On Sunday, the impossible finally came to pass. Joe Biden, after swearing that only the Lord Almighty himself could compel him to step down from the 2024 presidential race, suddenly revealed that he was finished. The announcement, which only came in the form of a social media post, caught his own staffers by complete surprise. Even those working in the White House only came to learn of his decision on X.
To say that this is an unprecedented situation risks underselling the uniqueness of the current moment. Not only are we in very strange territory electorally (given the announcement’s proximity to the party convention), but there is also a sense that something has gone seriously wrong with the political system itself.
