Tom Minear: How Biden’s favourite saying doomed his career

“Don’t compare me to the Almighty,” Joe Biden liked to say. “Compare me to the alternative.” In the end, that motto brought him undone.

“Don’t compare me to the Almighty,” Joe Biden likes to say. “Compare me to the alternative.”

He inherited that attitude from his father, and it underpinned his remarkable 52 years in politics. In the end, it was also what brought him undone.

Americans have been comparing the President to the alternative: Donald Trump.

Having survived an assassination attempt, the Republican looks more presidential than he did even when he was in the White House. He is trying to curb his worst impulses – a notable shift, even if it is temporary – and winning over voters in a way that seemed impossible when he left office.

Trump’s acceptance of the Republican nomination last week was all about strength. In case it was not obvious, he was introduced by wrestler Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Fighting Championship boss Dana White, five days after he was shot in the ear.

And Biden? He was isolating at home with Covid, probably curled up in bed by the time Trump took the stage. A virus had taken him down; even a bullet could not stop Trump.

Protesters demand US President Joe Biden "Pass the Torch," in front of the White House in Washington, DC, on July 20. Picture: Daniel Slim/AFP

This was a disaster for Biden. But he had an even bigger problem: Democratic Party powerbrokers were also comparing him to the alternative.

Not Trump, but Vice President Kamala Harris, or any number of talented governors and senators. Their conclusion, which was almost unanimous, was that Biden could not win and they needed a new candidate.

US President Joe Biden will not run for re-election. Picture: Kent Nishimura / AFP

They tried and failed to give him a graceful way to walk away. When that failed, they moved to blast him out, knowing that time was short before November’s election.

The attack on Trump did not change anything for Biden, because as it turns out, this coup had begun before the sniper opened fire. The party’s congressional leaders had already prevailed upon the President to quit, and only leaked their warnings when he failed to listen.

An alternative matters for them, not just in the presidential election, but in their effort to save their control of the Senate and win back the House of Representatives. If Trump cannot be defeated, the least the Democrats can do is curb his power in Congress.

An attendee holds a sign stating "Fire Joe Biden" on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention on July 18 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Picture: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/AFP

And so Biden, a famously proud and stubborn man, has finally buckled to the inevitable.

With just 107 days until the election, and his party trailing in the polls, he leaves Harris – if the Democrats accept his endorsement of her – with an enormous task to fight back and win.

Can she do it? As the last few weeks have shown, anything is possible in US politics. Indeed, while Biden was an unpopular candidate, so too is Trump. American voters have been crying out for an alternative. Now they have one.