Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

The latest national news reports suggest that President Joe Biden appears to have been successful in shunning those who say he should leave the race.

The situation is volatile enough that things could change, as has occurred several times since the president’s disastrous debate against Donald Trump.

On one day, Biden says there is no way he is leaving the race.  On another day, more Democrat leaders ask him to get out, including one of Oregon’s members of the U.S. House, Earl Blumenauer, a 30-year veteran of that place.

It is not possible to tell if new defections will deter Biden from running.

Meanwhile, the to’ing and fro’ing among Democrats works to the advantage of Trump, the dedicated liar who appears to believe falsehoods will work to his advantage.  I, for one, think he should leave the race, too.  No doubt he disagrees.

If Biden stays in the race, what should he try to do to pull victory from the jaws of defeat?

Well, there is no easy answer, but Washington Post contributing columnist Matt Bai posited an approach in his most recent piece.

Besides being a good writer, Bai used his column to look forward, not backward.  Here is how his effort started under this headline:  “Here’s how Biden should campaign for president now.”

And here are early paragraphs: 

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“In a letter to congressional Democrats, Biden made clear that, if they wanted to get him off the ticket in the wake of last month’s calamitous debate, they were going to have to build a time machine and go back to the primaries.  For the moment, at least, Biden isn’t going anywhere.

“So what kind of campaign should he run now?

“If I were advising Biden, I’d tell him there’s a persuasive way to embody the future, as all candidates must.  He should run as an elder statesman with one last, critical service to render to his country, aside from keeping Trump out of the White House — which is to turn the government over, at long last, to a cohort of leaders that doesn’t remember the moon landing.

“This time, Biden should offer himself up not as a bridge to the next generation but as an off-ramp, finally, for the boomers.”

“…the smart thing (for Biden) would be to propose a transformational vision of the next four years that doesn’t rely on his ability to work past 8 o’clock at night.

“Biden should start with the convention.  No more doddering lawmakers, no more former presidents gone gray, and — for the love of God — no more Kennedys.  Stack the prime-time lineup with lesser-known governors and mayors, with younger members of Congress and the Cabinet.  Cast yourself as a grandfatherly figure, a ‘presider in chief’ gathering up the best young talent you can find.

“Bring Harris front and center, more like a partner than a subordinate. Reassure people that if you’re not around for some reason, your replacement will be ready to go, whether she’s everyone’s top choice or not.

“Then, instead of waiting for the post-election period to build a Cabinet for the second term, start rolling out major appointments during the fall campaign, with the clear message that these new appointees will operate with unusual independence.

“Why not move Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to chief of staff, or Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to secretary of state?   How about bringing in two or three governors — Gretchen Whitmer, Gavin Newsom, Wes Moore — who might run to replace you?”

If this was the approach, no doubt Republicans would howl that Biden was running to be a figure head, not just a real president.

“But I’m guessing,” Bai adds, “that most independent voters would take a kindly figurehead who empowers smart, younger leaders over a volatile narcissist who’s hellbent on delivering retribution.  And they’re not going to believe Biden is fully in charge, anyway, so he might as well get credit for being the one guy in the race who’s telling the truth.

Interesting ideas from Bai, but would they work? 

Who knows?  But better to try something new rather than to stay a very uncertain course that threatens to give the presidency to Trump.

So, to buttress Bai’s argument, I end with this quote attributed years ago to Napoleon, which speaks to Trump’s current strategy (if it ever is appropriate to suggest that Trump has a strategy for anything):

“Never interrupt your enemy while he’s in the process of destroying himself.”

That’s what he is doing, so it’s time for Democrats to get their act together.