How Trump and Biden Maintain Their Power
Is their support bottom-up or top-down? By Readers Sept. 11, 2023 4:03 pm ET A presidential debate watch party, Oct. 22, 2020. Photo: Jeff Chiu/Associated Press Barton Swaim’s incisive analysis overlooks a fundamental difference between the “grip” of former President Trump and that of President Biden (“Joe Biden’s ‘Iron Grip’ on His Party,” op-ed, Sept. 5). Mr. Trump’s popularity is akin to a cult of personality, stemming from the candidate himself, not a mandate imposed by the party elites. This is demonstrated by the party’s willingness to encourage challengers and debates among those seeking the Republican nomination. Mr. Biden, by contrast, is justifiably unpopular in his own party. His controlling position is almost entirely due to the efforts of those in control of the Democratic Party to discourage alternative choices, sti
A presidential debate watch party, Oct. 22, 2020.
Photo: Jeff Chiu/Associated Press
Barton Swaim’s incisive analysis overlooks a fundamental difference between the “grip” of former President Trump and that of President Biden (“Joe Biden’s ‘Iron Grip’ on His Party,” op-ed, Sept. 5). Mr. Trump’s popularity is akin to a cult of personality, stemming from the candidate himself, not a mandate imposed by the party elites. This is demonstrated by the party’s willingness to encourage challengers and debates among those seeking the Republican nomination.
Mr. Biden, by contrast, is justifiably unpopular in his own party. His controlling position is almost entirely due to the efforts of those in control of the Democratic Party to discourage alternative choices, stifle debates and otherwise manipulate the nomination process in hopes of continuing to control the White House and impose their left-wing ideology. Each contender’s support comes from a different direction.
Robert Best
Overland Park, Kan.
On the same day that Mr. Swaim writes about how mystifying it is that Democrats exhibit fierce loyalty to Mr. Biden, a poll shows that both Democrats and Republicans worry about the president’s age and the economy. The real issue for Democrats, however, is that anyone with a pulse would be better than another term of Donald Trump. That’s also true for many independents and even some Republicans.
You’ve got to dance with the one who brought you. I and many other Democrats are very proud of Mr. Biden for his genuine empathy, the improving economy under his watch and our growing respect on the world stage. Mr. Swaim lambastes Mr. Biden for pulling out of Afghanistan without acknowledging that this was precisely Mr. Trump’s plan.
Sara Stevenson
Austin, Texas
Mr. Swaim makes me think that Democratic charges of Mr. Trump’s control over his party is a symptom of what psychiatrists call “projection.” A few years ago, the New York Times sent its investigative reporters to dig through Mr. Trump’s father’s 1960s tax returns. But faced with a multitude of current Biden scandals, it tells its readers that there’s nothing to see here, folks; keep moving.
Thomas F. Berner
Yonkers, N.Y.
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