Any poll that suggests the Republican choice for the 2024 presidential nominee will be rife with political news. They pay little attention to the Democratic side, where the numbers are most interesting.
President Joe Biden added that a Granite State poll showing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has a big lead over Donald Trump puts Pete Buttigieg ahead of other Democrats.
Of course, that poll only surveyed voters in New Hampshire, which could lose its significance as the primary for the Democratic presidential primary. Also, we are forever years away from the nomination process on the political calendar.
Biden has hinted that he will run for a second term. The president’s presidency has been working with increasing standards. Biden has proven time and time again that underestimating his political prowess is a mistake — highlighted by a surprisingly strong midterm performance by Democrats.
This writer is agnostic on whether Biden should run for a second term. He is getting older and slower but he is doing the job, and well.
However, she is a strong believer in Buttigieg’s push as a young democratic alternative – a practical solution to problems. Former South Bend Mayor Indiana Buttigieg hails from Central America. He knows how to talk to middle America, and unlike the Democratic elite on the coasts, he wants to.
Buttigieg is outspoken and unrepentant in the leftist ways of Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. And how clever of him to be on right-wing Fox News. Warren went after him for these aspects because of the network attacks on the Democratic Party.
But his willingness to go for it, now, speaks to the courage of Democrats on the other side of the aisle who are uncomfortable in their partisan ranks. He also argued that Fox News’ audience includes persuasive voters.
Look at him. Buttigieg counters hostile interrogators without turning aggressive, without losing his cool. Fox has an older audience, and the still-young Buttigieg, 41, has surprised analysts with his apparent appeal to baby boomers during his brief run for president in 2020.
He has good manners, and no one cares if he’s gay.
A Granite State poll showed Buttigieg with a big lead over other Democrats. About 23 percent of New Hampshire primary voters chose him as their preferred candidate. Biden and Warren each came in at 18 percent. Kamala Harris trailed behind with just 2 percent support.
What is Buttigieg doing now and what is he doing as the Democratic presidential candidate? As Secretary of Transportation, he is serving as the face of bipartisan infrastructure legislation. There are 166 projects funded with $7.5 billion over five years.
So he talks about fixing roads, ports and bridges and in battleground states like Ohio, Florida and Minnesota. In Berlin, New Hampshire, Buttigieg unveiled a new high-tech system that melts the city’s heavy snowfall from streets. It sends heat from nearby biomass through underground pipes.
In Tucson, Ariz., he announced funding for a railroad bridge that would ease traffic through the notorious bottleneck. In Atlanta, the city’s rapid transit authority announced a grant to repair the Five Points station.
and so on. In an effort to reform America’s corrupt infrastructure, Buttigieg is also giving voters a chance to turn their eyes away from the insane conspiracy theories that dominate much of the Republican Party.
Like Biden, Buttigieg will connect with voters. He may be the Democrats’ presidential nominee. Or, he could strengthen Biden’s quest for a second term by replacing the much-unpopular Vice President Kamala Harris.
Follow Froma Harrop on Twitter @FromaHarrop. She can be reached at [email protected].