Trump against a penitent Biden

Re “The burden of a long career,” March 18

Former Vice President Joe Biden’s “long career,” in which he has expressed beliefs and voted in ways that put him at odds with today’s Democratic Party, positions him perfectly to present himself as a repentant sinner recalling a journey of growth.

This contrasts with President Trump, the unrepentant sinner who has learned nothing from the same decades of experience.

This positioning gives Biden immense gravitas compared to other contenders who have only speculative agendas to offer.

Biden can further broaden his advantage if he commits to serve one term with the intent to restore decency, honor and respect to the American political order before handing the torch to the rising generation. Glenn Pascall

Dana Point

Your summary of Biden’s voting record in the Senate is useful. But why omit the plagiarism scandal that included his mediocre college grades and knocked him out of his 1988 presidential bid?

While vice presidents have statistically done well when running for president, candidates running for the White House a second or third time have fared worse.

The article implies that compromise is a dirty word among the Democrats. That’s an opinion that may or may not be true.

But is it wistful to hope some upcoming politician has studied Patrick Clay, former senator, speaker of the House and secretary of State? Could it be that Americans can find one contender who has hit the books and shown some type of truly creative genius in preparation for this awesome job? Gerald Walsh

Redondo Beach

I personally would love to be able to vote for Biden in the next election. His reputation as a Democrat who has shown himself willing and able to cross the aisle to talk to Republicans in order to agree on good policy or to respond to urgent situations is of inestimable value in these recent years of political polarization.

This fine man stands alone in a field of way too many earnest but untested candidates. I, for one, prefer a tried-and-true candidate who is willing and ready now to take on the arduous responsibility of leadership. Gloria J. Richards

Simi Valley

You mention that over the past 40 years Joe Biden has taken an array of stances that are at odds with today’s Democratic Party consensus.

That brought to mind the observation: “If you maintain a consistent political position, you’ll eventually be tried for treason.” Darrel Cohoon

Huntington Beach