Across the arc of American history — and certainly during the 52 years that Joseph R. Biden Jr. has been a player on the national stage — presidents simply do not leave office or give up the race for reelection voluntarily.
On the rare occasions it happens involuntarily, it is not enemies in the opposition that force them to do what the hard-wired patterns of a lifetime tell them to resist. Inevitably, it is the work of ostensible allies within a president’s own party.
