Opinion: Jill Biden, you must convince your husband to step aside

Dear First Lady Biden:

We, the American people desperately need you. We need you to save this country from the prospect of four more years of Donald Trump. We need you now.

But first, we must thank you for convincing your husband to run for president in 2020. He was the only one who could beat Donald Trump, and he did. Then he delivered just what the country needed. He brought us out of the COVID-19 crisis, he rebuilt our economy to the strongest in the world, he restored America’s leadership and he racked up more legislative victories in four years, most of them with bipartisan support, than most presidents achieve in eight years.

For his first four years alone, Joe Biden will be rightfully remembered as one of America’s best and most effective presidents. And, no doubt, were he given four more years, he’d achieve even more.

But you must know, Dr. Biden, that opportunity of a second term is far from certain — and even less certain after his performance in last Thursday’s debate against Donald Trump.

Fairly or unfairly, voters are not paying much attention to your husband’s many successes, or to his plans for a second term. They’re mostly focused on whether he’s up to the job of a second term. That’s the sole reason they watched the debate.

Many of us agree with you that Joe Biden is, in fact, mentally and physically capable of serving for another four years. And that it’s unfair to judge his entire career by one bad night on the stage.

But, still, that’s the assurance the American people were looking for the night of the debate. That’s the vote of confidence they needed to get enthusiastically behind a second Biden term. And surely even you must recognize they didn’t get it.

Sadly, once that unfavorable impression was received, it’s impossible to turn it around. No energetic appearance at a campaign rally the next day, no evoking of an inspiring 2024 State of the Union speech, no hope of a better job in the second debate can erase the painful memory of what we all saw on June 27: a dishonest but energetic man versus an honest but incoherent man.

As you have said on many occasions, this is the most important election of our lifetime, because so much is at stake: the Constitution, the rule of law, the freedoms we’ve fought so hard to protect, our democracy itself. We must not risk letting Donald Trump get anywhere near the Oval Office again. Until last week, we knew we could count on Joe Biden to prevent that disaster. That’s no longer the case.

So, we need you to convince your husband that the only way forward now is to accept reality. Most Americans no longer believe he can beat Donald Trump. So, he must step aside and declare an open convention, allowing the Democratic Party to nominate a younger, stronger candidate who can beat Trump. It’s more important to save the nation than to save Joe Biden’s political career.

Please, first lady Biden, deliver that urgent message to the president. You’re the only one who can do it.

Bill Press hosts “The Bill Press Pod.” He is the author of “From the Left: A Life in the Crossfire.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.