Calming Nervous Democrats Will Take Time

Dan Balz: “More than half a century ago, an embattled Democratic president decided unexpectedly not to run for reelection. The month was March, the year was 1968 and the president was Lyndon B. Johnson.”

“The fight to replace Johnson led to discord and violence. The Democratic National Convention in Chicago brought tumult inside the convention hall and bloody clashes between police and anti-Vietnam War demonstrators in the streets. The party nominated Johnson’s vice president, Hubert Humphrey, but Democrats left Chicago divided and demoralized. The result was the election of Republican Richard M. Nixon.”

“No one is suggesting anything close to a rerun of those events this summer. But that extraordinary stretch of 1968 is a reminder that this week’s talk of replacing President Biden as the Democratic nominee comes with no easy solution and many potential unintended consequences.”

“Fears about the authoritarian potential of a second Trump presidency alarm Democrats, many independents and even some Republicans. The goal of defeating former president Donald Trump unites Democrats. Yet after Biden’s struggles in Thursday’s debate, the best way to prevent Trump from becoming president again divides them.”