. Oh wait, there is no comparison. I'm always thinking someone should check Biden's pulse, because he speaks and acts so spaced out, seems slow to grasp, speaking sometimes incoherently when he should be forceful and articulate in his bid for the highest office. On the other hand I see President Trump always relentlessly up for the challenge of his office. And his SOTU speech last night was just another example of Trump taking charge of his speech, taking the opportunity to list his accomplishments and reassure America that he is in it to win it. I am voting for Trump for President. I want a strong President representing America. And at this point I don't see how any one of the Dem candidates can compare.
4
@oregongrown
You are in the wrong city and wrong state!
@oregongrown
Trump is running like a criminal trying to stay out of courtrooms.
Because he is.
7
@oregongrown
Trump's list of 'accomplishments' were a string of lies. He inherited a strong economy from Obama; his tax gifts will reduce future revenue needed to maintain a large complicated country; his legacy will be his dishonesty, his inability to think on his feet and deliver clear statements. Then there is that pathetic 'Wall', a portion of which just blew down in a strong wind. How much did it cost? How many military bases need upgrades and physical repair? Why were troops kept from home on Thanksgiving to confront an unarmed crowd wearing flip flops and begging for food along the way? You seem to forget his draft dodging with fake bone spurs during Vietnam. 58,000 names are on a wall in D.C.; they couldn't or wouldn't pay a quack to state they were unfit for service. My cousin served with the Marines; his best friend died there.
2
to all those arguing that Biden is too old, Bernie is older, and has one foot in the grave, and the other foot on a banana peel.
9
@Mr. scratch
It would seem the polls and the massive enthusiastic crowds for Bernie just don't match with your opinion. of course, I guess you are not a Sanders supporter anyway.
2
I see Joe Biden as the Gerald Ford equivalent to Trump. If we need to elect Biden to recover from Trump and the GOP's depredations, fine.
Biden is the best embodiment of the first rule to reversing a disaster: STOP DIGGING. The GOP is clearly bent on digging as deep and as fast as they can. Will there be a US this time next year?
But is stemming the ongoing disaster going to inspire tomorrow's citizens? Or will they move to Germany for a possible future that the US no longer provides?
1
Probably all true, along with another thing. We midwesterners don’t really appreciate a guy that, when asked a question he doesn’t like, starts jamming his finger in the chest of the questioner, and acting as he’d like to fight it out, right then and there.
11
@Steve
He also told a few that they should vote for someone else. It would seem several voters have decided to take his advice.
5
I never fear that Buttigieg will put his foot in his mouth. Never. It’s like watching a master lawyer before an appeals court. He always knows what to say and how to say it. Smart, confidant, in charge. Joe, on the other hand, is like my buffoon colleagues, where I always have angst as to what they are going to say and how they are going to say it. Win or lose, Buttigieg gives me less brain damage. He is my man.
8
I like Joe Biden and support him, but I am starting to become unsure that he can do this. That being said, I think he stands a chance of beating Trump if he wins the Democratic primary. If he doesn’t, then Michael Bloomberg might be our only hope. Mayor Pete’s pretty sharp but there still remains a contingent of morons in this country who will not support a gay man as president. (But they will support a thrice-married, barely literate insane man who cheated on wife #3 with a porn star. Riddle me that.)
I don’t think Elizabeth Warren can do it either, and candidates like Andrew Yang are definitely not going anywhere in November. It’s not that these people aren’t smart. It’s just that we’ve never had an opponent like Trump before, and so few people are as psychologically ruthless as he is and has been. And no, Bernie fans, Bernie won’t defeat Trump either. If Bernie wins the primary I’ll vote for him in the general election but with misgivings, because there’s just no way he’s going to get enough votes to win. There are people who simply will not vote for him because he’s too far left, and we’ll end up with four more years of Trump causing chaos and ranting like a lunatic. And after that, once he’s finally out of office who knows who we’ll get, because the longer Trump spends in the White House, the more impenetrable the precedent will be that a president can be a thug and still occupy the highest office in the land.
Can Joe do it? I don’t know, but I sure hope so.
3
If Joe Biden drops out does that mean Hunter has to get a real job?
10
@EGD Maybe. If Trump loses what about all his kids. Do they have to get real jobs?
4
I could have sworn that every newspaper and media outlet in America had discussed the irrelevancy of the Iowa Caucuses- YESTERDAY; to the point we all agreed it's demise was richly deserved. Now, the NYT trots out a death-notice about Joe Biden's performance in...Iowa?
The contrived reporting of 2016 simply won't die.
7
Biden went wrong with Biden. So many gaffes and displays of temper and privilege. The last that sticks in my mind is him grabbing hold of the lapels, in that gentle but even more threatening way, of a voter who had not picked him as his first choice. He's a thug at heart and showing signs of senility. Not who you want as President.
8
In my opinion, there is way too much empasis on the Iowa Caucus, especially this year. It's outdated and Iowans need to adopt a simple process that allows all of their citizens to vote easily. I suggest they use mail-in paper ballots that are easy, efficient, and secure as in the states of Oregon, Colorado, and Washington. It's not fair to the presidential candidates or populous states like California and New York that Iowa and New Hampshire should exert such influence. We don't need a gauntlet from the Middle Ages.
What we need is a three month election cycle with four geographical primaries with the final voting by mail-in ballots.
We are trying to elect an American president not the Dictator of the World much to the consternation of Donald Trump.
6
After a non-stop campaign cycle that’s been going on since 2015, the arrival of 2020 meant that maybe, finally we can turn the channel on the 24/7 Trump show. It’s been nothing but outrage, day after day. What’s real, what’s not. Most don’t have time to parse it, the echo chamber lives on.
As real journalists try to find actual voters and ask them what they think about the very serious consequences of this moment, the people willing to talk on camera typically repeat the mantra of whatever echo chamber they live in. None of the Democratic candidates seemed poised to break through the bubble. Joe just isn’t the person for this moment.
When Bloomberg said he wouldn’t run early in the “official” season I was disappointed. He was the one person I thought was best placed to go toe to toe with Trump. Not all billionaires are bad. No one is perfect. Then he jumped in, and I thought alright, now we have a contender who can win.
I believe most people are in the middle somewhere. The silent majority is still there. Why put your opinion out there when everything is so spun up? Nobody knows how any of this will turn out. Obama represented hope. The tea party took over the last decade with hate. I hope the country is ready to turn the page.
My heart is with the progressives. But you have to govern from the middle. It’s tearing this country apart. Go Mike!
3
@Marie Becker
Just another self-serving BILLIONAIRE and his money who is already destroying democracy and tearing the country apart and you want that?
3
So I will make this as simple and short as possible....
The economy is booming! Booming!!!
Why are people not able to make ends meet? Why can’t people afford rent? Why is the comment “I don’t go there” even mentioned when people talk about the wealthier part of town? Our economy is unfair and rigged and our political representatives are serving that cause. The establishment Democrats have done barely anything for the working class and the middle class. Joe Biden was the primary instigator to abolishing bankruptcy laws. Remember when we learned about indentured servitude in junior high school? If it was unfair in colonial times, it is unfair now. And you want Joe Biden to lead us? He will be the same old, same old. Those that want Joe Biden to win, those that say horrible things about progressives are those that have already made it and don’t want that to change. This isn’t left vs right, Republican be Democrat, this is class warfare and the establishment of both parties are doing everything they can to divert the story away from that fact.
7
Biden’s unsuccessful campaign experience is apparently causing him to become defensive and argumentative with reporters. For example, telling the Today Show’s co-host Savannah Guthrie that she ‘doesn’t know what she is talking about’ because she asked about his son Hunter’s involvement with Burisma in the Ukraine when Biden was VP. See it here: https://www.today.com/video/joe-biden-says-he-s-the-only-one-with-broad-support-today-s-top-news-stories-78005829781
7
Biden IS your father’s Oldsmobile!
9
Give it up Joe, you are an OK guy who now messes up his lines... time to bow out gracefully
6
The hallmark of Biden’s career is messing up his lines.
4
Trump is a brutal dictator. An absolute monarch. He rules with an iron fist. People are literally starving to death in the worst economy this country has ever had. Sadly, Vice President Biden is too old, too sick and too slow. It’s Bernie or Bust!
3
Instead of asking what went wrong with Biden the NYT should let go of the past and ask what is going right with Buttigieg.
5
It's time for vision, not nostalgia.
This is why Joe Biden's campaign lost its way.
12
I went to several different candidate Town halls in Atlanta this summer. Everyone was polling each other on who they were for. We only found one older black women that was a Biden Supporter. All of the younger, just minus 50 black folks proceeded to try to drill her why? She could give them no answer.
My aunt lives in Mrytle Beach, SC she also does not know anyone over in SC who is on the Joe Biden train. She is an 88 year old Korean War veteran and she feels he is too old!
4
I feel like telling voters to vote for another candidate is a losing strategy. You reap what you sow.
3
Sadly, Biden’s Iowa operation was absolutely terrible. Couldn’t even do the easy things. Biden’s showing could have been much better if they had a good team on the ground here
2
You Iowans should quit feeling so special about yourselves. I don’t know anyone who isn’t filthy rich who expects “relationships” with presidential candidates.
Your 2020 caucus software drama is a meaningless blip compared to Bush-Gore in the 2000 general election. I am from Florida. I know.
So chill. Stop feeling like you are entitled to relationships with presidential candidates and stop feeling like you are so special (you too, New Hampshire) by being first.
7
Pete & Bernie will be assigned about 4 more delegates each over Biden & Warren at the Democratic Nomination Convention. I don’t know the exact number of delegates needed for the nomination to be the Democratic Party standard bearer. A difference of 4 delegates will be quite insignificant by the time the Democrats get to Milwaukee. This race is a marathon. A fast start is essential to win a sprint - not a marathon. Bloomberg is also counting on the fact that this race is a marathon. News media has repeatedly emphasized that Iowa is not an ideal sample of the Democratic electorate. So why are all these reporters so breathlessly predicting the results of the marathon based only on the first 100 yards which has been run on an unpredictable terrain?
4
What a blow to our confidence in the democratic process. The results should not have been called at 62% of the total vote count (what was the point of that?), and Pete Buttigieg, who is appearing less and less likeable, should not have prematurely and repeatedly declared a victory. Had he waited for the ultimate count, assuming he still wins (even though Sanders has more popular votes, a discrepancy few understand and the media has not adequately explained), he would still have entered the New Hampshire primary with an impressive showing. He should have shown more reserve. The mask is coming off. He is my least favorite candidate of those remaining in the race, including Biden.
5
This is a blessing in disguise for the Democrats.
Joe Biden is a shadow of his former self - he's inarticulate, rambling, and lacks the mental acuity of the Joe Biden of a few years ago. He makes Trump look youthful by comparison.
And given the Ukraine brouhaha, all we'd be hearing about during the entirety of the campaign is Trump going on about Hunter Biden, Ukraine and corruption (and the media wouldn't stop talking about it either). It's Hillary's emails all over again.
If Biden fails to recover, Democrats will have dodged a bullet.
23
All these angry Trump supporters are forgetting one major problem . There won’t be an economy any where if there GOP Trump don’t stop coal use and oil. Look at Australia and the triple digit heat Mumbai and there water wars. Someone has to stand up and close the coal mines and oil . With Mr Biden not on the ballot there is one more Dem I am interested in voting for and that is Mr Bloomburg. He will stop all coal and oil use and force the rich to pay taxes. The others don’t even talk about those issues . Very sad day if Mr Biden is out of the race.
1
What happened? Easy. Most polling is done by phone. Due to authorization needs, it is done by mostly calling landlines. The older generation is the generation with landlines so you're mainly going to just get their input. It's no secret he appeals primarily to that generation. He has limited social media following. He is not and has not been a popular candidate with the masses. The online dem surveys are a PITA (I have yet to finish one because of this) and need better technology on the backend to be useful and insightful. My party needs to get their technology out from the golden ages and get to work on getting this criminal voted out of the WH. I hope Iowa has been a wake-up call.
3
What went wrong? Hunter Biden.
5
Right now I am listening to Andrew Yang on CNN. He is brilliant, funny, articulate, a fresh voice. I have heard heartfelt, compelling arguments from Buttigieg, Klobuchar, Steyer. Warren and Sanders are too strident for me, but at least there is passion and conviction in their message. From Biden all I hear is platitudes and the same entitled approach that led Hilary Clinton to defeat. If he had not been Obama’s VP, he would poll about as high as Michael Bennett. Do you need any other explanation for why his campaign is failing?
18
I think Trump has yet to wreak more havoc here and abroad with major consequences to the naive sense of pseudo-economic success that some supporters applaud or use as an excuse to put up with Trump. Besides, Trump's successes are based on misinformation and deceptions. It may come to bite him at the voting booth. Unless, of course more lies with the help of Russia may help Trump a lot.
2
I was a supporter but no more. I have donated $700 to Biden for him to come in 4th in Iowa. And what’s worse he cannot raise enough money to propel him through Super Tuesday. Now Biden is insulting voters and going negative towards Sanders and Buttigieg. It won’t work. I’m with Bloomberg now.
10
It will be and must be Bloomberg
7
Bloomberg or Pete for me. Well, at least that is what the NYT told me in their recent 10 question quiz to align a reader to a candidate based on values. Both of them were my choices prior to that quiz, so I feel confident that I’m supporting the right candidates.
Personally, I’m tired of old politicians. Many countries are now starting to vote in the younger generation. Bloomberg is of the older generation but if Pete was knocked out, Bloomberg all the way. I would LOVE to see a Bloomberg/Pete ticket. That would be a mighty force against our presiding “president”.
5
The older one gets, the more one wonders how much longer one's one faculties will endure. And one also wonders more why one is doing what what does.
5
Joe Biden is toast--and frankly so are all of the Democrats. The contest at this point is to choose who will lose to President Trump. The losing Democrat will probably have a margin of loss a bit better than McGovern--but not by much.
Only person who had a more miserable performance than Pelosi yesterday was Joe Biden. Another reason to smile on Acquittal Day. Vote for America--Vote Republican.
9
a vote fo 45th, is a vote against decency, common sense, and the US and the world
11
@Jonathan
Vote for sanity.
3
@Jonathan
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”
—Proverbs 16:18
3
Joe Biden's biggest campaign asset is his firm grip on Obama's coattails. Other than that, Biden's most notable position is that he's dull. Moderate, perhaps, but dull, definitely. And that's not what a president can be in this time of cataclysmic climate change, fascism, and the rise of a rapacious new aristocracy across the globe. Biden isn't up to it.
12
Biden played the part of Biden and came in fourth. He's just not presidential timber. The owners of the Democratic Party who pushed him in the race will now quietly change horses. They will not own Mike Bloomberg, but he is emerging as a force to be reckoned with if the Dems insist on a middle of the road candidate rather than a progressive one. This is getting very interesting.
12
@William Dufort
Progressive voters will NOT support another billionaire Oligarch like Bloomberg whom ,with the blessing(and his money) from the corporate/establishment DNC has bought his way into this primary defying all elements of democracy.
If Blooomberg is the nominee, many democratic voters will stay home and Trump is in for another four years and the democratic will implode.
3
@Deus
That would be very unfortunate. Bloomberg is mentally sane and a successful businessman. But my point is, if the Dems insist on nominating a moderate, Bloomberg would be a stronger candidate than Biden who is a Hillary redux but with a smile.
Trump will be reelected, because the Dems are playing to a wing that scares the average American.
6
yes, the corporate wing
5
@Is
Full employment means total pollution damage to our water and air. We will all be wearing masks in the near future with Trumps deregulation of the coal mines and oil drilling. Look at China and the horrible smog fog . They have to were masks for decades now and i bet there water is polluted also. Low employment means major pollution to the rest of America.
2
No...the guy that promises free everything and now wants the Government to take over the entire electrical grid. Nominate that fool and say goodbye to our Democracy.
2
What went wrong for Biden? He is a has been. A great candidate for the Republican Party 8 years ago. His candidacy like that of Jeb Bush's 4 years ago was doomed from the start. Everyone--except the New York Times--has known this for a long time.
19
Seems a bit early to conduct a post-mortem! I am not a Biden supporter, but this article seems like the journalistic device of wanting to present a desperate narrative to attract attention to what may be a short-term setback. Of course, it may all turn out to be true, but there are three more primaries or caucuses within the next 3.5 weeks, with vastly different voter demographics. Hold your horses on writing him off!
5
@Ted
He has already got a money problem and with his so-called "firewall" in S.C. it has gone from a 30 point lead down to 5 points and he is way behind in California.
4
Joe is past his sell-by date…which occurred soon after the Anita Hill “trial”
17
Hey
Why did you remove the Pledged Delegate count from the Iowa results? There’s no explanation. Transparency please!
3
@Ian Brooklyn
I didn't see the popular vote count in the NYT, either, did you?
2
^This guy^ is sailing off name recognition, and his association with Obama. Nothing substantive, and Uncle Joe said it himself,
"Nothing will fundamentally change."
Uninspired, to say the least. Joe makes Trump look charismatic.
12
What happened?
Impeachment.
Trump went up. Biden went down.
8
".. unified crowds of Ms. Warren and Mr. Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., in a major test of organizational strength."
You're forgetting someone who drew HUUGE crowds in Iowa.. typical for a centrist news source.
8
"I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a "nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man"
- Joseph Biden, 2007
'nuff said.
P.S. I am Scottish, not Russian
13
@Is, the strange thing about this kind of complaint is that African-Americans are big supporters of Biden, yet you feel offended on our behalf.
Pardon me for simply quoting Mr. Biden.
Stay tuned for more quotes of him during the Clarence Thomas hearings as they appear in a retrospective that will be out soon.
3
Come on. Biden lost because his time passed about 25 years ago, and he is still living in that past. Out of touch doesn't do it justice. Nor does he have any coherent vision for the future. He's just another politician jockeying for power, and poorly at that. And let's be honest. He's about two clicks short of a bumbling idiot. Nobody's voting for that.
17
Sad to say, but Vice President Biden is just too old. It’s Bernie or Bust!
5
Uh, hate to tell you but Bernie is a year older.
7
Bernie guarantees a Trump second term/ and he is even older than Biden
6
@Fred
Bernie is OLDER than Biden!!
6
Hard for Biden to compete with an up and coming guy like Mayor Pete who generates excitement and has appealing personal qualities. Biden's foreign policy record is pretty poor which may be a disqualifier
3
@Alan, Biden has an excellent foreign policy record. He's the only candidate with real foreign policy chops. That's one reason I support him.
Joe isn’t mentally and verbally quick enough to be president. He’s tired, he’s grieving and lacks energy and vision. But knowing Trump will credit his bullying influence as the reason for Joe’s political demise just kills me.
13
Joe Biden is a good man who served honorably in the senate and as Vice President. That being said he is damaged goods. Allowing his son, Hunter Biden, to accept a high paying position for which he had no qualifications will be used against him should he be the Democratic nominee. Hunter Biden is the equivalent of Hillary's emails. Joe's failure to rein in his son is his Achilles heel and will not pass the smell taste with the American electorate.
15
@ Bob
And trump passed the smell test?
God help us.
2
@Semper Fi
You are right about Trump. I'm afraid he is in for a second term due in part to the Dem's insistence on impeachment. Partisan impeachment only rallies his base. The last thing we needed
“But he now faces jittery donors”
Always about the donors.
4
Sorry, but it was a lack of organization (itself a function of other factors, of course) that doomed Biden in Iowa. I may be pleasantly surprised that the candidate I volunteered for since May (Buttigieg) now seems to have pulled off the win we at Team Pete all worked so hard to achieve, but Biden’s showing hardly came as a shock here. Not once on those cold Saturday mornings of canvassing from September through January did I cross paths with a soul from Joe’s campaign, even if they could be seen everywhere pounding the pavement in Iowa City this past weekend. So, too little too late pretty much sums up things for Biden in the Hawkeye State, as evidenced by the mere 23 supporters he mustered at my caucus on Monday at the first realignment. That’s 23 out of 846.
6
Biden should have told his son not to accept the position with the Ukraine oil company. He should admit that was a mistake and drop out. Trump got his wish and he paid the price with impeachment. The only winner is Mitt Romney, a class act in the senate.
3
@Kodali
Except Biden didn't know. He lets his grown up kids have their own lives unlike Trump who micro-manages his boys.
1
@Kodal, should Sanders have told his wife not to accept the job? Should he admit it was a mistake and drop out?
Biden did advise his son against accepting the job. You don't control what an adult child does. Obviously Hunter's job has nothing to do with the Obama administration's efforts to end corruption in Ukraine, which Joe Biden led.
Because of the efforts of the Obama administration and our European allies--because of Joe Biden's efforts on Obama's behalf--Burisma was investigated. Had Shokin remained in power, neither Burisma nor any other company would have been investigated.
The conspiracy story circulating on the right makes no sense on its face. If there were a conflict of interest, you would expect Biden to cover for his son rather than have the company investigated.
3
Joe Biden does not make people enthusiastic, Bernie does.
7
@BC not only Bernie, but Yang, Buttigieg, Warren, even Klobuchar and Steyer. The only one more boring than Biden is Bennett.
4
@BC, Bernie makes Trump enthusiastic.
2
@SandraH. You believe that? Bernie is the one Trump rightly fears.
1
What went wrong for Joe Biden? Donald John Trump’s scheme worked. The suggestion of impropriety tainted the Biden family name. Even those who would normally support Mr. Biden assumed the drumbeat of negative commentary from DJT would be used against Mr. Biden during the campaign.
Take it from a former young girl. When a nasty boy spreads rumors about you, it’s just about impossible to get your reputation back.
6
Democrats establishment... keep trying to force feed the people mediocre pols.. Hillary, Biden and who is next.? Some other political hack. This is how you lose the nation, the Senate, State Houses...
Clinton corporate Dems have gutted the Party and we now have Trump... and chaos in Iowa as they try to kneecap Bernie, yet again.
8
Biden should quit now, and give Buttigieg and Klobuchar center stage so they can edge out Sanders.
6
Mr. Biden's had his place in the sun.
7
That wonderful picture by Hillary Swift for the NY Times
of Biden surrounded by the media while the voters are
kept away on the other side of a rope line says it all:
Joe, were spending too much time with the wrong people.
8
ONE primary and Biden is history?????
Maybe supporters who look "tepid" to you young smart-derriered liberal east coast reporter's is simply older adults who are darned serious about this and we don't Don jump around and scream like maniacs.
This is AGEISM at its worst.
NOT against Biden -- against his supporters who the data shows skew 30 years older than the Sanders screamers
Well WE vote.
As do black citizens
To write off the black voters' #1 candidate before any of them get to vote is not only unfair, it is a death knell for our party.
We cannot win with Pete or Bernie -- we need a candidate who will attract the DIVERSITY of America.
2
#1 candidate's own words:
"I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man"
'nuff said
7
@Is, thank you for explaining what obviously escaped us. Now please drop it.
First 46 years living off people (democrat). Has never did anything. Time to leave him and see if he can live on his own.
3
'Mr. Biden was also a less-than-inspiring presence on the trail' says it all. He is too old and relies on contacts from the past and his standing in the party to do his work for him.
Time has passed him by.
13
No one, and I really mean no one, gets excited about the thought of Joe Biden being president. We like the idea of him beating Trump, but the man himself doesn’t generate any enthusiasm. As many others have said, his time has passed.
The way for the Democrats to win is to nominate someone who voters get excited about seeing in the Oval Office. I could get excited about all the other top candidates, but Biden is old and uninspiring.
10
@Helen Jacoby, you don't speak for everyone.
This result puts to the lie Trump's so-called request for a 'favor' against his political rival. I always thought that was a weak charge, especially since the request was made months before Biden declared his candidacy and nobody knew if he would be Trump's 2020 opponent. This result confirms my suspicions; Joe is not a political rival, and never was.
5
*Narrator voice* Everything went wrong for Biden in Iowa. Bless his heart, but this isn't in the cards for him. But he should, and will, make a great surrogate for the nominee.
5
A certain type and generation of politician - like some legacy media companies, mostly not including this one - has failed to realize how fundamentally the game has changed in just the last decade or two. Thinking that it’s “my turn” as Hilary Clinton once did, and Joe Biden recently did while running tepid and “safe campaigns, is woefully inadequate.
In this time of instant expression from anyone and everyone, those with the most forceful, compelling and engaging messages will get the most attention. Aggressiveness, speed and impact are the order of the day. Uncle Joe, with his folksy, bumbling ways and past-its-prime performance, does not fit the bill. And he was always a more of a lieutenant than a captain anyhow; that’s why he was never nominated when he was more relevant and more capable.
I pray to God one of these Democrats can beat Trump and save us from the abyss. But I don’t think it will be Joe Biden and never did.
7
I am exceptionally disheartened to learn that Biden "ripped into his campaign manager Steve Richetti" instead of slowing down, taking stock, considering his own accountability and whether or not he is really someone who can reach the youth vote. This is not the contrast to Donald Trump that I am interested in. And, his campaign workers? It has to be so disheartening to work so hard, to wind up a target on top of facing loss and having to recalibrate. (The blamers of Iowa should also be thinking about that as their vitriol flies.) The Democratic Party I recognize wants to be the party of compassion, integrity, accountability, above all.
4
I asked my sons, both in their mid-20’s, what “malarkey” meant to them. They had no clue.
Just like Joe.
9
Mike Bloomberg is the only candidate Trump fears and that just may be what it takes to win. I like a Bloomberg-Klobuchar ticket.
5
Joe Biden is failing on ABCDs.
A - Appearance matters - be it public speeches or TV interviews. Campaign cannot keep him shielded for fear of gaffes.
B - Boots on ground matter. Sanders and Buttigieg have better ground game.
C - Crowd size matters. His crowd size pales compares to Warren and Sanders.
D - Donors matter. He has consistently lagged behind on quarterly donation hauls.
Unless he mounts comeback in NV and SC, his campaign may fold before April.
5
My Super Tuesday vote will be for Biden. Iowa is irrelevant to me.
1
What went wrong ? Biden is not good on TV and he at times answers questions as if he had a mild stroke or maybe hard of hearing.
Sad we Democrats don't have better candidates ,but hope springs eternal ,it ain't over till it's over.
5
Biden did a fine job helping Obama win the presidency 2x but he made serious mistakes in the way he handled the Ukraine situation. Before Trump's election all the major news outlets including the NYTs were looking into Biden's apparent conflict of interest with his son on the Buresima board of directors. During the impeachment most of the same news media outlets tried to minimize Biden's position. The Iowa voters obviously were concerned about Biden's behavior. The Democratic moderates don't have the fire that the progressives have. Buttigieg is a young face the voters like. Sanders has a passionate following that has the Democratic establishment losing sleep. Non candidate Hillary Clinton continued bad sport tour that brings discredit onto herself.
6
I wouldn’t write Biden off yet. Let’s see what happens in the South. Bernie, Pete, Warren can’t beat Trump. If Biden drops out, I am going with Bloomberg.
5
I agree with those that say change is best accomplished incrementally, but the Joe Biden story is most likely over.
The Democrat party wants fresh blood that can show how corrupt President Trump is and Joe has the dual swords of Damocles hanging over his head.
Hunter is a major liability, he’s a deadbeat dad and a father like Joe can’t admit he looked the other way because his son had a chance to make big bucks off of his connections to the Obama administration.
Did Hunter do anything illegal? Who knows? But the fact that it looks swampy and possibly corrupt blunts the corrupt Trump must go narrative. Joe is probably a good and flawed man, but his time has passed down this country needs leadership with moral clarity that can unite and not divide this nation.
5
I am not a democrat, nor could I ever support the direction their party has taken. I would love to see Bernie be their nominee because the result would be a slam dunk for President Trump.
However... the way the democratic party has once again cheated Bernie out of his rightful place as the leader of their pack is shameful, hypocritical, unethical and says volumes about the real values of their party.
7
@ Ramster
Sorry. It is difficult for me to accept the shameful, hypocritical, unethical accusation from anyone who supports trump.
8
DJT ..mission accomplished. Months of dishing dirt on Biden took out the front runner in the polls. Biden had skeletons, that were exposed by his rival....that is the new game.
4
Sanders is a Socialist who wants to take away 150 million Americans insurance. Good in small doses to those who aligned politically with ‘Meathead’ DOA VS Trump.
Buttigieg, I can just see Trump talking about him and his husband. DOA VS Trump.
Biden, makes Jeb look Lehigh energy. Yesterday’s leftovers. Mr Sominex. DOA VS Trump.
Warren, possibly the most unlikeabke candidate since the witch of the west. DOA Vs Trump
Yang Klobuchar Steyer names from a crossword puzzle. Yawn.
Mikes the only real candidate. America will make a choice. It will come down to Trump’s sizzle vs Mikes content and steak.
2
Joe Biden was smeared by Trump machine.
They are going to continue to smear his reputation which has been one of gratitude and respect for service. The Ukraine assignment from Pres Obama was to act in concert with our allies to attack corruption and Biden did. Twisting his activity there is part of the smear campaign!
Why? Biden can beat Trump and they know it?
3
Joe Biden is yesterday's mashed potatoes from 208. He is the past. No to Joe Biden. Period.
6
Biden is an extremely solid candidate with unparalleled experience. But we need dynamite.
3
Joe got Jeffed. His chance in NH might not be so good either. That said, he still have the Africa-American bloc. If not, he should pull out sooner rather than later to back either Pete Buttigieg or Mike Bloomberg
I'll tell you "what went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa:"
The general public found out he fired the Ukraine prosecutor who was investigating the corrupt Ukraine gas company that was paying his son Hunter a million bucks a year.
If the whistleblower had not cranked up the whole Ukraine Phone Call Hoax, most people never would have heard about Burisma.
Karma is what it is called.
7
@99percent
FACTS Please. Biden didn't FIRE anyone in he Ukraine. People don't fire public officials in other countries
The Obama administration sent Biden as the representative OF the U.S. government to say we and a dozen other countries believe that this official is NOT pursuing corruption. He was fired by the president of Ukraine.
Obama could have sent same message with any Cabinet officer. Biden was the message carrier -- nothing more. He made no decisions and had no authority.
And the prosecutor was fired for NOT investigating anything
So you have every fact exactly wrong.
BUT you have every TRUMP lie repeated word for word.
2
@99percent, where to start?
1) Shokin wasn't investigating Burisma or anyone else. He was REFUSING to investigate anyone because he was corrupt.
2) Biden didn't fire anyone. He represented to Obama administration in its efforts to root out corruption in Ukraine. Our European allies all wanted to get Shokin out and an honest prosecutor general in
3) Because of Biden's efforts, Burisma was investigated. It stands logic on its head to claim the Biden was covering for his son, so insisted that Burisma be investigated.
4) Trump's phone call was real, and something he was proud of. Perfect, remember? So was his little extortion scheme using Rudy and his gang.
Why is a Trump supporter weighing in on Biden?
1
@kathyinct
Fox News might be more destructive than Joe McCarthy who had specific targets. Trump attacks anyone who speaks against him or his policies; he doesn't have Hearings; he has rallies which attract people willing to physically attack his 'enemies'.
What "went wrong" for Biden is ... Biden. He's too old, not too bright, and if he didn't't spout antiquated ideas, he'd have no ideas at all. Time to hang it up, and BTW, Joe was not all that great as a senator.
7
Trump sadly just won 2020. And his cult will suffer.
1
What went wrong for Joe Biden is what's wrong with today's Democratic Party.
The party's "big tent" has admitted too many angry, radical, neo-progressives who are anti-business, anti-capitalism, who are motivated by Envy and Identity Politics, and who are selecting the party's presidential nominee.
They are rapidly ensuring a second term for Donald Trump.
240
@C Nelson Sounds like the Party needs to allow more people under its tent considering how many elections it's lost in the last 20 years. What an undemocratic statement, to claim that "more people" in the party is what's ruining its former frontrunner, just think about what you said for one second.
61
@Marc
Please re-read my comment.
What you attributed to me is not what I said.
8
@C Nelson
And the calm, moderate, conservative ones who are businessfriendly, capitalist and not so prone to identity politics selected Mr. BIden simply because they could not find any better candidate to advocate their purposes in actual situation. So he was approved as their candidate in their party.
That's where THEY are today. Mr Trump loves this situation even better than self-declared "socialists" he can deal with them directly now.
10
I really don't like sitting at the "grown-ups table" sometimes, it makes me feel like the bad guy.
It's wholly unrealistic for folks - and their respective Presidential favorites - to be calling for a "revolution," when the reality is that our country is entrenched in division and divisiveness.
If we pursue the promised "revolution," where will that leave all the folks who so vehemently oppose such a revolution?
Lasting, meaningful change is always incremental, especially when it comes to government.
We should be working towards an evolution...of ideas, civil discourse, unity, and re-learning how to work in community again with one another with authentic accountability, shared responsibility, and mutual respect.
Folks want a "revolution" because they want their President to "do it for them;" to do the hard work of rebuilding for them. It doesn't work that way.
If it isn't obvious to you right now that the government won't be our Savior - we will - you haven't woken up yet.
Joe Biden is the candidate who can provide the experience, character, wisdom, maturity, and strong and steady change the country can tolerate.
He may not be the sexiest choice, but sometimes we have to take our place at the "grown-ups table"...and make the wisest choice.
11
I agree that he has all that, but he still needs to get votes to win
2
@Is
Well there has only been ONE primary. He will own S Carolina.
I suspect that by the time the Democratic National Convention rolls around in July, the results of the Iowa primary may seem irrelevant. Considering what took place last night, that will be poetic justice.
Me. Biden may have miscalculated his campaign in Iowa, but he’s the only viable candidate the Democrats have now. The other three competitors have too many issues to convince conservative Democrats, evangelicals, and Latinos to vote for them. Some too radical, too socialist, too inexperienced. Biden appeals to a broad range of voters for his experience, time in Congress, and character. He can seal it by selecting a running mate from the gop. It would unite Americans, attract moderate Republicans, independents, and African-American /Latino evangelicals, and social conservatives. Romney or Kasich are great candidates, if they are interested in saving our democracy and standing in the world.
3
Outrageous that anybody would think a Republican should be the VP candidate after what has transpired over the last three years.
3
Support for Biden has been tepid from the beginning and his campaign coffers show it. He's been seen as the safe choice to beat Trump but if Democrats are only lukewarm about a Biden candidacy, too many won't show up for him in November. The idea that disenchanted Trump voters will vote for Biden may be wishful thinking.
On Super Tuesday I think Michael Bloomberg will take over the Democrats' center lane. He has what Joe doesn't--deep pocket$.
9
@Mark McIntyre
Anyone who votes for Bloomberg doesn't want a democracy -- they want a plutocracy.
1
What we saw on TV was prescient. The polls told us otherwise. We believed the polls. We should have believed what we saw with our own eyes. This is a man much more aged than most of us recall him. Whether it's stuttering or not, he cannot speak without stumbling over words and ideas. He's not inspiring as he needs to be. For those of us who liked him in the eighties, his performances have been painful to watch. Voters in Iowa saw the same man the rest of us saw and they voted for someone else.
6
Biden is quick to get agitated, a common flaw in old men. His campaign started from a position of DNC entitlement, the same way that Hilary Clinton started her campaign which ended in a loss. Better that we know now, rather than after squandering many millions in donations in hope of a different outcome.
But the real economic stimulous package that needs to end is the Iowa Caucus. Obviously, the caucus system is a major part of the State of Iowa's business plan, but this outdated nomination system also squanders human resources that could be directed to other states. Replacing all the money that pours into Iowa every 4 years will be difficult, but such an archaic method of choosing a nominee is clearly incompatible with the modern day app.
6
It's early days. Joe can make some corrections, regain his footing and be back in the race. He actually has ground to give. As soon as the front runners are under the microscope there policies will get the attention to detail they deserve. It's going to be a long slog to the convention...
1
Any reasonable person knows both Biden and Sanders are too old for the job. If they stepped out of the way we could sharpen our focus.
7
Ukraine hurt Joe and that will not go away. Pete a hard pull but can collect ‘moderates’ falling away from others, Bernie needs to link Trump with the 1%ers and there is enough evidence for that.
Elizabeth is right to be on the left but getting nervous and may damage the party outcome if not careful.
Trump needs to be exposed to the initial insurgent support that put him in and Sanders can do that. America is not well and most folk know that.
3
I live in New Hampshire and travel through a good chunk of the state.
Less than a week to go before our primary, I have yet to see a *single* Biden yard sign, bumper sticker, or TV ad.
Poor organization indeed.
7
Biden's poor campaign performance is reason enough to disqualify him from nomination. Democrats make the same mistake again and again, seemingly learning nothing: running poorly organized campaigns. It's the kiss of death for presidential runs.
I thought after Obama ran that the Dems had finally gotten their act together. Then came Clinton's disastrous "cloak of inevitability" campaign. "Safe" candidates run tight campaign ships. Unsafe candidates presume they are voters' only viable choice, become complacent, and run their campaigns and presidential prospects right into the ground.
Sometimes the simplest answer is best. If Biden looks like he doesn't know what he's doing, perhaps that's because he doesn't.
6
I'm afraid Joe has lost his fire. I was behind him in 2016 as I thought he was a better choice than Hillary. And he may have been able to win by carrying the midwest that she lost. But he has lost a step, has not shown the fire he had before, and has had too many moments lost in the cul-de-sac of campaigning.
5
Biden has been snakebit in Iowa in all three of his presidential runs. In 2008 --- where he finished 5th with 0.9 percent --- he had a legendarily poor field operation. According to this report, the 2020 organization may have been worse than then.
The good news for Joe is that he never needs to campaign in Iowa again.
7
@Caroline Miles The important thing to know about Iowa is that these candidates go to every one of the 99 counties. People of all ages and incomes go to hear them. We listen and listen well. We shake their hands and get a real feel for who they are, not just what their stump speech sounds like. Our opinions -- and our votes -- are based on real evidence and careful thought. Yes, our Iowa Democratic Party leaders messed up collecting the votes and have caused a delay. But that in no way diminishes the deep consideration all Iowans put into their vote when we go to caucus.
4
Two important elements are missing from Biden's candidacy. 1) He's not showing fire-in-the-belly for the office. He has to make people believe he's excited and driven to become the next president.
2) He needs to show an understanding that the country is changing by indicating a willingness to embrace ideas that take him out of his comfort zone; he needs to embrace the passion for change that's driving younger politicians.
1
Biden supported the worst foreign policy disaster since the Vietnam war. He has been a relentless, career-long enabler of the worst excesses of the financial services industry. The death and mayhem of nearly two decades of war, and a great recession that destroyed the income security of millions, have completely corrupted our political life. Trump sprang from the toxic stew that men and women like Joe Biden, however unwittingly, created. He's a blast from the past that most are content to forget.
The irony of Iowa is that Biden's whole schtick is based on his presumed ability to appeal to white mid-western voters. Turns out he doesn't appeal to even the Democrats amongst them. The only real supporters he seems to have are conservative, aging black voters from the south - which is great except none of those states are "swing" states. I'm beginning to think that the only candidate who can beat Trump is a fighter like Sanders or maybe Warren - but yesterday's leaders are just that.
9
I’m so over Iowa at this point. This article should have waited until NH voted.
1
I think we should all brace for a contested convention. I don't see anyone winning enough delegates to win the nomination. I will vote for whoever does eventually get the nomination but he/she will be weak, I fear, after the attacks from every angle. Furthermore, for those deluded enough to think Warren supporters would move to Bernie, get a clue.
1
It hasn't helped Biden that liberal pundits have been picking him apart for a year. When Trump wins again the media should not be surprised. They eat their young.
1
What Went Wrong for Joe Biden?
The impeachment showdown drained the energy from his campaign.
He was the only candidate that could beat Trump in November.
Get used to idea of 5 more years of the current administration.
Unlike Sanders and Warren, Biden had nothing to do with the impeachment. They had to fly back and forth to DC while Biden had time to focus on getting votes, or whatever one gets at a caucus.
2
Biden is still my guy but that doesn't mean I wouldn't vote for any of the other candidates. Vote Blue I'm 2020!
4
I don’t think Biden wants to be in the hot spotlight of a presidential campaign. Instead of blaming his staff, he needs to look in the mirror. I don’t believe his heart is in it.
10
He strongly believes that WEED is a gateway drug. That stance alone is what turns me to voting for anyone else.
2
I have no idea what went wrong for Joe Biden, but whatever it was certainly went right for Michael Bloomberg.
1
For the past several months polls indicated a mediocre showing for Biden in Iowa and NH, but strong polls in SC and Nevada and other states after. I think the press is trying to make a story out of something that was known all along - Biden was not going to do well in the first two states, but well thereafter. If he does poorly in SC/NV - then you have a story
1
Apparently two people believed Biden could win; Joe and Donald. Both should seek better counsel.
2
… kind of a parting shot from and for the celebrity-packaging marketeers who thoughts Joe Biden might be feted to give them a good return for their six-seven-figure publicity campaign fees.
2
At 80 myself, I hate to say it: Beyond a certain point, variable for each person, age does matter. When, closing a debate, Barack Obama said that he'd devote his time and energy to the country, I thought to myself: He's got more energy to burn than the other guy. Of course, raw youth doesn't suffice either. Nor does political correctness. Big job!
2
I'm watching Joe Biden on CNN Presidential Town Hall as I type. It is sad to watch. Mr. Biden cannot complete a thought.
7
The NYT and the rest of the mainstream can’t let go of Biden. He’s finished. He was never a real Democrat and he was never a “moderate” Democrat. He was always a solid conservative like the old dinosaurs we used to call moderate Republicans. What doesn’t the media understand. We don’t want Democrats who will cave on everything to Republicans- which is the media’s version of “cooperation.” Biden was a pro at caving into Republicans. We don’t want anyone who will help the Republicans continue to destroy this country and turn it into a Dictatorship. Plenty of blame for the current disastrous state of the country goes to the NYT and the mainstream media.
8
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa? Joe Biden. He's a nice guy who doesn't have a clear message or vision for the country.
Unfortunately, he blamed his staff tonight on CNN. Never a good look.
10
Come on.... Biden continues to defensively answer questions from voters by telling them to vote for someone else, by ridiculously taunting them to engage him in some macho stunt, and to wave away questions about his paternalism and misogyny, still on public display.
Biden is a sloppy thinker, an old timer used to the smoky backrooms to make "bipartisan deals," and he is the target of almost every GOP senator - the same people he insists he can deal with to "get things done." Things never being explained.
He's weak, he's old, he's being treated for atrial fibrillation which puts him at an elevated risk of stroke, heart disease and emboli. This entitle white man needs to step down now, while he has some degree of dignity intact.
One of these days, a debate moderator is going to pit his record with banks and finance against Senator Warren's work on behalf of Americans drowning in debt from predatory banks and medical expenses. The result will be a death sentence for Biden's campaign.
Biden has a choice to make: becoming a party elder statesman, or taking the Democrats down yet another path to doom.
This time, the democracy may well not survive his entitlement.
13
Fairly or unfairly, like it or not, and no matter how disingenuously they choose to treat inquiring journalists, Hunter Biden is a giant piñata permanently chained to his father's neck. It's called reality.
The longer Joe Biden stubbornly chooses to remain in a state of deep denial, the worse it'll be not only for him and his family, but, ultimately, for his party and, in a larger sense, the American people and the future of our country. His ego is blinding his common sense.
For the sake of Democrats, independents and any other voters who don't belong to the cult of Trump, the self-deluding "front-runner," who found himself fourth in Iowa, must find a way to exit the race gracefully. And soon. Preferably by avoiding abject humiliation.
We keep hearing from candidate Biden that the detestable demagogue in chief, now with free rein beyond any legal or constitutional constraints, is "afraid" of him. Other than himself, who's he kidding? Donald Trump is surely salivating.
9
Nothing happened to Biden .. he is a lack luster candidate w delusions of grandeur ... enough of the old ... has the party learned nothing from the fiasco that was Hillary Clinton?
7
"What Went Wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa"?
I think I can help here...
Every time he appeared in public, he looked and sounded like a doddering old man.
Bernie is old, but he doesn't look or act it. Biden still talks about record players, like anyone under 50 knows what they are anymore.
And, he regularly misidentifies the town or state in which he is speaking.
Biden looks old, out of touch, and everything he says sounds phony as a three dollar bill. Why is anybody surprised that he is failing in his campaign?
13
What went wrong in Iowa is what's going to go wrong everywhere else.
2
There is no mystery about Joe Biden's plight. It is not his fault or his campaign officials. Everyone, including his opponents like Joe, but the sad fact is that time has passed him by. Joe Louis and even Muhammed Ali fought one fight too many. We all need to recognize when that time has arrived as it does for us all. Young people want a new face, most Democrats want change and the old guard has simply become irrelevant. No changing of campaign managers or a different message can fix that. The challenge is to find someone with energy, conviction, and money who can beat Trump at his own game. Bloomberg sure fits those requirements. The rest, not so much.
6
Why is everyone acting so surprised. This is part of a trend that has been going on for years. There have been lots of primaries where voters on one end of the spectrum or the other are more energized and turn out in greater numbers to support candidates who are more ideological. That is how we end up with people like Mark Meadows and AOC in Congress. But a win in Iowa is not the end of the story (remember Howard Dean?) A presidential campaign is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s way too early to write Biden off or to declare someone else the nominee.
1
@John C
Howard Dean finished third in Iowa and quit a month later. John Kerry won the caucuses and the nomination.
3
Joe Biden still has high dollar donors, the Democratic establishment behind him, and good national polling numbers. What he has always lacked as a presidential candidate is the ability to connect with voters and here he also lacked a strong ground game. Sanders and Buttigieg have both of those characteristics. However, it is best not to conclude much of anything from Iowa results. Ted Cruz beat Donald Trump in Iowa last time out; in 2012, Rick Santorum narrowly beat Romney; in 2008, Obama and Mike Huckabee were the winners. You just don't know that the winners there will win elsewhere.
4
I am an Iowan. I went to hear Biden speak a few weeks ago. He is a wonderfully warm and caring person. However, as I sat listening to him, it was clear that his best days have come and gone. The gist of his message was that he is the most electable candidate. He did present concern for struggling Americans and veterans, which I appreciated. However, what was missing was a vision for the future. A plan to combat climate change. A plan to increase income and provide affordable health care to so many struggling Americans. He talks in generalities. What we need are vision and concrete plans -- plans that will work and make a difference. I truly wish the best to Biden...as he looks forward to a well-deserved retirement.
12
The cognitive thing is becoming more and more apparent. He starts a sentence and suddenly there is embarrassed silence as he tries to remember what he started to say.
The fact that Sanders and Mayor Pete are leading makes it clear the voters want to see some fresh candidates with new ideas instead of recycled politicians who should have retired.
52
@Premier Comandante
Sanders is "fresh"??
1
@J Darby his policies drive debate in the party. He is certainly the ideological leader, and these ideas are pretty fresh.
2
As a resident of Iowa, unlike virtually all posters who probably can't find the state on the map, I'll give you my take. Donald Trump aptly described Mr. Biden as "Sleepy Joe". His performance was abysmal in small groups (challenging an 80 year old to a push up contest) and could never fill a high school gymnasium. And HS gyms are generally small out this way.
His reason for running was he is the most electable. Sort of like Hillary's "It's my time". That didn't sell in Iowa.
Mr. Trump's impeachment brought to light some less than ideal character traits. His defensiveness about his son's involvement was understandable but wound up really damaging his reputation.
His events were poorly organized and rather haphazard. He counted on the Catholic vote and then promptly stuck his finger in the eye of those who supported a right to life. Whatever you think about abortion, he felt compelled to change his longstanding views to his detriment.
Working class citizens, the majority of the population, figured out he'd never held a job in his life that wasn't being a politician. Weak connection with the average guy.
In summary, he's lucky if he winds up coming in 4th place.
44
If he’s such a long shot, why was the other party so worried about him that they’d risk so much to try and set him up on the phony Ukraine thing? Iowa, by the way, is a lousy predictor of anything when it comes to presidential election - in fact, it’s a contra indicator! Yes, he looked tired, tired of having to deal with so many other candidates on stage who had zero chance of winning anyway. He’s the biggest threat to the other party, he can capture the center - and everyone knows it.
@Bill
"Working class citizens, the majority of the population, figured out he'd never held a job in his life that wasn't being a politician. Weak connection with the average guy."
Now do Trump.
But when all is said is done, I wouldn't crow about what sells and what doesn't sell in Iowa.
I'll tell you what didn't sell. Iowa. Sure didn't put Iowa and Iowans on the proverbial map in a good way. This fiasco sure didn't reflect well on the Iowa Democratic Party, the caucus system, and Iowans in general. Sorry to paint the entire population with a broad brush, but really?
Caucus secretaries struggling to find 15% of 256?!?!
That mayhem of alignments, non-functioning apps, screaming people, inability to count, and flipping coins was an unmitigated disaster and a national embarrassment as a whole and may very well be the kiss of death of Iowa as first primary nomination contest.
Oh, and the 41 delegates up for grabs are an infinitesimal portion of the 1,990 total delegates needed on the path to nomination, so negligible for Biden.
2
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa was that the Democratic Party had no real plan for how to reveal the caucus results. And they still don't! They are continuing to release the results haphazardly (e.g. as they happen, or as they are verified), instead of going with a scheduled release, planned in advance according to some agreed-to criteria, and then managed to plan. Examples of such criteria might be: biggest jurisdiction to smallest, or easternmost to westernmost, or most Democratic to least Democratic, or even by lot.
The important thing to realize is that having a plan, and following it, is almost always the way to a positive outcome. Which, alas, is certainly not what the Democrats did in Iowa.
Knowledge may be power, but it can be easily be frittered away ...
2
Wait, so coming in essentially last place wasn't the problem? The problem is how we found out? Lol.
4
Actually, the last time Biden ran in Iowa he was below 1 percent. This is a huge increase. The last time he ran in New Hampshire in 2008 he garnered .2 percent of the vote to Hillary's 39 percent. So maybe presidential runs are not Biden's thing. After all, his campaign experience prior to the Obama presidency was winning in the great state of Delaware, which has a million people. That is more than Flushing but less than Queens.
Biden is also far beyond his prime. Historically, a man in his late 70s doesn't run for the presidency. Prior to Ronald Reagan, the oldest candidates for the office were in their 60s. Biden appears to have very little appeal on a national basis to anyone except senior citizens and a plurality of African Americans. He looks like he is twenty or even thirty years too late to the party. I do realize other Septugenarians are doing fine but he isn't.
25
Joe, I've got news for you. It's not the campaign staff, the tactics, the organizing or anything else except for one factor. And that factor is the candidate. This isn't Delaware, where the bankers can just install you.
23
"Some party officials?"
LOL Any 10 year old could see it coming...Biden is a career politician and twice failed presidential bids, who has a problem with touching young children and pay for play when he was VP with his son.
He was NEVER a serious candidate / NEVER more than a distraction.
Simple as that.
20
But, he will provide us with some comic relief
2
Same old non descriptive VP with no new message of inspiration. He never should have run. The worse is yet to come on Super Tuesday!
12
It's not went wrong in Iowa. It's what went wrong when Joe announced his candidacy. He was past his sell-by date, and for a politician not to see that spells bad news down the line. Time to retire from running, Joe. You were probably always more of a family man than a political animal, and that is to your credit. Find peace and satisfaction in that.
25
Democrats—I would like you to listen to someone you are going to need to vote for you in the general election. I am a white, college educated white male (also known as the cause of all problems in the world). I am an independent. Fiercely independent to the point that friends from other parties can never quite pinpoint as to where I am. No one knows my thoughts on Trump; because I don’t talk about them.
But here is where I stand: I think Trump is a danger to this country; and I think the Republican Party has fallen for a cult of personality and that they did, in fact, fail to uphold their constitutional duties.
But I am also not a fan of the direction of the Democratic Party. Am I enthused about Joe Biden? I am enthused by the prospect of getting Trump out of office and that he is the most electable for independents.
Democrats, I’m begging you to step back and be realistic and strategic. The most important thing right now is to defeat a dictator. If you keep going in the direction you are going this election—you are just as responsible for this madman winning the election as the cowardly Republicans who voted to acquit him.
21
Biden was only ever a serious proposition in the DNC establishment's mindset of denial.
10
whats going wrong for Biden is simple. its whats going wrong for most of the Dem,esp those who bailed already. lack of energy...lack of the needed warrior spirit. plus Biden promised to go after Trump...but he's not doing it. none of them really are. we want a fighter, with a bit of eloquence to frame the attack on Trump. they're just not doing it. like always, the Dems stink at messaging.
4
Biden should have stepped aside and let Hillary Clinton run again. She could have energized voters who felt that the last election was stolen from her by Russian interference.
1
Russian interference did not cause me to vote for Trump in 2016. A severe dislike of Hillary Clinton made me vote against her.
5
Yeah, a third try from Ms. Clinton is really what the country needs....
6
@Barbara Dayan
Again, there is no indication that interference from Russia, or anyone else, affected the results of the 2016 election, or the 2018 midterms, for that matter. None, zip, nada, nil. I almost wish the Dems win in 2020 so they give this lollipop some rest.
1
The main lesson from Iowa is that they should never again be the first voting primary state. In addition to the oft cited (and good) reasons to dump Iowa--low population, not diverse, Ag welfare state--we can now add massive incompetence.
15
Iowa was a right hook and South Carolina will follow with a crushing left. On the canvas we’ll have a thorough repudiation of tone deaf ideology, the one two delivered by both the hollowed white middle class and newly woke black Americans no longer satisfied with the deferred promises of our shameful centrist democrats.
12
When the Biden campaign decided to undertake its "No Malarkey" bus tour, my first thought was, "Who says the word 'malarkey' anymore?" To which I thought, "only old white guys who grew up in the 1950's or early 1960's, and somehow think we still live in a 'Leave it to Beaver' world, rather than a 'Black Lives Matter' and 'Time's Up' world." Maybe it sounds like Joe-speak, but to me, it only underscored how uninspired his campaign is.
43
So in our precinct, there was no precinct representative for Joe, but there was a table, with two, pencil written pieces of paper saying, Joe Biden. Amy, meanwhile, had a half dozen green garbed greeters and BROWNIES. I rest my case.
13
@Jack So far it looks like she came in fifth. She must have used a bad recipe for those brownies
2
I have a question (and challenge) for all commenters hating on Joe Biden...but cannot imagine living under another 4 years of Donald J. Trump:"Whatcha gonna do" if Joe Biden wins the nomination? Refuse to vote? Write in another candidate? Vote for Donald Trump?
My first choice dropped out. My second choice is below Biden and Buttigieg but if Biden is the Democratic nominee- I. Will. Vote. For. Him.
What will the rest of you do?
7
Same thing as 2016, vote for the Democratic nominee. What are YOU going to do if Mr. Sanders gets the nomination? Vote for the nominee, or pass and guarantee another 4 years of Trump?
Ms. Clinton sure seems to think 4 mire years of Trump is better than a President Sanders. What about the rest of you 'centrists?'
3
@ Candlewick
Rest assured. I will vote for anybody the Democrats select as their candidate.
1
@Mike
Your question is rather uninformed: I am not the one foaming at the mouth- via comments about the *unappealing-ness* of any particular Democratic candidate. Of course I will vote for ANYONE nominated as our Democratic candidate. Please re-read my comment and grasp the gist of what I stated.
I have a few thoughts about this, which conflict with each other to some degree.
1. In the scheme of things, Iowa doesn’t matter that much. It gets outsized attention for being first in the nation, but it has a tiny number of delegates. It doesn’t deserve all of the resources that are poured into it.
2. However, if Biden was seriously trying to win Iowa, the result does not bode well. Hillary’s organization and tactical strategy was rather poor in the 2008 primary, as well as in the 2016 general election. We cannot afford to have another badly run general election campaign.
3. Biden’s team should have done a better job of downplaying expectations. He was going against Buttigieg and Klobuchar, two Midwest moderates, for the Midwest moderate vote. He should continue to downplay expectations for New Hampshire, because that is Sanders territory.
4. The total moderate vote (Buttigieg Biden Klobuchar) exceeded the left wing vote (Sanders warren). This is an early indicator that the Midwest wants a moderate candidate. I am still concerned that we will ultimately end up with Biden, who will might lose to Trump.
6
Joe Biden represents the past. He's not the right candidate for this time. There are extremely serious, difficult problems to solve that are part and parcel of the current times. He's not shown vision, or much strength in the debates. Time for someone who has something to say other than he wants to beat Trump. They all do! That goes without saying. What else does he have to offer? Those with vision and clearly articulated ideas are better positioned to win the nomination, and to win the presidency.
27
Biden comes in 4th? What a bunch of malarkey!
9
"There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat. And we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures."
If Biden had run in 2016, he'd be president now. He didn't, and he's not, and he never will be. I only hope he'll show more grace in defeat than Hillary, and keep all his remarks positive and restrict them to the few venues where he can effectively help his party win.
29
I don't believe that Mayor Pete, Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren have a snowball's chance in hell to beat Trump. It is my belief that Biden is the only one who can do that.
Is it possible that the Russians also believe this and that in some way they are making sure that one of those candidates wins the nomination and Biden doesn't?
If this is true can it be exposed and stopped or am I being naive?
12
@Renee Richmond Biden is losing because he's running a terrible campaign, has no message, and is showing clear signs of cognitive decay. The Russians aren't forcing him to do that.
40
"It is my belief that Biden is the only one who can do that [beat Trump]
Really? Then it's 4 more years.
7
Give it a rest. The Russians didn't steal the 2016 election, Ms. Clinton blew it. Big time.
4
With all due respect to my fellow Iowa Democrats who worked their hearts out for Joe, the fact is that his time has come and gone. I’ve never believed those polls showing him beating Trump in key states. Like his Iowa campaign, they will wither under the assault of Republican attacks. We need a younger and/or more dynamic standard bearer.
15
Campaign organization was lacking at the grass roots level. I was pressured to be a precinct captain when I lacked experience. A person who knocked on my door on behalf of Biden was very nice but obviously from out of state and appeared less than committed.
8
Joe Biden isn't out of touch as the left-wing of the party would have us believe. He's out of energy. Late at night, you can watch him fade. Even Bernie, post-heart attack, has more energy. Warren struts across the stage. Biden didn't even have the necessary energy to defend himself against Trump. Something he currently needs to do. Energy is the one thing that the eventual nominee will need to counter the lies thrown at them. All the remaining contestants have that.
16
Joe Biden should have never entered this race. His presence hurt other moderate Democratic candidates. He was always a lousy Presidential candidate and now his age has made him worse. Age is not automatically a liability - Sanders and Bloomberg are older than Biden, Trump is already our oldest President, Warren would be older than Trump at start of her Presidency that Trump was at start of his, Buttigieg is only 37 - they are all fine age wise. It’s only Biden where age has become an obvious liability (combined with and compounded by his lifelong propensity for gaffes and miscues).
Biden will be out of the race by March. He will have embarrassed himself. He will have hurt the Democratic Party. He will have made a Trump re-election more likely.
He served the country well as a Senator and as Vice President. Should have ended his legacy there.
Should have never run.
30
Disagree with this sentiment stridently. There are several others like Sanders who can’t bring himself to be called a Democrat. If Sanders wins the Democratic nomination what party banner will he adopt? Bernie has not passed 1 bill through the House or through the Senate. The Congress will eat him alive. Preventing a 2nd heart attack should be Bernie’s immediate and long term priority.
2
The writing has been on the wall for months Biden would fail miserably. He should have known something was wrong with his campaign and message when Warren and Sanders were speaking to crowds in the thousands while he could barley get 200 in a room.
12
@Rit
Biden was not the one who miscalculated. It was the Party establishment and its media cohorts who pushed him on us.
2
Joe Biden's campaign is built around his supposed ability to win back white working class voters who went from Trump, but he can't even win them in a Democratic caucus! How can anyone take this candidate seriously?
12
This line from the story says it all "After spending months meeting with candidates, the Vilsacks — who supported Mr. Biden in his first presidential campaign, in 1987 — informed Mr. Biden in a phone call that they would endorse him." That is a span off 33 years. In 1987 I was in the second year of my career, one year out of college. I was eligible to retire last year and Joe Biden is still running for the same job. Mr. Biden's time has long since passed. He does not seem to get it and perhaps he has nothing better to do with his life. It is sad to see other people past their sell by date like John Kerry out in Iowa endorsing him or Caroline Kennedy writing an Op - Ed piece in the Boston Globe supporting him. Some people can never gracefully walk away in life.
7
He has succeeded in his mission, to give Democrats a nationally-electable candidate. That's why he jumped so far to the top, so fast, without really doing anything.
But he did prove Democrats crave normal, even with all of his flaws, more than they want revolution.
And as soon as there's room for a candidate offering voters a 'normal' experience (not that he, himself is normal) we notice the contender who has even less to do with the institutions of the Democratic Party than Tulsi, Michael Bloomberg.
5
I think it's too early to count Biden out. He's the only candidate who has the support of African-American voters. Iowa and New Hampshire are outliers. Whoever the democrat nominee is they will need that support to win. I think Biden will do much better in those later more diverse states. I"m not sure any other candidate can energize African American turnout enough to beat Trump.
3
It is not Joe, it is not Iowa, it is the party. They have shifted left and Joe has not been able to shift with it. An old politician in new times. Is there a graceful exit for him or do we need a pound of flesh.
4
Biden has been running for President since 1987 and never made it out of Iowa. Time to give it up.
27
Biden is the guy Trump is most afraid of. He succeeded in tarnishing Biden. His allegations were completely bogus, but the lack of any effective response allowed the tar to stick. Thanks, Hunter. Your silence was devastating to your father.
Note that Trump makes no reference to Sanders, ever. That’s because he is praying he’ll be the nominee.
Those two observations should tell primary voter all they need to know when choosing who to run against Trump.
4
Absolutely right. Biden can beat Trump. The Iowa caucuses do not cast this race in stone
Joe Biden needs to sit down and be humble for once in his life.
13
Bernie won the first and second round of delegate counts. He also won every satellite caucus. Also the Iowa Democrats are holding the inner city primaries where Bernie is strongest. This caucus count is a complete fraud manipulated by Shadow inc. a Buttigeg and Clinton supported app scam. All of corporate media continues to claim Buttigieg leads Iowa when he clearly tried to manipulate the vote count to claim victory.
4
Spend more face to face time in Iowa.
REALLY?
2
I guess Joni Ernst is happy.
Here's an example of the insularity of the Biden campaign:
For months, the crew of the podcast Pod Save America has hosted long interviews with nearly all the Democratic candidates and other leading Democrats. Not Biden though. PSA hosts have resorted to pleading with him on-air to join them, as apparently the Biden campaign hasn't even responded to their outreach.
The PSA guys worked in the White House for the Obama administration. They clearly love and respect Joe, it's the friendliest interview he'll ever have. 1.5 million people--skewing young-- listen to each episode. And Biden's campaign can't be bothered?
(I have no affiliation to PSA, except as a listener)
10
It is easy to understand what went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa. The impeachment hearings and trial made it clear to the voters there (as it will to voters in every primary state to come) that as a result of his unethical ( at best) and illegal involvement concerning his son and his own billion dollar quid pro quo with the Ukrainian officials (at worst) Joe has become tainted goods. Regardless of what side anyone takes on the impeachment issue, one thing is clear. Joe Biden is dirty.
8
You have no idea what happened in Iowa. And that is NOT what happened in Iowa.
I was an early supporter of Joe. But he doesn't energize people, and he proved to be a poor public speaker. Thousands of Iowans saw that, and many of them turned to Pete Buttigieg instead.
It had nothing to do with Trump's made-up charges of corruption. (Of all people to wail against corruption! See: Trump University and phony charity, to name two.)
Pete would eviscerate Trump on the debate stage. I hope I get to see that.
1
Joe is 77 and has enjoyed every opportunity to rise to the top of the Democratic field. If his campaign had legs it would already be apparent.
The fact is he is not executive leadership material. He’s an admirable Senator and was an effective VP to an excellent President. End of story.
Pete’s the guy.
15
Nancy Pelosi destroyed Mr. Biden’s chance.
Her bogus impeachment of Trump tarnished Biden forever. And did nothing to damage Trump. Shame on her.
11
What happened? Joe! (Biden) happened.
As uninspiring a candidate and as predictable a loser as Jeb! In 2016.
13
Goodbye Joe me gotta go me oh my oh...
5
Biden came in last because the American people are not as stupid as they think we are.
When he wanted to beat up the guy who bad mouth his son, people thought OMG another Trump. The last thing we need is another Trump who doesn't prepare because he's in first place?
He got old, real old, and Trump will make a fool of him.
He should have addresses the Hunter issue day one.
Bring up how half of the government has their kids working at jobs because mom or dad are in office.
Look at the Trump kids.
I'm done.
I wish him the best.
He controlled the polls & as a result good people didn't qualify.
I don't believe the polls.
5
It’s all top down. That dawg won’t hunt.
5
Bye, bye Biden. Biden bye. bye.
5
Why didn’t this article run months ago. Seems like the NYTimes knew he was in trouble and hid it
9
Anyone who's been paying attention could have predicted these results. Sure the polls may have shown Biden in first or second place but polls only measure support, whereas caucuses are a measure of the energy and enthusiasm behind a campaign. Nobody is going to go to spend two hours at a caucus on a cold night to passionately advocate for a candidate whose message, to the extent he has one, is "nothing will fundamentally change".
7
I worked for Bernie Sanders out in Des Moines. As I went around the city, there was not a single Biden yard sign to be seen.
10
He is nonviable. He garners no interest and excitement. He is tarnished by the Ukraine corruption. If he can't gain interest in Iowa, he will gain it nowhere. Put him out to pasture ASAP.
27
It might have something to do with blatant corruption? ?
14
So, what's the message going forward for groupthink's most favored "electability" candidate, "Fourth Is the New First"?
If memory serves correctly, Joe Biden was fifth in Iowa's 2008 caucuses, the previous time he was there, well behind Bill Richardson and barely ahead of Uncommitted. He immediately ended his candidacy.
With all due respect to the punditocracy, conventional wisdom pales in comparison to actual votes -- and the ability to motivate significantly large numbers of people to cast them in your favor. It's safe to say, then, that "Losing Isn't Winning."
Mr. Biden arrived on the Washington scene 47 years ago and dropped out of his first race (of three) for president 33 years ago. And citizens outside of Delaware have already had ample opportunity to "kick the tires" when he's at the wheel campaigning and not joined at the hip with Barack Obama.
It seems that most Democrats prefer a better brand. Besides, rationalizations for why Mr. Biden underperforms have become not only predictable, but tedious. It looks doubtful that he could inspire the scale of turnout needed for victory in November.
15
Perhaps the question is why was he reported to be leading. This is at least his 3rd presidential campaign. He has never caught on with the public. Not even close. Go back and watch him at the Waco hearings.
People have selective memory. They forget that Bobby Kennedy was a henchman for McCarthy chasing communists and later responsible for destroying labor unions before he discovered "the poor".
10
This very paper editorialized in 2015 about Hunter's position on the Ukrainian Burisma board. "This is not a board he should be sitting on".
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/12/opinion/joe-biden-lectures-ukraine.html
Joe Biden was VP. He apparently didn't get the message. Yes, he should have forced Hunter to resign, or resigned the office he swore to uphold.
Spin it anyway you like, but when I learned that the son of the vice president had accepted $3M for a no-show job, with his father's acquiescence, I felt betrayed. So did the Ukrainians.
Joe forfeited his opportunity to be President when he ignored that clear conflict of interest. It gave every Republican Senator something to hang their hat on today, in voting "Not Guilty".
It soiled our nation's reputation in the eyes of 40M Ukrainians, and despite the mainstream media doing their best to say Joe did nothing wrong, so anxious were they to impugn Trump and elect Joe, voters know how just plain greedy and stupid it was.
Joe still won't talk about it. "It looks bad", he recently said. It was bad.
Bidens arguably took Russian influenced money before Trump took a Russian meeting in Trump Tower. Enough.
24
You’ve just accomplished a complete rewrite of history. Biden was not “complicit” in Hunter taking the job— he tried to talk his son out of it. As far as having a conflict of interest, that claim would sound more believable if Biden (I.e.. the Obama administration) hadn’t helped remove the corrupt prosecutor general who refused to investigate Burisma (or any other company). Biden’s efforts, together with those of our European allies, ENSURED that Burisma would be investigated.
All of this makes about as much sense as the conspiracy theory that Democrats would hack their own servers, then give the results to Julian Assange, a savage foe of Hillary Clinton.
I especially enjoyed your line that Burisma is connected to Russian money (it isn’t) and that Biden is therefore more tainted by Putin than Trump.
Why push all this disinformation? Who are you supporting?
1
@SandraH. If what you are saying is true, that Joe Biden was not capable to keep his son out of Ukraine, then my personal opinion of him is even lower than lready is !
If he is unable to stand up to his son how can he stand up to the enemies of the Country ?
3
@SandraH.
To write that Burisma was paying Hunter all this money for nothing is willful blindness and intellectual dishonesty.
3
Funny. The impeachment proceedings damaged Biden far worse than Trump. A Pelosi backfire.
13
Let's put this in perspective. Approximately 170,000 mostly white people voted in Iowa. That's it! Representative of nothing. I'm a Biden supporter but am concerned, but no ready to write his political obituary, which the media seems to have been doing for months!
Let's reassess after Super Tuesday
2
I agree Iowa is not a good reflection of the makeup of the country. And many of us don't want a caucus and don't want to be first.
But people in Iowa saw Biden up close and personal, and didn't really like what they saw: He is low-energy, he looks tired and old, and he's a muddled speaker. Many Iowans, including me, turned to Mayor Pete. I used to think Biden was the one to beat Trump. I don't think that any more. I will vote blue no matter who, but I hope it isn't Biden.
2
Biden declares the state of Iowa full of Malarky.
10
What went wrong for Joe Biden...?
He listened to moneyed interest that whispered in his ear he should run, that he'd win, that they'd back him with all their money and might (with a hand up his back to help).
In other words they took advantage of a sundowning politician they thought would be an easy mark. They see that all the power of the DNC and its sycophant media can't keep We the People from seeing Joe for what he really is.
Toast.
Thus the big $$$ and the political powers are moving on.
Leaving Joe to grasp and spin in circles wondering where his new friends and benefactors went.
Greener pastures Joe.
Just as it's time for you too sir.
You've had a good run and made your mark in the history books.
Go find Jimmy and pound some nails. It's very cathartic and might earn a few more karma points we can all use before we stand before St. Peter.
Thanks Joe.
Bye.
9
Joe Biden's problem in IA was being Joe Biden. The guy has no business in the race. Step off.
12
Biden should have listened to Obama when he said "Joe you don't have to do this"
8
@KR where’s Obama? Seems like he doesn’t support Biden
Joe Biden should never, ever say he could work with Republicans. This is a divided nation and after what we have seen coming from the GOP and Trump, there is no reason to expect he could change that. Why does he continue on that path? Bloomberg was once a GOP and he helped elect the likes of McConnell. That is really hard to take.
5
"His support appeared tepid ..."
That's the entire Biden candidacy in a nutshell: tepid. Nobody, absolutely nobody, is excited about Joe Biden's candidacy, including Joe Biden.
He's a reluctant warrior, a patriot who felt called to do battle with a toxic foe. He seems to be gritting his teeth through it all. I can't imagine him really wanting to be the President of the United States with all of its immense pressures and profound challenges. It just radiates from him.
Biden has always seemed so very wobbly, his front runner status entirely the product of the media and pundit class' coronation and self-fulfilling prophecies. When the best thing they can say about his debate performances is that he didn't blow it spectacularly, you know the bar has been set low.
He would not only be demolished by Trump in the election, but tortured by Trump during the campaign. I don't want to see Biden, a good man, go through that.
Let's not kid ourselves: Sanders and Warren are not real candidates outside the hard left Democratic bubbles. Buttigieg isn't a giant killer.
The only hope we have is Bloomberg. In many ways he's the Bizzaro world version of Trump, who by contrast will expose Trump for the silly little cretin he is.
39
@Livonian The problem with Bloomberg is that he thinks the nest, but he is a Mini Mike and I don't mean his height...
1
Joe,
sorry but is time to go, you need a hobby.
Thank you
20
The most incompetent president in the history of our nation. The most disliked president in the history of our nation. And we're going to have four more years of him.
Biden can't do it. Bernie can't do it. Warren can't do it. Buttigieg can't do it. Klobuchar can't do it.
Sherrod Brown could have, but he chose not to run.
This country is circling the drain.
12
@Mike
Bloomberg CAN do it.
14
@Mike - the country is doing great. It's just your state which is circling the drain.
8
Circling the drain ? Really!
Arizona, land of lizards and dust storms and storm troopers.
California GDP~3 trillion.
Arizona gdp~250 billion.
Don’t let facts stand in the way of a good delusion!
2
what is wrong is allowing the parties to control the election, its time for some independent group to run them and have every state follow the same rules.
It time except that the Republican and Democrats have FAILED this country for too long, they been in the pocket of the rich since the gilded age and the only way to end this is get rid of both parties
4
Doesn't surprise me. Buttigieg and Klobuchar are both excellent alternatives to the same old democrats that have been our choices recently. What a contrast they make to Trump. They have great ideas and instill confidence and energy. Unfortunately, Biden only represents a re-hash of ideas.
5
The man has ZERO to add to the mix. Go home and relax Joe.
24
Actually, it's pretty simple: trump's smear tactics that worked against Clinton are now working against Biden. I listened to an interview with Iowa Dems declaring that Biden was very corrupt with regard to the Ukraine thing. Had the facts all wrong, but were sure he was "corrupt".
trump gets the simple-mindedness of a significant portion of the population and knows how to exploit it.
6
Joe- No need to blame your staff. If you could internally absorb Steve Rattner's economic stats and memorize Steve Schmidt's anti Trump message you could do so much better.
As for the Iowa voters - the Democratic National Committee needs to "fire" these people and hand over the prized first place primary to some other state where voters are diverse and where they cannot be bribed by a Tater Tot casserole!
7
More info for readers.
https://mobile.twitter.com/sethyefrican
The "Bernie to Patrick/Warren to Steyer" errors arent limited to that last data dump. They were discovered last night.
2
What went wrong for Biden happened 1,000 miles away in the House of Representatives. Talk about an own-goal.
.
Shining the light on Ukraine trying to get Trump and save Biden was about the stupidest thing the rabid Dems could have been done. Because despite the media's ignoring the Burisma dealings of Hunter Biden, Americans took a look at that and thought, "corruption".
.
And they took at look at Joe and thought, "corruption."
.
And we're sick of it.
.
The media and the Dems are broken and killed Biden's chances in the most idiotic way. Good job.
23
100% saw it coming; I've been saying it for a year. Go home Grandpa Joe.
21
It is evident the Ukraine's affair damaged to Joe Biden.
20
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa?
Joe Biden.
23
What went wrong for Joe Biden?
Answer: Joe Biden
9
WHY are we wasting time on this guy whose time has come and gone???
15
This is all Obama's fault. Biden was laughed out of Presidential politics in 1987, a small-state sinecure in the Senate for twenty years, then washed up again in 2008, until Obama used him strategically as his running mate. So now this is your guy?
30
I love the guy. But he's become hesitant, even slow. In a debate he would appear awkward. And Trump would make it obvious. Buttigiege on the other hand would make Trump look stupid.
9
He plagiarized a paper in law school; for most law students this would have meant the end. He plagiarized (in full) a speech by the British Labor Party leader Neil Kinnock. So much for honesty.
He voted in favor of the Iraq War and is responsible for the confirmation of Clarence Thomas. So much for judgment.
He looks like he's tried to make himself look younger with plastic surgery, a hair weave, and tooth implants. So much for age-appropriateness.
He has campaign aides and surrogates blame his obviously over-the-hill mental acuity on a stuttering problem.
Joe, please go home. You aren't presidential timber AT ALL!
37
Dear NYT:
Let's see if we get all this straight.
Biden winds up with zero delegates out of Iowa, gets home-towned in NH and then boofs in Nevada?
Crazy Bernie is positioned to drive wins everyone except S. Carolina, where Tom Steyer is second to the faltering Biden, who spends too much of his campaign time rubbing the hair on his legs, and begging for cash.
(It cannot be true that now the Trump impeachment is over, Biden reportedly is looking to Burisma for a secret loan of bitcoin?)
We all love Mayor Pete, but Party activists are worried about his white skin, modest resume and small hands.
And to cap it off, Liz Warren came in 4tth in Pocahontas County, Iowa...
Oh one more thing. After today, DJT will always be acquitted ....
13
Joe's a hack, always was a hack, representing special interest is his profile.
Why Obama didn't demand Joe's resignation when son Hunter joined the Ukrainian company's Board, god only know.
16
Biden was never a viable candidate. I took the NYT “poll” - the questions were rigged. Questions CB like “do you think it’s CB important to elect a woman, gay, ...”; “do you believe in universal healthcare”; “college tuition for all” etc - a No answer gave Biden a win.Except that I would vote for Pete B. It’s CB significant that he carried most of the counties! I expect the Dems are using the same pollsters- just as they used a failed software company because some highly placed Dem knew the CEO.
7
Remind me again: who is John Biden?
7
Meanwhile Vladimir Putin rejoices, as Democratic infighting among unelectable candidates only aids his stooge, the Donald.
5
Why would the NYT not headline Buttigieg's victory? No one wants to hear about Biden. One would think the NYT could comprehend the Iowa results and explore the candidate. Disappointed in the Times.
14
AP still thinks race is too close to call so would be premature to declare Buttigieg a winner. He still may get his headline once all the results are on. OTOH not to soon to see that joe Biden performed badly in IA.
4
Not sure why all the rather tame behind the scenes dirt is relevant. Biden for what ever reason is just not the right candidate for the now and should gracefully go out and then strongly get behind the ultimate nominee. I know he will pick up a lot of delegates in the states that will go Republican even if Hitler were the nominee, but can only muddy the Democratic nomination campaign waters and hurt the party.
4
Kissing his granddaughter on the lips sure didn't help.
11
Why is it so difficult for the NYTimes to use the headline “Pete Buttigieg won Iowa”? Put your own intent of political influence aside, acknowledge and report the facts. The news is not what happened with Biden or Sanders but that Buttigieg moved ahead and forward. Period. Move on.
11
mayor pete is a a gay obama -- personally revolutionary, espousing the policies of eisenhower republicans
15
Biden looks more exhausted and not up to the challenge of the campaign each day. Go home, Joe. You’re no match for the crook in the White House.
10
Why don’t you ask Obama...
4
Joe Biden has health issues and shouldn't be in the race. We don't need another Yeltsin being controlled by a relative as the country is being raped by oligarchs and foreign bankers.
8
Ah, suddenly everyone's a political expert AFTER the results are in.
I think he needs to lose the "malarky" thing, the 50s wants their word back.
13
@J Darby
...and their record player...and their push ups...
3
Maybe he should have ran in 2016 instead of stepping aside for Hillary. This is what happens when you try to subvert the Democratic process. You get someone like Trump in power with no hope of getting rid of him. The democrats should have had a full field in 2016 and let the delegates decide. Instead they anointed Hillary in advance and used the super delegate to make sure she got the nomination. The rest is history.
14
I like Biden but was sorry to see him get in the race. Frankly, he's just too old. He should have put his positive reputation behind Kamala Harris or even Elizabeth Warren. Running was a mistake.
5
Good Lord !!
Surely its blazingly obvious that Joe Biden as part and parcel of the Republican-Lite Pelosi Schumer democrats, is no longer viable.
It's over for him, in fact if the Party had had even a lick of common sense, they should never ever have sought to stick him in as their latest so obvious annointed one; that whole charade failed abysmally with the Hillary Clinton debacle.
Bernie Sanders will go on to win big in New Hampshire, and in spite of the formidable obstacles this Republican-Lite Democratic Party throws in his way, he will go on to be the nominee and easily beat the Trump abomination.
January 20, 2021, we will all watch as President Elect Bernie Sanders is sworn in, by the Chief Justice of the United States of America, as our 46th President.
And Trump will be no more, having crawled back into the wilderness of his own seriously impaired mind.
8
It's time for ol' Joe to retire, write a book, and hit the speaking circuit.
Hey, Hunter could join Papa; together, they'd make millions!
(Not that they'd necessarily be in it for the money, mind you.)
8
The problem Democrats have is that if Bernie gets the nomination, Trump will be reelected. We saw a little bit of the Republican-Russian campaign against Bernie at the State of the Union, and they will massacre him on healthcare. I'm afraid that if Bernie doesn't get the nomination, he and the bros will again divide the Democratic Party, and Trump will be reelected. It's a lose-lose for Democrats the way things are going.
12
With the utmost respect, one cannot make a silk purse out of an old animal's ear - regardless the species.
I think what we see and have seen in Joe Biden the past year or so is as good as it will get with him. He is who he is - no glitz, no glitter, no nonsense.
I like the comfortable feeling I see in him, his stability and ability to be so compassionate. He truly has empathy and warmth beyond any other candidate I have ever seen.
But I also realize that there are a lot of younger voters out there who don't want "Gramps" as the president. That's what our adult grandchildren call him. I shouldn't complain too much because at least they are thinking and talking election stuff. They are interested in "new blood" and "newer ways and ideas".
Frankly, I could see either Mr. Biden or Pete B. as president but for very different reasons.
I keep remembering what Yogi said one time, "It ain't over until it's over".
Let's play ball and vote.
3
Who's surprised by this?
Nobody except political columnists and pundits.
What this shows is the sham science behind most polling.
12
Is someone’s identity in any way related to their ability to perform as a good leader? Comments that someone is “too old” or “too white” for the presidency have nothing to do with their political views or ability to function as a great president.
4
@Christian
As someone fast approaching 60, I can confirm that yes, sometimes we are too old for some things. Sorry, but that’s reality.
1
Biden's problem is not that he was beaten by Trump's lies or his voting history in the senate, he's just old, boring and out of date with the times. We don't want to go back to the good old days, we want to move forward to better days.
15
What's taking so long in Iowa?
The additional delay can't be explained by a malfunctioning App or busy phone lines.
Is the DNC rigging the remainder of the results, as suggested by our president?
13
Why aren't you blaming Russia?
2
What went wrong for Biden? It was Joe Biden running for President. He never does well. It would be news if he did.
9
What went wrong with Biden, you ask. What went wrong with Warren. She won one county and finished 3rd barely about Biden.
Biden probably has a South Carolina firewall with a win there giving some momentum heading into Super Tuesday. Biden can do well possibly win in several Super Tuesday states.
I don’t see Warren actually winning a single state, absent Massachusetts.
Iowa cooked Warren’s goose not Biden’s.
6
It seems like just a few months ago, the common wisdom was that Biden had no chance whatsoever of coming in more than fourth in Iowa, and many pundits were saying his campaign's main task was to avoiding falling to fifth or even sixth place.
Well, he came in fourth and NOW we are being told his campaign is in dire trouble? Huh?
Also, the common knowledge LAST week was that first place in Iowa was Sander's to lose... and he DID lose.
Isn't THAT a bigger story than the one of Biden performing just as predicted?
________
"Joe Biden is the clear frontrunner in the 2020 Democratic race for president. Or he’s faltering, slipping into fourth place as he loses ground to Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and an ascendant Pete Buttigieg. Those alternate realities are playing out in real time — reflected in Biden’s solid standing atop national polls versus his middling performance in Iowa and New Hampshire surveys on the other."
– Poltico, November 11, 2019
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/11/biden-iowa-new-hampshire-2020-poll-numbers-068769
1
Biden's a strawman. There's nothing to him, no real principles, just air, just him. He'll be gone shortly and good riddance. Obama knows. Sooner or later Dem. partisans have to come to their senses and nominate someone who has a fighting chance of beating Trump. And it's not Bernie Sanders, either.
7
If such extremely shady shenanigans had occurred in Russia or Venezuela, within minutes Mike Pompeo would have been holding a press conference demanding a new election under UN supervision and an international coalition of sanctions. It’s hilarious how we are constantly staging coups, implementing sanctions and arming violent militias on the basis that their government has an illegitimate democratic process, yet our own most important electoral proceedings would make any third-world tinpot dictator blush.
The difference between a true totalitarian dictatorship and us is that the totalitarian dictatorship enforces one political belief system which supports the status quo, whereas we get the freedom of choice between two political belief systems that support the status quo. The entire system is stacked to ensure the continued rule of the oligarchs, spooks, and warmongers who really run things behind the two-handed sock puppet show of our official elected government.
5
All these comments on whether he should have passed the ball vs taking the three-point shot are silly. Biden doesn't really belong in the all star game, and it is really hard to figure out why he has been included.
It is particularly hard to understand why black voters like him, given the huge responsibility he bears for Clarence Thomas. Thomas has done untold damage to black lives, and there is no way Biden can atone for that.
15
I hate to say it but Biden has effectively been SwiftBoated a la John Kerry in 2004. He was done in by Trump and Guiliani before he even got started.
The damage of Trump and Fox and everyone else banging on and on -- I never want to hear the word Biden again for the rest of my life!
Plus he looks really old and not at all up to the task. Trump doesn't look well either but there *has* to be someone else besides these two and Bernie.
4
@DickeyFuller - Trump nor Fox is not to blame for Burisma. It's all Joe's doing.
3
"Iowa Conspiracy" exposed: the mostly elderly caucus managers, some of who are hard of hearing, thought they were promised a nap during the vote, not an app. Hence the confusion.
7
The future of the democrat party is AOC, which will lead to the destruction of the party as a viable political voice.
4
He thinks marijuana is a gateway drug and he wants children to listen to a record player. I could like him as my grandfather but there is no way I could vote for him to be president.
10
It's a shame the media isn't paying attention because there are many, many Americans who do not want Biden as president.
12
Maybe it was the fact that people actually have memories that rupture the propaganda of "nice guy": memories of how he allowed the judiciary committee to abuse Antia Hill and refused her collaborating witnesses; memories of his reliable shilling for the banking industry against the interest of customers; memories of his voting for the war with Iraq, and his failure to provide any adequate answer of how Hunter Biden convinced Burisma to hire him--it wasn't because his first name was "Hunter."
12
Biden is good guy, just not Presidential material. We do not need another spineless, wimpy DINO president (Obama- I'm talking about you who wasted your first term, two house majority on "trying to work with" Republicans who would never work with you) Strenght and a better vision for this country is what Dems need.
4
Not even a mention in the comments thread of Mike Bloomberg.
A few days ago, Trump pinned the "Mini-Mike" attempt-to-insult label on Bloomberg. Mike's comeback was a swift and cutting assessment of Trump, to wit: obese, with fake hair, and a spray-on tan.
This, my friends, is how the Trump campaign will wage their election war.
Forget about the issues everyday Americans and our nation must confront, Trump is all about grievances, vengeance and personal insults and attacks.
Right out of the "Schoolyard Bully's Handbook ".
Who can disarm this bully and send him crying, back to the safety of Trump Tower?
I don't pretend to know who that candidate is, but I do know she/he must be a fearless Democrat with honor and decency, but a quick mind and an even faster mouth are also necessary requirements for this job.
7
What happened to Joe Biden was Trump's impeachment. Wake up Times. No matter how his supporters try to spin it, Biden, Hunter Biden, Burisma and the $50K left too many people wondering if Biden was from a different era and is best left there. The impeachment drowned out the debate, and Biden's fellow Democrats took their best shots at every debate, starting with Kamala Harris. Anyone can see Biden could not run in this environment like he is on a yacht trip.
6
I"m a Biden volunteer and I never heard any other staff state strongly that they thought Biden wd win Iowa. I'm going to Nevada in two week to canvas there...Biden's campaign has always focused on Nevada and S.Carolina to really get momentum going.
2
Does Biden even have a platform? A signature issue? A supporter under 40? Having been Obama’s VP is not enough, especially since Obama accomplished so little of his agenda, and what he did get was all in the first two years, way back in 2009 and 2010. We loved Obama, not Biden!
6
To answer the question of "what wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa"? Pete Buttigieg! People in Iowa want a young, articulate, moderate vigorous voice not that of an ageing, stumbling and sometimes even bumbling, old man. Whether that will hold true elsewhere where Buttigieg faces formidable problems with his inability to relate to African-American voters remains to be seen. But, it does indicate that Biden's "electability" is no longer a given.
7
I mean he told a lot of people to not vote for him. Seems like he got what he wanted?
3
The votes for moderates beats the votes for Dem/Socialists. I hope the Dems realize that.
2
I hope Dems will remember that Socialists are big portion of their constituency
3
and once again, the American adage proves true, "cheaters always prosper".
When questioned about national issues in the most sincere manner Biden would growl back, "You need to vote for someone else!" It looks like people took his advice.
7
Why are you so surprised NYT? Biden just does not have what this country is clamoring for: inspiration, vision for the future, vocalization of policies that most Americans want ie universal health care, tighter gun control, action on climate change. I'm sure he would be a fine president but I don't really know what he stands for.
Go Bernie and Liz who will obviously not get everything they want but they have a good starting point in voicing what the majority want in poll after poll.
Ticket for 2020: Bernie/Warren or vice versa!
7
He needs to drop out now, or soon, to avoid humiliation. His time is over.
7
I hate the expression, "it should come as no surprise but...," it should have come as no surprise.
You know why.
We all know why.
6
Unfortunately Biden comes across as yesterday’s man. He represents the past not the future. A good man who comes across as your favourite uncle who at times says things that are cringeworthy.It is time to say good-bye Joe. You have earned a long healthy retirement.
6
Biden missed his shot - maybe it was his son, maybe he wanted to give Hilary the chance...I don't know. But he missed it and trying to recapture that moment now is a mistake.
6
Biden needn't worry. Iowa's debacle just exposed Iowa's caucus as a poor substitute for the real thing: elections.
1
Excuses, excuses.
Joe Biden's 16 percent this time around is four times more than what he got in 2008 when he got all of 4 percent. I know that everyone is dumping on Iowa caucuses, but there's nothing like to sniff out weak candidates who have a tough time with strategy, execution, retail politics, and authenticity. For the reasons mentioned, Iowans in 2008 had the judgment to pick Obama and put Biden in fifth place. Iowans listen carefully and take their responsibilities seriously--in that pressure cooker, Biden's constant gaffes, wide but shallow support, and the fake "Uncle Joe" persona get exposed. It's rich that Biden blames his staff for his own shortcomings when it's so clear that he's the problem.
2
The question I have is not what went wrong with Biden's campaign, rather why does the media continue to add Jr. after his name? This implies youth and that he ain't. We all know that. And that's what went wrong with "Joe Biden's" campaign.
1
Why in Blackhawk County did Deval Patrick and Tom Steyer get any delegates when they could never meet any threshold?
2
this whole thing is absurd.
Iowa is not relevant.
Neither pete nor sanders no warren stand a snowballs chance in heck to get elected.
its down to biden or bloomberg.
1
Sloppy.
Entitled.
Unfocused.
"behind rope lines"
"former Senators - old white men"
running a "general election campaign" - in a caucus state.
"Barack Barack Barack Barack Barack Barack Barack...." who hasn't endorsed him.
Biden waited to announce much later than the other candidates because he thought he entered with the nomination in the bag. He was wrong.
This is Hillary 2.0 except Biden is much older, vaguer and has even more baggage than HRC. Whatever Hillary's flaws as a campaigner, she was always sharp, focused and knew what she was talking about.
Know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away...
9
This was a second chance that was never going to work. There is a flatness, a staleness, about Biden's campaign. He had his day in the sun, and the weather for him has gone cloudy.
6
Biden voted for the Iraq war. That says it all for me.
7
I don't understand this truism that Biden can beat Trump. I have watched every debate, read every after-debate summary, and the best that can be said about Biden is that he stayed awake for most of the debate and didn't put his foot in his mouth too often. Really? On a stage with Trump, Biden would flop around like toilet paper. And to his supporters that say over and over, "he was asked unfair questions;" How fair do you think Trump will be??? Aside from his ineptitude, Biden is a sexist through and through, he just isn't as open as Trump. Before Biden announced, I found the full tapes of him "interviewing" (actually verbally assaulting) Anita Hill. Even though I remember seeing the originals in real time, as a woman, watching Biden in those hearings was like a sucker-punch to the gut. "Uncle" Joe does his best to demean Anita Hill and pander to the powerful men in the room. He clearly enjoyed the sexist esprit de corps that permeated the hearings, and also loved being the center of the attention. Nominating Biden would be the worst thing to happen to the 2020 Democratic chances.
13
@MSC His speech in Iowa on caucus night was really sad. He literally ticked off a check list of mumbled talking points seemingly stolen from Warren and Sanders (huh?) with no conviction. It was strange. And yet, the man is nearly 80! People! What is the obsession with electing the generation that got us into this mess and has nothing at stake in getting us out of it since they're going to be dead soon? I don't get it. Age matters. People nearing 80 shouldn't be hired for the most stressful job in the world, and the job that the outcomes of has the most at stake for all of us.
5
Biden’s time was right after Obama, which he should have taken as tough a decision as it may be been for him.
1
I can make this easy for the Biden supporters. Join the Bloomberg campaign.
2
There are many things that ordinary voters may struggle to understand, such as the details of health care strategies. But corruption isn't one of them. Ordinary voters - especially black voters - know that an ordinary person who is caught with cocaine multiple times goes to jail, and if a lawyer, gets disbarred. Ordinary voters can understand that someone who is an alcoholic and cocaine addict, who does not speak the language of the country they are supposedly employed in, and who makes more in a month than the average American makes in a year, did not obtain that job on his qualifications. You can spin it around in the washer as long as you like. It still comes out dirty.
6
It amazes me the Times still doesn't understand. The people WANT Bernie. The Dem establishment and corporate media can push Biden all they want, but in their arrogance and myopia, they've lost both the plot and the trust of the citizens of this country. None of their pressure to support Biden has worked. None of their anti-Bernie propaganda has worked. They are failures and can't seem to accept it.
9
Good! Biden is a terrible, out of ouch candidate. I hate to think of him in a debate against Trump. If our country has any prestige left in the world, that would kill it.
Please, let's get some youth and vigor in our candidate.
4
What went wrong for Joe?
People have begun to realize that Trump was right and Joe is crooked and slow.
4
JOE, hang in there baby. We in NJ will support you. Hanging out in Iowa proves not a whole lot once we get to Super Tuesday. The delegate count is you are only down 11. It means nothing. Just put up your dukes and come out swinging. The Bernie Bro's won 11 delegates - congrats. Mayor Pete won 11 for 11 months of work. Maybe some people give Bernie a few in New Hampshire which is next door. That's fine. Let's see in a month what the tally is. Or in 2 months, or 3. Let the people speak with their votes and ignore those who just scream a lot into their computers. Keep it fair and square so all Democrats have their shot. In the end, you will be the man. But you gotta hang tough now. Then grab Harris in July and come out swinging. I will go through a wall for you.
1
Biden is just not inspiring enough to make him many people's first choice.
3
Now acquitted Trump can just kick back and watch Joe and Bernie take care of Pete. Life is good.
1
It's always funny how stories like this come out AFTER someone performs badly in an election. If all this stuff happened months ago, why was there no news of it then?
3
Biden is scary. He often seems confused, doesn’t know where he is, and randomly barks at people (push-up contest!) He is not a “young” septuagenarian. He is not the one to beat Trump.
5
I said even before Joe Biden declared his candidacy for the Democrat Party nomination that there is no chance he will get it. He is a "has been" who had 47 years long Undistinguished and Unaccomplished career in the Congress, Senate and as VP.
He is a 24/7 Gaf Machine and, God Bless Joe, he clearly has all indication of early on-set of Dementia. Goofiness aside, you don't forget so consistently and constantly.
His son, Hunter Biden, did him the last Coup Disgrace. That took it's toll as well.
I feel sad for Joe Biden. I really do, but in a sense there is relief if he performs poorly , which he will, in NH and quits and not drag this out till he becomes totally a laughing stock.
That would be a sad end to a Good Man.
3
While I hesitate to opine on the obituary of the Biden campaign too quickly - this is the beginning of the end for Biden, and it’s going to be sad to watch.
South Carolina will be jaw dropping end.
As a Black man from New York there two candidates who I will vote for but not do an iota more to support - Michael Bloomberg and Joe Biden.
Many news outlets targeted to people of color, with Black journalists focused on issues important to the Black people have been sounding the alarm for A LONG TIME.
You can’t visit a Black medical professional in America and not find a copy of Essence Magazine. They recently released their presidential candidate racial justice scorecards. Biden’s grade? F.
The most searing split screen is Biden’s, still unrepentant, championing of the draconian ‘94 crime bill, and impeached President DJT having signed the legislation that aims to roll back some of that crime bill’s most egregious impacts on Black Americans.
Now that the Iowa caucus, and the critical importance of 2nd choices, are over, best believe the other candidates are going to exploit this and much, more more.
It’ll be like watching Tom Brady go out the way he did this season. Just sad, and, frankly, unnecessary.
6
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa? That’s easy. He’s Joe Biden!
3
His ideas are dated -- no, they're extinct. Democrats don't want to reach the across the aisle. They want to obliterate the rot that resides on the other side. Biden seems to really believe that Trump is an aberation, while people with half a brain see the bloated pig as the spectre of the dystopian future that has already begun to close in. Sorry Joe, thank you and goodbye.
3
Maybe VP Biden can us his contacts abroad to get dirt on trump and republicans.... this is the way the game now is played. Bernies bros need to act fast before the russians use fake news on sanders by falsely claiming he was a spy, or some other fake dirt...
1
Mr Biden’s mendacious attempts to cover for his son’s influence-peddling self-enrichment scheme in the Ukraine might have something to do with it.
Just a guess...
4
Like HR Clinton, he thought the nomination was his, that it’s his turn. He’s just another old white male, not what the country needs.
3
You have just written Joe Biden’s obituary.
Or rather, he’s written his own.
1
The King is dead… Long live the king…Buttigieg
We liberals should face it… It will be almost impossible to stop trumps reelection… Almost all incumbent presidents are reelected… That’s just the norm…
That’s why Mayor Pete is an intriguing candidate… Perhaps he’s the digital generations JFK...
Eventually he might fire up the imagination of An America that doesn’t like the status quo and is burning for a change... he can handle the job… Trump has made it clear that being the president isn’t that difficult
Perhaps Mayor Pete can be the Macron of the United States… If you can remember how excited the French were initially about the young man
I’m almost convinced that Pete might be the best candidate to defeat the crazy one...
3
Biden went down because his mental aging is obvious. His time has passed.
4
It looks like the delay in announcing Iowa coucus results was done to allow Biden to cheat. Going from 61% to 71% Binden delegates numbers went up by magic from zero to 6 delegates! This certainly not normal, it is riged.
2
I think Joe Biden has had a tremendous career and I wish him well. However i'm not going to vote for someone who could be my father. The presidency needs a younger person with fresher ideas. BTW I am 57.
3
"He has led national polls for months despite verbal gaffes, scrutiny of his long and sometimes controversial record in Washington..."
Given his showing in Iowa, where he was assumed to be lock by the MSM until near the end, doesn't that beg the question: Just who is being polled in all these pro-Biden polls? Frankly, it smacks of manipulation by the DNC and Establishment to promote their best hope to maintain their grip on power in this country. Too bad we still have to actually vote (for now anyway).
5
For me the question isn't what went wrong for Joe Biden. The question is what went wrong for Elizabeth?
To me, she has Sanders' policies without all his baggage. She is appealing to an older, educated electorate and to women and she had a huge staff.
I still think she is awesome. I hope NH and Super Tuesday keep her in the mix.
6
People don’t like being scolded by a professorial woman and that goes for both male and female voters. I think she lost considerable support following her cheap shot over Pete’s ‘wine cave’ which left her looking like a desperate opportunist and she was brought down considerably when Pete calming quipped that under her rules he couldn’t even accept a donation from her because she is a multimillionaire while he himself is not wealthy.
3
I've always believed that Joe Biden should run in 2020. But not ever once did I believe he would become the candidate for the Democratic Party. My reasoning why he makes a good candidate is contrast, and Joe has provided plenty of contrast as the comments section here shows. He is a good man doing his patriotic duty, providing his perspective and playing out his campaign with consummate professionalism. I wish him the best. And honestly he's miles above a sock puppet, which I would have zero problem voting for against Trump.
1
I don't think anything went wrong. More likely that corporate America/corporate media/the the establishment is just so out of touch with how people think and feel and with what people really need and want.
4
I like Joe and I think he can pull enough republicans and independents who won’t vote for Trump again. Same folks would probably rather stay home than vote for any other democrat (imo)
1
I've met Joe, once in a pizza place in Greenville, DE and at Mass on Sunday in the same town. I like him, but one of my questions is his age. Same with Sanders and Bloomberg. I'm turning 70 in a week and I know that I don't have the energy and stamina I had a 60.
The Presidency, done as is should be, takes stamina as well as intelligence and maturity. Trump has neither. I do not doubt the sincerity of all the above candidates I mentioned, but the torch must be passed.
I will vote in the Florida Democratic primary and I am somewhat undecided at this point. My heart is with Pete Buttigieg, but if Elizabeth Warren, my exception to my 70 rule. would stop, as James Carville put it yesterday, "trailing Bernie's butt around the country", she could be a much stronger candidate. We should have a better picture after Super Tuesday. I will vote, however, for the nominee of my party no matter what.
4
The Iowa caucuses are an anachronistic holdover that no longer have any relevance—if they ever did.
Iowa and New Hampshire are two of the least representative states in the country. At least New Hampshire has a primary.
We won't know how any of this shakes out until the New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada, and Super Tuesday votes are counted.
2
He lost me when after numerous voters asked him a difficult question or simply disagreed with him, he told them they perhaps should vote for another candidate.
If a candidate doesn’t appear to care about or shows disdain for his potential voters, it indicates to me he is not suitable for the job.
We’ve had three long years of disdain. Why do we need Biden when there are many better candidates running?
4
In 2016 it was Hillary Clinton’s turn and the party and the voters dutifully, if not enthusiastically, fell into line. Now we have Joe Biden, a guy who seemingly has been standing in that same line waiting his turn, forever. Problem is the line went up in smoke in 2016 when Trump won.
Jumping to the present, Biden didn’t just lose in Iowa. He lost to a 37 year old possessing just the tiniest smidge of political experience, and to an ancient socialist who’s been screaming the same rant for 40 years. Not an auspicious beginning to say the least.
6
Alas, the voters didn’t fall in-line when it mattered.
1
Please, somebody listen to Robert Reich and Michael Moore. The anger in this country is coming from the great inequality and the feeling of being left behind. The Washington establishment has not addressed this problem, so voters seek a non-establishment candidate. That was true in 2016 and it’s true now.
The DNC and establishment news media are willing to push Biden on us as a centrist candidate. Please don’t. Please listen to the voters. Warren and Sanders are putting out a visionary democratic message that inspires involvement. Our safest choice is someone who can connect with voters and explain how to un-rig the system.
4
Granted he is well known to many, but his events aren't well attended and seem set dry as dirt. Clips from other candidates events have a lot more of energy from the candidates and crowds. I appreciate Joe's decades of service to the country but he's old and tired.
4
I will now vote for Mr Bloomburg if Mr Biden is not on the ticket. He waited to long to decide. Very sad who is in the lead.
2
Nothing went wrong. It's the will of the people. Biden has run for president and lost before. He is not the candidate people want, and no campaign strategy could have changed that.
I will be glad when he drops out. He's the worst of the remaining candidates, by far.
7
Biden is way too old for the job and carries too much baggage. We don’t have a single Democratic candidate who could beat Trump except perhaps Bloomberg (also old and with baggage).
3
What folks are missing is clear as day, American democratic voters want a new face. They want a centrist but someone with new ideas and energy. Biden represents exactly what folks have had enough of with the GOP in power, shadow games. Biden has been cleared of wrong doing in sort of the same way as Trump. He and his son took advantage of his position, as do all rich and influential folks. He knows it and so do we the public. His son continues to be an awfully burdensome liability and we as Democratic voters cannot risk this.
And you know what? America might have just grown up. Voting for Buttigieg in Iowa? That speaks volumes about what people really care for, sincerity and someone who is comfortable with being honest.
3
Biden has not been my first choice, but it is a sad reflection on our election campaigns that starting 18 months ahead of time is deemed to be too late.
3
What went wrong, of course, is that Trump's smear campaign has worked.
It's why the GOP invests so much in fake news to start with. It worked against Hillary, and it works against Biden.
What the GOP hopes is that by massively cultivating cynicism, people will turn against no matter what career politician they start targeting.
It's as simple as that.
If they'd still have an ounce of patriotism in them, they would try to beat political opponents through real, respectful debates. But they don't.
2
Where is the article about what Mayor Pete did right? Regardless of whether you support him or not, his win in Iowa was an incredible accomplishment for a mayor of a small town--and was historic as a candidate who is gay. Its amazing how there has been so little coverage from this perspective.
9
I am extremely dismayed by Biden's response to a young man on the subject of fracking, and (by extension) on fossil fuels and global warming. "Then vote for someone else," or words to that effect.
And that's just ONE problem! We're going down the same road as Republicans did with Bob Dole in the 1990's, or Democrats in 2016, with Hillary-- "It's my turn," they seemed to say. Each time, they were wrong. On the road to the White House, you can't afford to "wait your turn."
5
I get Joe Biden's emails. That's what went wrong with his campaign. I've been horrified on an on-going basis at the tone and quality of his requests for support. I've talked to other people who felt the same. The tenor was weak and failing from the very beginning. It has been common to receive email headers like, "not good news" and "Gut Punch" and "I hate doing this." He appears weak and begging and pitiful. That's not the kind of president I'm looking for.
I've been much happier with Yang's email subject lines: "I am pumped. Let's win this thing." and "Let's take this thing all the way."
So if you want to blame someone for Biden's poor performance, blame his election team. I wonder who is actually paying them? I've never seen such an undermine in my life.
6
Does it really always have to be about ego?
Doesn't putting the country first count for any thing anymore?
2
Nothing went wrong. It's turning out just right. The enlightened Democratic faithful, as they should, continue to display marginal faith in a third rate candidacy driven by a vacuous, superficial theme of entitlement, namely: "Only I can beat Trump". But the candidate's lackluster performance convinces everyone daily, that he is this season's iteration of an entitled, hoary denizen of Washington. Forward thinking Democrats have had their fill of Republican "lite". They have seen enough to recognize that Biden is destined to be "Democratic road kill", under Trump's relentless assault on the truth and common decency. He is a man who won't stand up to forcefully defend himself and family, in response to Trump's repeated evisceration of his brand, but is wildly aggressive toward an eighty-one year old voter who correctly recognized that he is not up to the moment. Such a man needs to leave the stage, so that he is not flayed in the debates, then flattened in November. Biden already looks like he can use a capable "cut man", when the fight has only just begun.
2
This article raises a good point, the first domino to fall for Biden was the Russian-started campaign to pin Biden for the firing of a corrupt prosecutor three years ago. If this holds, we are potentially talking about Russia having a major impact on a second straight election for Putin's friend (and future business partner) Putin.
3
Biden is no longer relevant, he lost all relevancy when he even tried to run for office. I just honestly can’t take him seriously
3
It's simple. Trump and Guiliani won this. And the media is squarely to blame by allowing them to float unfounded conspiracy theories and giving them a constant microphone and let them keep at it. They did not get "the dirt" on Biden they looked for but they destroyed his campaign with heresay. And it still carries on - NPR gave Guiliani a platform just this morning to keep lying. They get not one cent more from me ever.
1
As compelling a candidate as Biden should be, he has a few flaws that appear to be insurmountable.
His pitch that he can work with Republicans is so last century, and a dangerous naivete that spells trouble. Does he not know by now that Republicans can't be negotiated with? My visit to the auto service center today reconfirmed this as I endured the violent and cruel anti-Democratic banter and statements like Pelosi was not worth the trouble killing. And my car has a "Not Fooled By Trump" bumper sticker on it! Scary place to be this morning with people that cannot be negotiated with much less reasoned with.
The other problem is he will be tarred and feathered by the right-wing smear machine merely because he was Obama's VP.
The only hope now is for the House to use the power it has to continue investigating and exposing this administration and the Republican conspirators assisting the trump in his nefarious anti-Constitutional activities and hope that it will be sufficient to persuade the landslide of Americans needed to overcome the rigging and cheating Republicans and Russians are busy implementing.
1
The Bidenites are now howling that Joe is the Black Voters Choice and we have to ignore Iowa because it's just a lot of white folks... Well, my mixed race family hails from Iowa, so I know there's more to the picture.
By the census figures. there are at least 116,000 African Americans in Iowa (those identifying as mixed race aren't included in that figure). Now if you do know anything about Iowa, you know those folks aren't evenly distributed throughout the state. They're in Waterloo, Davenport, other river towns... They're urban areas with industrial economies in decline. Yes there's a lot less of that than in other states, but it's still there.
Hilary did great with Southern African Americans, but weak Black turnout for her in Milwaukee helped Trump take Wisconsin. The Democratic nominee, no matter who that is, is not going to win South Carolina. The African American voters that matter are the ones in the swing states.
And you know where the Black population has a lot in common with African Americans in WI, MI and PA? Iowa.
In short, if the media tried, they could locate the precincts where African-Americans represented a significant portion of caucus goers, and check how those precincts voted. The only data I've seen is county totals, and that's too wide a net to tell much. But so far, I haven't seen Joe showing any real strength anywhere, with anyone.
1
Biden has run for the nomination several times before and never got very far. Why would people think that this suddenly became his time?
5
I like Joe Biden very much.
But I'll be blunt and say what everyone else is thinking: he just comes across as too old. (I am older so know a bit about aging). He reminds me of Bill Nelson and his ill-fated senate re-elect campaign in Florida in 2018. Mike Bloomberg, who is the same age, seems much more vibrant, alert, energetic.
Second problem: he's too nice. I'm not saying he has to be nasty and childlike, like Trump, but for God's sake, push back! Nancy got it just right last night.
Finally, get a better campaign staff. It took Biden 15 hours to Tweet about the SOTU. And then it was bland. Twitter is argument by joke. Get a staff who can do smart, snarky Tweets.
Maybe, Joe, this is not your time.
4
What ever went wrong doesn't matter. Unless the Democrats get behind a strong candidate early and avoid the primary infighting we will be faced with another four years of Trumpism. Get real folks.
3
I find it odd we are already talking about "what went wrong for Biden," when we havn't even gotten a clear idea of what went wrong for Iowa -- or what is going wrong for the Democrats, for that matter.
The results I see reported, if they can be called "results," do not show the raw, one-person, one-vote count, much less a brief, cogent explanation of what we're being presented with.
This is where we stand at the moment? Why would that be?
I still don't understand why no Republican mounted a real challenge to Trump in their primaries. I haven't heard it explained.
113
@Sonja
BIden was touted as the leader in polls and barely finished as a qualifier. That's why we are already talking about "what went wrong for Biden."
28
@Sonja "I still don't understand why no Republican mounted a real challenge to Trump in their primaries. I haven't heard it explained."
In the last 40 years, only 2 incumbent Presidents have lost their elections, Carter in 1980 and H.W. Bush in 1992. Both of them had primary challengers, Carter with Kennedy and Bush with Buchanan. With that said, any Republican challenger would probably be looked upon as a Benedict Arnold of sorts since history shows it to be bad for a party victory. That might have something to do with it.
6
@Sonja All these questions, without answers, point to an empire in decline. Our institutions are failing, people no longer have faith in democracy or the rule of law in this country. The naive will disagree and say this is all Russia's fault, but our political parties, our politicians, the special interests, this cabal of endless corruption on all sides is doing it themselves. How can we trust any of this anymore? Where do we go from here?
18
Where's the surprise? This is the story of Biden's career beyond his home state. He's always been well liked but on the stump inspires next to no passion. All his campaigns for president have petered out like this: initially high in the polls but ever-diminishing when it comes to actual voting. People will express their likes when asked by phone in their own homes by pollsters, but it's enthusiasm that moves them to go out of their way to vote. The additional problem is that it takes an inspirational candidate to get over the inevitable missteps and gaffs in every campaign. Despite what's said, Biden doesn't truly have more than his share of those. It's just that he can't fully get past them. Each becomes a bit more of a drag on his support, until there's not enough left to keep him viable. The argument that Biden was the most "electable" was always faulty, wishful thinking. The sooner Biden supporters make another choice, without rancor and with best wishes for Joe and his long distinguished career of public service, the better for the primary season and the better for November.
2
Joe we love you and we love your service to your country but the truth is we need a new vision, we need hope and we need someone who will stand up to the Republicans not make nice with them. Many of us out here in the real world are hanging on by a tread. We need change. The Democratic Party needs to be shaken at its roots.
496
@Steve - I agree. Joe is not our guy. He doesn't bring anything special to the table, and he seems to not understand the key issues facing most working and middle class voters. Both parties have moved too far to the right, and failed to support and defend the majority of voters vs the Wall Street big-donor investments crowd and corporations.
First and foremost, with Bernie Sanders as POTUS, we will be filling every news cycle, every week with the fact that annual corporate tax revenue is at a record low 3%.
President Sanders will be calling on his Democratic friend, Tom Styers to immediately focus on framing all government agencies and departments around a Green New Deal with a focus on the needs of the people and the health of our environment.
And there will be a new Senate Majority Leader, and her name is Elizabeth Warren.
And we certainly need Andrew Yang in the Sanders administration to help bring the Democratic Party and US Government into the 21st Century Digital Age.
38
@mjpezzi
What makes you think a potential "President Sanders" could accomplish any of this when he's authored no bills of import that actually passed in the senate over his long career?
And Bernie supporters need to stop with the providential man storytelling.
That is a man who grafted onto the DNC for its infrastructure and exposure to get where he is running as a Democrat when he's anything but. So, so much for integrity.
And as it happened in the Senate, he wouldn't be able to pass anything as president either, as his policies would most likely be shot down along partisan lines and beyond...
30
@Steve
I agree but we do not need to be further shaken, we need to be fortified, united, healed returned to a sense of cohesion and normalcy. The GOP has proven itself without any moral core or allegiance to the Constitution - it's no time to also have the DNC disintegrate.
Any reasonable person knows both Biden and Sanders are too old for the job. If they stepped out of the way the primaries we could sharpen our focus.
6
If we’d begun in a state with racial diversity, Biden would have won. So the question for me isn’t what went wrong for Biden in Iowa? But why is the Democratic Party putting so much stock in an 85-percent-white state with an aging population to boot?
The process is the problem. People who live in Iowa don’t know what it’s like to have large groups of different races in the same space, thus the value of moderation is not as important. You have a homogenous population in Iowa so not much working together has to occur. That’s why it’s a terrible state in which to start the Democratic race. Biden will do really well in South Carolina, and if we’re applying common sense, South Carolina is where the Democratic race should begin. Just my two cents.
143
@Corrie
According to the entrance polls, Sanders has 43% of the nonwhite voter support in Iowa. Biden has 13%.
25
@Corrie Strange thing to say, considering Bernie snatched up a stark majority of the POC votes in Iowa, will do the same in New Hampshire, Nevada, and California as well. He also has a strong ground game in South Carolina that's quickly chipping away at Joe's polling numbers there too.
15
@Zep the South is a totally different bird because of religion. Have you looked at the polling in North Carolina, Florida, and Georgia? I’m going to support whomever the nominee is, but I know the South too well to say that these critical states are going to get behind Bernie.
15
What went wrong with Joe Biden in Iowa is simple: Joe Biden.
Overall he may be a decent guy but he's out of touch; and those of us old enough to remember will never forgive his treatment of Anita Hill, despite his claims to have "grown."
457
@Margaret
Great point, wrong old man at the wrong time.
And, 'his treatment of Anita Hill' continued right up until just before he nominated, when he rang her. (Not to apologize). A 'take out the garbage' moment if there was one. He really doesn't get his Anita Hill problem, or have any interest in 'owning it'.
17
Time to go. There is just no “there” there. No enthusiasm. And this has nothing to do with age as Bernie is older; he has a message and a vision — his own message and vision — whether you agree with it or not. He’s not running on Obama’s coattails. Bernie, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar and Mayor Pete: they’re fighters. Biden is not; Trump would run roughshod over him. Like it or not, the Ukraine allegations have raised questions in the eyes of the public. Time to go.
369
@Brad
You say Bernie is a fighter, but what are his legislative achievements over his long senatorial career? What bills of import has Bernie Sanders authored that actually passed beyond fluff like renaming a post office?
Answer looks like none.
Furthermore, if he was such a fighter, he would've have taken the Independent route, but instead chose to use the DNC for its readily-available platform, infrastructure and exposure when he's no Democrat. Such courage and integrity!
As for Pete and Amy, they have no shot at winning nationally.
Warren would have a very poor showing one-on-one against Trump.
9
@Brad It wasn't even the Ukraine stuff for me or many others, just listening to him speak, watching his mannerisms. I wanna say "poor Joe" but he's choosing to do this himself, it's clear the donors are walking away and the Party has pulled the plug, but he's choosing to still go for this, put his family under all this duress and scrutiny, and when you just listen to him talk, the prospect of him going up against Trump becomes more terrifying by the month. He won't be able to handle him.
27
@Brad bernie? no. he has vision, but w/o convincing the “critical middle” who will or will not fund that vision, he’s a losing bet. sorry. no to bernie.
11
The latest from NH is that Biden is attacking Bernie and Pete.
Meanwhile, Mike Bloomberg is spending his fortune attacking Trump.
We need to stay on target.
The one thing we must accomplish is to beat Trump.
Those who refuse to get that don't deserve to be our nominee.
249
@Simon Sez -- Bloomberg is getting more attractive by the minute.
8
@Simon Sez Is that the only message Democrats have:WE have to beat Trump? Many are insulted that policy issues are not discussed.Trump can point to actual accomplishments on the economy,and his America First vision that no Democratic candidate is discussing.Dem.Party is an "affreux gachis,"a mess, and an aging Joe Biden is not the one to emerge, clean up the mess and lead his party to victory. Sanders has the stamina which Biden lacks.Obama's words were prophetic, prescient:"Joe, you don't have to do this!"?
5
@Simon Sez
So who are you supporting now, Pete or Bloomberg? Is it back to Pete now that he performed well in Iowa?
2
What went wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa is: Iowa Democratic voters do not want a repeat of 2016.
Iowa is a largely white, rural and mostly conservative state. Two Republican senators. If you think Iowa was bad for Biden, just wait until his campaign hits the more liberal states on the Northeast Coast.
128
@Bob The Builder
"Two Republican senators. "
True ... but 3 of 4 member of the House are Democrats. Iowa is a purple state that vacilates between a reddish purple and a bluish purple.
Iowa also is a "retail" politics state in which personal contact is far more important than TV ads. Meeting people face to face and engaging with them is how to build support in Iowa. Biden lacked an effective ground organization and relied too much on name recognition and some very late in the game TV ads. He lacked far too many precinct captains and "neighbor to neighbor" advocates. Pete, Bernie, and Elizabeth all had very good on the ground organizations ... Joe and Amy did not.
2
I agree with Dave. Iowa is not really a "conservative" state in a political sense. Although Trump carried Iowa decisively in 2016, the Democrats won Iowa's electoral votes in six of the seven previous Presidential elections dating back to 1988.
I don't understand how this is a surprise to anyone. He had a large bounce in polling because of name recognition but people weren't committed to supporting him and they had other choices.
It's his third try and he has never made it out of Iowa. For many reasons.
He isn't motivating voters.
5
Almost every statement I read in support of Joe Biden is based on a belief that he is more likely to beat Trump than the other candidates. I rarely see anything that contends that his policies are better than those of his rivals, or that he would be a better leader than the other contenders if elected. Unless a person is convinced by the electability argument, there doesn't seem to be much there to attract support or enthusiasm.
Of course, vote blue no matter who.
13
I sincerely hope that the DNC is more open-minded in selecting the nominee than they were in 2016. In 2016, there were signs that they ignored which indicated that their Chosen One might not win the election, however. Flexibility and compromise should be expected from both the party elite and the regular voter.
Having said that, if Mr. Biden wins the nomination, I will vote for him although it is not encouraging.
5
He's done. Let us all move on. There really is not much left to see. Thank you for your service in support of this nation VP Biden.
It was evident that his candidature was a forced one. He lacked the energy, any fresh ideas and candidly the ability to even come close to beating Trump. I think he needs to pull out honorably and allow the others to duke it out for their chances to go up against the Prez in November. That would be the classy and the right thing to do.
59
Fix Washington, elect a career politician.
6
As a black man I’d like to ask you to stop saying Biden has the black vote. He doesn’t and if it weren’t for Obama no one would be saying that.
377
@Michael Hall
If polling is to be trusted as a general indicator of voting trends, then Biden absolutely does have the black vote.
Latest IPSOS poll puts him at 48% among black voters nationally, which is almost 30 percentage points ahead of the next candidate.
If you have verifiable information to the contrary, please elaborate.
4
From my vantage point, it seems Bernie is well supported by black folks.
16
@Michael Hall Any thoughts on a Sanders/Gov. Patrick or Warren/Gov. Patrick ticket?
2
Wrong? Twice he thought Iowa was Ohio. He forgets thoughts. He bumbles words. He was dragged into the race the the desperate DNC who needed..............another old white guy to put up against another old white guy.
Biden had Iowa to himself while senators were in DC. His poor showing, even without the app fiasco, says he should drop out of the race and hand the nomination to Bernie.
42
Iowa should have been a slam-dunk for Mr. Biden.
2
The article (unlike readers' responses) focuses almost exclusively on the mechanics of Biden's campaign and not on the candidate and his platform. How sad if it is true that the the number of lawn signs in a small unrepresentative rural state will determine the next leader of the free world. However I suspect the press is wrong here as it has been so often before in its breathless minute by minute campaign coverage. There are bigger issues here and 49 states we haven't heard from.
7
Joe Biden is the Democratic party's Jeb! Bush. Seemingly entitled to a coronation, but stunningly out of step in the new political environment. Pundits still seeking a new middle of the road, non threatening messiah like Bloomberg, Klobichar or Buttagieg need to stop ignoring the clear voices of voters. With Progressives Sanders and Warren combining to represent more than half of voters, the need for a center left foil is over. Now we need to get all Democrats and like minded independents of all ages to the polls on November 3 to support a Progressive Democrat.
64
@Ted I want a middle of the road candidate. Threatening or not. I am no pundit. I am representative of a vast number of conservative Democrats who respect Bernie and Warren, but think that the Progressive Train doesn't take us to the destination we want.
4
I wonder, though, how many suburban voters, who went for Trump in 2016 and voted for Dems in the midterms, would go for Bernie or Elizabeth. Either candidate has a lot of work to do, I would think, to win over those voters. Dems, regardless of who the candidate is, won't carry the day with cities alone
The party will not want Mr. Biden to run against Trump. The elders of the Democratic party may reluctantly pick Mike Bloomberg as its choice. it would be good to see two tough New Yorkers go up against one another.
8
@NVHustler My guess is that Mr. Bloomberg is Biden's backup. I did not expect Mike would be needed so soon.
Mr. Biden failed as a Democrat nominee in 1988 and 2008. It is folly to believe that he will succeed in 2020. Many Biden supporters quoted in this piece seem to believe in magic and offer all manner of excuses for the historical fact that Joe Biden is not an impressive Presidential candidate. Tweaking his campaign this way or that will not change the outcome. Biden's 2020 run is simply a replay of his failed past attempts.
42
It is a gross misinterpretation to take the results of a state that is mostly white, conducts a caucus on Monday night in the middle of the Winter, which is skewed toward the young and old, leaving out the those who have a household to take care of and/or a second job. Leaving aside this arcane voting method (have you heard of multivoting, Iowa?!), with under 200,000 people voting there, that would be like polling several neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and looking at it as some sort of bellwether. Absolutely absurd in my opinion. Wait until Super Tuesday to make any type of reasonable assessment of the race.
12
What exactly is Biden offering families with young kids or second jobs? Certainly not progressive policies that would actually help them. If anything he benefited from those people being left out and still flopped hard.
2
I will repeat, no more caucuses and no more Iowa or any state first. Hold two or three large regional primaries and be done with it. Gives less opportunities for power players like Vilsacks to exert their undue influence and hold the rest of the country hostage.
As for Tom Vilsack, I have only two words, Shirley Sherrod. Look it up.
9
What I've noticed over the past year is so-called Democrats making Biden sound worse than Trump.
The mental gymnastics needed to come to that conclusion is mind-boggling.
But then again, looking at the Iowa fiasco, it looks like the average Democrat voter is no better than the average GOP voter. Either confused, not very bright, low information, or just not caring (fairly low turnout in IA).
Trump and the GOP have shown everyone that they're most afraid of Joe Biden as they know he is best positioned to defeat Trump and they've attacked and assailed him for over a year... and what do Dems do? They vote or caucus for people who either have no shot of winning (Buttigieg) or no chance of passing any kind of meaningful legislation if in office (Sanders).
Makes you wonder how smart the average voter is.
That said, Biden's never done well in Iowa. The caucus system advantages younger and more progressive elements who have the time and the patience to deal with the nonsense that is standing around in herds, screaming at others to convince them to defect, and flipping coins for hours.
Biden is the ONLY candidate that has a chance of defeating Trump. All the others are pipe dreams.
He'll win South Carolina and on Super Tuesday Biden is a lock to win Alabama, Arkansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Texas. Then Mississippi, Missouri and North Dakota.
The campaign is far over. The road to 1,990 delegates is long and Iowa's 41 is negligible for Biden.
135
@Eric
Biden is simply a male Clinton. He has literally zero policies of substance to differentiate himself from her, or from Obama.
In this regard, he already lost to Trump once; why Democrats are so eager to do it again is a mystery.
41
@Eric I disagree!
"Biden is the ONLY candidate that has a chance of defeating Trump. All the others are pipe dreams."
We need to vote for the person who best will serve our country.
11
@Eric Biden's got the exact same problem that Hillary Clinton had before the last election... He's absolutely certain he's supposed to win.
46
Voters would be wise to move on to another choice ASAP. That would be most helpful to our nation and help determine the new direction we really want to go. I was never going to vote for him in a primary, but am becoming more hopeful that he won't be losing against Trump, because he would if nominated.
23
This did not go well for Biden. But Iowa went for Trump over Clinton in 2016 by 8%, so why do we care what Iowans think of democratic nominees if we are going to lose Iowa's 6 electoral college votes anyway? Same for NH with 4 electoral votes. What this does, is diminish the stature of Iowa and NH and most people feel they should never carry this much sway in the future. I expect the democrats will blow up their primary rules, if Trump wins reelection because of a prolonged primary battle among democrats who have no chance of winning the general election.
6
At least NH is a swing state, and if it had gone for Gore in 2000 it would have won him the presidency and we would be in a whole different world. Don’t count out swing states, no matter the size.
3
@EPMD . NH went to Hillary Clinton in 2016. Its' four electoral votes might be critical in a close election. Write that state off and you're making a grievous error. Iowa also voted for Obama twice. A lot of unhappy farmers live there. There are plenty of states that are worth ignoring. Those two are not.
1
Biden looked beaten when he left for NH. The "party" has worked hard to push him and keep him into the limelight, but he has not caught on. Pelosi not-so-cleverly delayed the Impeachment trial to give him space at a crucial time and that didn't work for Biden. And according to Sen Collins, it didn't work for Pelosi either. I believe the Ukrainian problem and his responses have shown he has an arrogance about him that turns people off. In the end, there is simply no enthusiasm for him.
34
It's not what went wrong "for" Joe Biden, but what is wrong "with" Joe Biden's candidacy. And to use a Bidenism, "the simple fact of the matter" is that Joe Biden doesn't want to be president, and people can intuitively feel this with his campaign.
The only reason Biden got into the race was because Warren and Sanders commandeered the center of the Democratic Party Voters from early in the primary race. Aghast that a candidate of the people would win and displace the corporate democrats, the DNC and the old-school politicos juiced up Biden to run peel off votes from Sanders and Warren. But it didn't work. He didn't peel off enough voters, who weren't excited at all. So, the DNC tried to game their own system again by getting Bloomberg into the race, to peel off more votes from Sanders, Warren and Buttigieg. The strategy of the corporate democrats (as opposed to the Justice Democrats) is to keep adding candidates, get to the convention, get to a second ballot, and have all the lifer super-delegates give the nomination to Bloomberg. Like the Republicans, they just want to keep their jobs and run the show, nothing more. Certainly nothing like Universal Health Care, or a livable minimum wage or action on climate change -- those are topics the corporate Dems wish to "consider" until the planet becomes unlivable and people are dying in droves.
90
AMEN! Exactly!
4
I actually feel bad for Joe, he was enjoying a nice peaceful life away from politics but then the establishment made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. He never wanted to run you’re right, the party just hit the panic button to try to prevent Warren and Sanders from winning. I hope Joe drops out soon to enjoy a nice retirement, it would be beyond cruel to subject a man who is clearly struggling to Trump’s attacks in the general election.
7
@Kip Leitner
From your excellent mind directly to the cerebral cortex of NYT editor Dean Baquet and DNC Chair Tom Perez.
1
Let's be honest --
1. Joe is a flawed candidate. The others have flaws too--serious flaws that raise serious questions about whether they can beat, or even be competitive, against Trump. But those flaws have been masked because of the "enthusiasm" for them, especially in Iowa, and because of gushing media coverage (especially for Warren).
2. Joe's flaws as a candidate have been exaggerated by the campaign, which has been dysfunctional from the start.
3. The campaign largely went through the motions in Iowa, assuming that they could pull off a top-2 or top-3 finish without making much effort until the last couple months. And if Pete hadn't been in the race, maybe they could have. But he was and Pete's investment in the state paid off, big time.
All that said, there are still a lot of people in this country that think Joe would be the best candidate. They may not read the NY Times, and they may just have a passing understanding of what happened in Iowa. I know it's hard for many people reading these comments to fathom that but I know many such people. By the way, can anybody really say that the results would have been the same if Iowa had a primary instead of a caucus? I doubt it.
But he's going to have to make changes quickly, and fight like crazy to get back in this. If he doesn't, it'll be a slow drip of fourth place finishes that will be painful to watch for a guy who most Dems genuinely like and respect.
8
No one cares about the Iowa Caucus other than Iowans themselves and the media tripping over themselves to make an event big enough to generate clicks.
Biden will not be the nominee regardless, but enough of the Iowa post-mortem analysis. The general public does not care enough about it.
19
Biden has not shown that he is up to standing up to Donald Trump. Hunter Biden may not be the most savory character, but he is Joe's son and Joe has not stood up to Trump on this one. He did shout at some old man who brought it up at a campaign meeting, but so what? Even if he doesn't win the nomination, he should be out there attacking Trump everyday and he isn't. His moment was 4 years ago and for personal reasons he demurred. Not good. Not there when we really needed him. Now here when he's just an impediment to moving forward. Bye bye Joe.
12
didn't he decide not to run because his son had just died? I feel like you're being a bit harsh saying he didn't run when "we needed him most"
Watch Joe Biden speak at John McCain's funeral, then watch him at the debates again. It's like a different person.
He might slip more by November.
And I'm not even talking about Hunter Biden, which fairly or unfairly would be used relentlessly by Republicans. Or of his problematic exchanges with voters.
The Iowans got it right. He should have been the nominee in 2016 and likely would have ended up being president, sadly he's run out of time.
32
Tick tock. Still only 75% of the Iowa results are in. And these same Dems who would have us believe they can take over our entire health care system cannot even count or do simple math in one small state caucus proceeding.
16
I’m not going to add to the inevitable pile on. Vice President Biden is of another time and place. As an aging baby boomer I wish some of my cohort would give way and assume a mentor role with their lives. Its a shame that he & his son have been dragged through the mud by Trump but I have to say that they were vulnerable. We are all at an age where 4 years can make a difference. 2016 maybe, 2020 sorry but no. I would like to see him put his energies into electing someone else and ensuring a better legacy than losing the nomination or the election.
47
It’s mainly a problem of logistics and winter weather. Biden would have lapped the field if the caucuses had been held in senior centers and nursing homes.
7
Old timers in nursing homes are exactly the wrong people to be deciding the future of our country and the Democratic party. There are unlimited valid reasons Biden lost the youth vote, by which I mean people under 50. Not good.
@woofer In Des Moines it was in the mid 30s, which is downright balmy for us in February, and with no precipitation in a week the roads were perfect. Hardly a Nanook of the North prospect.
2
In watching the Vice President speak it appeared he lost more than a step. He was at times confused.
The impeachment took him down more than Trump.
Pete doesn't have the experience.
Amy lacks the money and Liz is fading.
Bernie would have no coattails for the Senate races.
Too many old moderates would not support him.
I hope Mike does well.
21
Biden's campaign and the DNC leadership are totally missing the obvious. It's not about a "late start" in the declaring his candidacy. It is not a poorly run campaign. The majority of Democrats - those of us living and working in the real world - do not want Joe Biden as president. It really is that simple.
61
As an Iowan, I can say that I don't even know what a Biden yard sign looks like. I've seen Gabbard and Delaney signs in the past year (and many for candidates who later dropped out), but never one for Biden.
22
It's not the campaign, it's the person the campaign is campaigning for. Someone with no support.
16
On top of all the other issues that he has, Joe's showing his age. That's the bottom line.
22
1) Sure he is a dull speaker but his policies are even more dull. What did he stand for? It was rarely clear.
2) Voters want change. Obama and Trump came across as agents of change. Biden, Clinton, & Co. were just more of the same.
3) So much for "electability". This is his third run for the top office.
77
In Iowa I knocked hundreds (a thousand?) doors for my candidate (Pete) and saw almost zero support for Biden. Same with the Liberty & Justice dinner--the firefighters union had bought up a bunch of seats, but their support wasn't actually evident.
It was so weird, that what we were seeing on the ground wasn't reflected in the polls. But Biden's crash-and-burn in the caucus didn't even remotely surprise me.
23
Better to leave at the “top of one’s game” than to struggle on and become a “has been” in an embarrassing way.
Many of us warned - months ago - that Joe should bow out with dignity. Because it was obvious his cognitive abilities were fading. And that was over a year before the inauguration.
The biggest problem with Joe is his age.
We need a nominee with the potential for 2 terms. Joe might barely be enough for one term. That’s not enough! Too much is at stake.
Of course we need someone who can beat Trump. But we absolutely need a candidate who can spend 4 arduous years in the White House.
Makes me wonder if people in Iowa were thinking that when they placed Buttigieg first. He’s young. He certainly can serve for 8 years. He’s definitely a Democrat. He would please those seeking a more moderate Dem.
Biden should gracefully retire from the race. Pass the Torch and retire with dignity.
26
Im sorry but everyone on Twitter could have told you what we've all known all long. Biden is a weak choice among more interesting candidates with a stronger message and higher appeal among youth. I think him becoming the nominee now that Trump has been acquitted will only give the President more ammo to use against him as he no doubts continues to privately "handle" Ukraine for more dirt on his son.
20
Biden offered nothing really, other than the contention that he was the candidate that could beat Trump. The impeachment scandal was all about Trump trying to get an investigation on Biden's "corruption" in covering up for his son in Ukraine. It seems clear that Biden did nothing wrong, but you can bet that Trump and the GOP will investigate Biden throughout the campaign anyway, just like they did with Hillary. If Biden is the nominee, we will have a re-run of 2016 and we all know how that turned out.
6
This is what sunk Hillary Clinton's campaign- a shoddy campaign organization.
Let's hope Biden gets some of O'bama's staff on his payroll- the ones that engineered a brilliant campaign.
3
i ain't no ageist, but dude's old.
18
Tad R., Bernie Sanders is even older. So is Mike Bloomberg.
5
But they are mentally aware.
4
Besides "not Trump," "Obama's VP" and "modetate," what were Biden's selling points again?
5
It is what it is.
2
"...Mr. Biden’s biggest political strength is with black voters..."
Given Biden's stance on busing, which Kamala Harris pointed out, or the fact that he lied in 1987 about participating in civil rights marches, the only explanation for this support can be his association with Obama.
8
Should it have been a "gut' punch. If you read NYT comments daily you'd know Biden Enthusiasm was in short supply. You'd have to be in a bubble not to know. And that in itself is his problem.
10
Every run he has made has turned into a fiasco. He has been wrong on many of the issues - the crime bill, NAFTA, the Iraqi War, credit card and school loan debt - for 40 years. his baggage makes Hillary's look like a purse. He can barely debate, Trump will make mincemeat of him. And worse of all, he is deluded enough to think fascist Republicans will somehow turn into patriots and cooperate with him if he's elected. Good luck - ask Obama how appeasing or trying to reason with Republican crooks, bigots and liars worked out for him.
He is a nice guy but no thanks. besides he'll be through after New Hampshire, that is, unless the DNCC rigs the results, the way they did in Iowa.
10
Joe Biden would make a great Vice President! Oh, wait...
3
Joe Biden infamously crashed and burned on takeoff in his two previews quests for the Presidency in 1988 and 2008. Biden's political skills hasn't improved with age.
The lesson that the Democrats gleaned from their loss to the white European American 70+ year old Trump in 2016 was to run a triumvirate of similar doddering dotards aka Biden, Sanders and Warren.
Plus a man half their age who was mayor of the 4th largest city in Mike Pence's Indiana who can't credibly claim to be able to deliver Indiana's Electoral College votes to the Democrats.
2
Blackmamba, you forgot Bloomberg on the list of Biden, Sanders and Warren. Equally old. Equally white. Equally dotardish.
2
Biden lost it with his attack on the elderly man who was "too to vote"
A good many voters want to see balance, dignity, and decorum in the White House, not another ill-mannered blowhard.
3
Non-white Iowa caucus vote percentages:
Sanders 43%
Buttigieg 15%
Biden 13%
Warren 12%
Yang 12%
10
Unfortunately, Biden doesn't have a fire that could bring voters on his side, he looks worn out and tired.
I would rather vote for Bloomberg even in my soul I'm with progressives like Warren, she is my favorite one, but for now I can't vote for her (family reasons)
But what a great news from Romney...
‘Appalling Abuse Of Public Trust’: Read Mitt Romney’s Case To Convict Donald Trump
He’ll be the sole Republican to vote to convict President Donald Trump in the Senate impeachment trial over abuse of power.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mitt-romney-convict-trump-speech-transcript_n_5e3b1945c5b6b5fb438bb818
I call it decency, but in our time when public officials are really spineless cowards he is Courageous!
My respect for Romney just quadruple, finally one republican who could command respect.
I hope we can kick out McConnell from his office forever, he's a real poison for our country and must vanish like a horrid dream!
He belongs with Kremlin politburo!
3
What went wrong? The fact that our younger Americans have grown up craving excitement, confetti, and images that compete for attention. If a candidate is not shiny and bright, he's no fun and not cool. You gotta get red in the face and jump around or have a gay boyfriend or be female. Hey look what Trump brought to the table.
Personally for me, a logical attorney who has always been suspicious of sales people or flashy ads, I am immediately turned off by new and flashy anything unless its fourth fireworks.
Read the thoughtless comments: we need someone new, someone younger, a female, a gay man, blah blah blah. You all should be ashamed of yourselves.
6
But where is the beef? Not looking for flash or confetti. Biden has not even remotely advanced a policy platform short of supporting the status quo. Democrats never win by supporting the status quo because that is conservatism by definition and not liberalism.
2
Joe Biden is a basically good man. However, to many of us Democrats (and others), these detriments shoo away our support:
* He's too old
* Unlike Sanders (also too old), Biden is too old-line political
* Biden's closet has a few too many unattractive skeletons
7
"Biden's strength is with black voters". How ludicrous: old, white haired white man, who in his personal life rarely if at all has anything to do with black folks, relies on blacks.
20
Joe Biden went wrong for Joe Biden.
He needs to officially be put out to pasture.
11
@MIKEinNYC
Biden should have listened to Obama when he said, as Biden endlessly prevaricated over 'to run or not to run' :
"You don't have to do this, Joe". But while Biden does put in the appearance of listening, I don't think he actually hears what is being said.
10
Same Old Joe.
5
The Biden campaign chose to helicopter in a bunch of white men over 70.
Surely that says it all?
5
Blame his campaign. LOL.
4
@Andrew Nielsen
Blame him.
1
At the top of your what went wrong for Joe Biden article there is a big ad for Mike Bloomberg. Hmm...
5
It seems the NYT doesn’t tire of wondering why the electorate is not the of the same mind as the super PACs of Wall Street who have been the DNC’s pocketbook and thus rudder for too long. It’s a recurrent disappointment for this reader.
17
Hillary Clinton had to contend with Anthony's Wiener, and lost. Joe Biden has to contend with Hunter's self-enrichment. At least we found out in time.
5
Tap out, Joe. Tap out.
11
If you want a candidate that embodies corporate America, confines himself to vague Obamanesque platitudes, and still has plenty of mileage left, you might as well go with Buttigieg; he's such a nice boy!
5
At least Obama policies actually have been implemented. Most of these “progressive” ideas have never been tried before at any level whether federal, state or local.
2