My worry is Biden isn’t laying the ground for Bernie or progressives. He, like Obama, is laying the ground for Trump. The overwhelming message to progressives has been, “we don’t need you or your policies.” Biden himself has told people who questioned his record loudly and clearly to go vote for someone else. Biden is still talking about compromise with Republicans as if the last decade hasn’t made that idea absurd.

So let’s say the “I’m Not Trump” campaign works this time around and Biden wins. Obama struggled to hold onto his 2008 voters and he suffered losses in 2010 and 2012, with the Tea Party rushing in and wiping out gains made in the House and Senate and turning the thought of winning Indiana and North Carolina into a pipe dream. How does Biden hold onto voters motivated by the fact that he isn’t Trump once Trump is gone? How does he keep the suburban Democrats who weren’t politically engaged until Trump to remain politically engaged after Trump?

Unless the party has some serious plans to hold onto white working class and suburban voters through an economic recession and recovery (which already looks to last around 1.5 years, but will grow as shutdowns continue), Biden looks to be Obama, but worse. Which means he is paving the way for Trump, but worse (ie malicious AND competent).