It’s no secret that President Biden’s chances for reelection are slimming by the week. There’s plenty of time to turn things around for the incumbent, but if things continue on the same track, the president’s future will keep dwindling.
One option to help the president is to introduce a collection of very popular executive orders. Over at Bloomberg, Jonathan Bernstein wrote a piece arguing for marijuana to be Biden’s lifeline.
“Moreover, it’s an issue that unites Democrats. The Gallup survey found a whopping 87% of all Democrats support legalization, while Republicans are split with 55% supporting legalization and 45% opposed. No single policy position will decide an election, but on the margins taking the popular side of a 70/30 issue that splits the other party is certainly a net plus with voters. And a lot of elections are decided on the margins,” said Bernstein in the publication.
He uses gay marriage as an example of this working well for a past incumbent, Biden’s boss President Obama. Back in 2012, Biden helped Obama take the steps to change his stance on marriage equality, and it certainly helped his chances with voters, when he went on to win the election against Mitt Romney.
What’s more, Bernstein argues that the embrace of legalization will keep the issue in the Democrats hands.
“…anything that raises the salience of legalization creates tension among Republicans. Organized groups within the party still oppose marijuana, but the issue is popular with many GOP voters. It’s the kind of situation Republican politicians would rather not have to talk about. But if the president is talking about a policy area, it’s a lot harder for politicians from either party to duck it.”
Overall it’s a persuasive argument, and worth checking out in full. Read it here.
