Biden prepares to speak at The Queen theater on Nov. 05, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware
He was born to a wealthy family fallen on hard times. For years his family lived with his mother’s parents. In school he stuttered so badly that once even a teacher mocked him. He went to ordinary schools and excelled in modest ways. Six weeks after he won a Senate seat nobody thought could go to the Democrat, his wife and daughter died in a car crash. Many years later a son died of cancer. These are the real things that weigh on a man’s thoughts even when the headlines are about other things.
He will get plenty of opportunity. On Thursday the United States recorded 1,127 deaths from the coronavirus. The deaths are coming at the rate of a 9/11 every three days or so, as they have for months. Winter will be half done before a Biden administration gets to try its hand at mastering a virus that has stumped better leaders than Donald Trump around the world.
Ford understood that part of his job was to cool things down. A crisis always leaves too many people behind who have learned to enjoy shouting; they need to re-learn, by executive example, the value of a conversational tone. Ford had to rehabilitate discredited institutions. This cannot be done from a central office. It needs strong managers with autonomous authority in a hundred places.
Democrats celebrating their win.