Friends: Below is the letter that I sent to my Governor; Senator and Congressman. If you agree with me, please start writing letters and making phone calls to Democratic politicians and leaders across the country; and spread the word to all Democrats to amplify this message.
Governor Ned Lamont
Senator Richard Blumenthal
Representative Jim Himes
Gentlemen:
I am going to be blunt. Joe Biden is getting old.
This letter is not addressed to Senator Chris Murphy because it is about him.
Now is the time for everyone to start suggesting, encouraging, advising and advocating for Senator Murphy to run for president.
President Biden has done a great job, especially considering the cards he was dealt. But it is absolutely too risky to run an 80-year-old man for president. Please let that sink in.
The other offerors do not inspire great confidence. Vice President Harris is an ambitious politician who has been in the right place at the right time. But I don’t think she has the gravitas needed to win. Senator Klobuchar lacks charisma, accomplishment, and a rationale. Senator Booker’s heart is certainly in the right place. But aphorisms and anecdotes about when he was Mayor won’t get him to the White House. Several of Senator Warren’s proposals just do not make sense to a liberal “Ted Kennedy-Democrat” like me. Secretary Buttigieg will not get 80 million votes. None of this bodes well for a presidential campaign against a Hawley, a Cotton or a Cruz. And Senator Sanders will not rule out another run!
Chris Murphy is the most qualified Democrat who has a reasonable shot at winning the next presidential election. Why? Here are a few reasons: Values, passion, energy, service, integrity, intellect and the ability to answer a question. Yes, it matters that he has a relentless commitment to decency.
Did I mention foreign policy? At this time in history, foreign policy looms large. In fact, foreign policy looms enormous. Chris Murphy is the best person the Democrats have on foreign policy. That is the definition of a rationale.
The Russian invasion not only seeks to murder, displace and deport millions of Ukrainian civilians. It is Putin’s project to expand his empire while erasing Ukraine as a nation, a culture, and a people. Putin’s expansionist wars are an existential threat to the free peoples of Europe and liberal democracy in the 21st century. Of course, he must be stopped at all costs. President Biden and the Democrats in Congress are absolutely doing the right things. I know that you will continue to do so through 2024. But we must expect that America’s efforts to destroy the Russian military; crush the Russian economy, and drive Putin from power will have to go on for many years. There will be no peace and no security until all that is accomplished. This undertaking will require the best foreign policy president the U. S. has had in at least 60 years. Chris Murphy could be that.
Let’s remind ourselves. Joe Biden is getting old. The Democrats, the American people, and the free people of the West should not have to take the risk that entails. The risk is that right-wing authoritarianism - Bannonism if you will - takes power in this country.
You can tell the Senator that JFK, Carter, Clinton and Obama had at least one thing in common. None of them waited for his turn. History doesn’t work that way.
Many thanks for your service to Connecticut and our country.