President Biden is a successful president with a historically impressive record in his first term, and if — or when — he runs for a second term, he will benefit from a very impressive group of With the backing of impressive Democratic governors, they possess a dose of political magic.
One of the great untold stories in 2023 politics that we can begin to remedy here is the genuine excellence of many of the Democratic governors in office today, quite a few of them in office with Democratic state legislatures.
Today let’s focus on four Democratic governors.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been a national leader as an innovative chief executive on issue after issue, from gun control to climate change to women’s rights and abortion, In the tradition of his hero, Robert F. Kennedy.
He established a huge small donation fundraising operation, provided support for countless Democrats, and strongly responded to Republican attacks on Democrats, and strongly supported President Biden’s re-election.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has distinguished himself in his business and political career, governing with deft skill on important state and national issues and staunch support for other Democrats, including Biden.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has led her state with distinction. She has been instrumental in keeping Democrats in control of the state legislature, and she has come across as fearless, calm and triumphant in the face of the evil and dangers the Trump era has posed.
Wes Moore, newly appointed governor of Maryland, served as a captain in the 82nd Airborne Division in Afghanistan, earned a master’s degree as a Rhodes Scholar from Oxford University, was CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, and worked in senior finance in New York.
These four distinguished governors have worked with the Democratic legislature. I suggest they consider working with each other and with other Democratic states to develop a joint, multi-state Democratic plan on issues like health care so they can create huge economies of scale on issues like lowering prescription drug prices. That would give them powerful leverage over Big Pharma, create huge savings for their constituents, and work in tandem with what Biden and congressional Democrats are doing.
Teaming up will allow them to set a substantive agenda at a time when officials in Washington are preoccupied with issues such as whether a failure to raise the debt ceiling will lead to collapse of U.S. and world markets and economies.
Memo to Moderate House Republicans: If your party crashes the economy, but not at the expense of inflicting economic destruction on our country, I’ll be excited about a blue wave. Make a deal with the Democrats!
Biden, Democrats in the House and Senate, and America all benefit from these high-caliber Democratic governors, who are able to craft big plans with Democratic-controlled legislatures. These initiatives at the state level demonstrate the Democratic Party’s philosophy of governance and their ability to execute these programs and make them work for our people.
Such a move would also build on the success of Biden’s big program in his first two years. Mind you, he did this with the help of Ron Klain, one of the best White House chiefs of staff in decades, who will now get the incoming White House Help from Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, who has been instrumental in fighting COVID-19 and shaping economic policy exceptions.
The American people want a government that works for them, addresses their fears and hopes, improves the financial situation of their families, and works to help them achieve their dreams. It’s Biden’s vision for governing, one of the many reasons he won the 2020 election, and why the Democrats are doing so well in the 2022 midterms.
This is the vision of the Democratic governors discussed here and other great next generation leaders of America.
Budowsky is an aide to former Senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-Texas) and former Rep. Bill Alexander (D-Arkansas), the House chief deputy majority whip.
