General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: The biggest divide between DC politicians and America: medical marijuana [View all]RainDog
(28,784 posts)I can support the Democratic party but still find issue with some of their stances and actions.
Biden is no better or worse than a lot of other politicians.
What will happen, and what is happening slowly, and has happened for many at the state level already, is that the federal-level politicians will have to give up their stances because they don't align with the American voting population.
Then they'll just not want to bring up the issue.
It's like the evolution of Robert Byrd. As a Southern Democrat, he supported horrid segregation legislation because that's what got him elected. Over time, however, even the people in his state had to back off on their reflexive racism because such a stance was no longer normalized at the federal level because so many people saw how wrong the Southern attitude was. When Bush was hawking the war on Iraq, people on DU were praising Byrd and were intentionally forgetful of the wrong decisions he made - they were wrong, ethically, but not wrong, politically, because, until the Civil Rights Act, Southern Democrats could align with white racists and win - that was one of the Democratic Party's strongest voting blocs, in fact.
But Byrd said he had learned. Maybe he had. I think the example that MLK gave to the world in such a situation was to forgive and move on, because Byrd was trying to stand up for something good, rather than something that was inherently repulsive.
I don't know why Biden has such backwards attitudes about cannabis, or even why he thinks the war on drugs accomplishes anything useful.
But I also have hope that he can change - as we've seen other pols change with the times.
Personally, I hope Biden doesn't run for president, but when my choice is Biden or some Republican who is beholden to some of the most hateful groups in the U.S. - including some of the most unreconstructed racists in this land - I'd vote for Biden every time.