If I was a Democrat–which I’m not, but which I used to be before I was expelled for being pro-life and culturally conservative–I would want Andrew Cuomo as my nominee for president of the United States.

His televised briefings during the COVID-19 crisis were a textbook case of how government should operate and what qualities a leader should have. While President Donald Trump was struggling in his press conferences to read off a script enumerating everything his administration was doing, Cuomo, seemingly from off the top of his head, was reeling off the multitude of steps he was taking.

His presentation was not colored by political posturing and self aggrandizement, as Trump’s has been. It were factual, calm and, dare I say, apolitical.

The irony is that as apolitical as it has been, Cuomo has boosted his national profile and–this is more important–his reputation as a practical politician, who did not let ideology cloud his problem-solving approach in a time of crisis.

It’s what so many Americans crave. “Please, please end the BS, step up and solve our problems.”  It’s what huge hunks of moderate, independent and never-Trumpers hunger for. It’s what neither Biden nor Trump offer. In all this, Cuomo has the best chance of beating Trump–the heart’s desire of many Americans living outside of  Trump’s base.

Compare Cuomo’s performance with that of the apparent Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden. My Lord, did you watch him yesterday stumble through his scripted faux fireside chat in which he displayed again the reasons why he’s just not just a weak candidate, but not up for the job and bad for the nation.

So, a Draft Cuomo movement already has begun. Reports the New York Post: “#PresidentCuomo trends as governor’s star status rises over coronavirus response”. It’s hard to see how that could be done with Biden leading the delegate race, especially if he goes into the party’s national convention with a majority. Maybe those infamous 775 unpledged superdelegates will pull it off somehow.

Maybe, for the first time in decades, a convention will be worth watching instead of being the ceremonial crowning that it has become.

dennis@dennisbyrne.net

www.dennisbyrne.net 

My historical novel: Madness: The War of 1812

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