Divided since January of 2019, the Democratic Primary field has finally narrowed down to a presumptive nominee, Joe Biden, with the campaign suspension of Bernie Sanders on April 8, 2020. And while Biden is now the winner, former Sanders supporters refuse to pledge support to the former Vice President, calling for Sanders to return. However, other than the argument that Biden fairly won the primary, he is a far superior candidate to Sanders, after all being the only true Democrat out of the two.

Simply put, both candidates were preaching, “Trump is bad, I’m the best to beat him,” though they conveyed this message in very distinct ways. Biden took a more centrist approach to unite Americans from all parts of the spectrum while Sanders was so far-left that he alienated over half of America. Senior Camber Vincent said, “I believe that to actually bring this country back to a working point, we can’t keep the pendulum swinging back and forth between extreme left or extreme right. I think we need to go for a candidate like Biden who is more moderate in his policies and more willing to compromise.” 

Biden is extremely qualified to be the nation’s leader, serving as both a senator from Delaware from 1973 to 2009 and Barack Obama’s Vice President from 2009 to 2017. As a senator, he co-sponsored the Violence Against Women Act which raised $1.6 billion for the prosecution and the investigation of crimes against women. He was also monumental in the passing of tax relief and other acts meant to curb the economic disaster of 2008. This, combined with his experience in the White House means he is prepared to deal with all types of domestic and global crises, such as the Coronavirus pandemic.

The superiority of Biden became more apparent during the debates. Biden’s plans align closely with the Democratic platform and include support for easier legal immigration, veterans and ending gun violence. Sanders, on the other hand, chose to paint every non-socialist policy as detrimental to society and instead suggested impractical ideas such as Medicare-for-All and free public college. 

These policies are extremely radical and unrealistic as it is very unlikely that these plans would receive bipartisan support. An even bigger question is how he is planning on paying for these services which would cost more than the entire GDP of the country. Sanders has considered increasing taxes on the rich to pay for them, but in the end, he would spend 100 days fighting for a bill that would burn up his time, ultimately would not get passed, and thus, would accomplish nothing. 

Biden’s version of a public option is a much more viable policy proposal as it has a greater chance of getting passed by a partisan government. And, unlike Medicare-for-All, it does not create a chain reaction in the independent healthcare system which would lead to mass unemployment. And with over 18 million Americans working in healthcare according to the CDC, even if a small portion of these jobs are lost, crippling effects could spread through the U.S. economy.

There is a lot of talk about the “senile” nature of Biden and his comments. For example, Biden has once said that busing of black students to try to desegregate schools was, “a rejection of the entire black awareness concept, where black is beautiful, black culture should be studied; and the cultural awareness of the importance of their own identity, their own individuality.” Comments like these have brought up the idea that Biden is losing his mind and that he doesn’t have the mental capacity to be president. Ironically, Sanders is older than Biden yet is the one preaching that Biden is losing his mind due to age.

While he has made some controversial and possibly inaccurate statements throughout the years, this doesn’t mean that Biden is any less qualified for the presidency. He has changed since his younger and arguably more controversial period, and a few wrong statements over the course of a distinguished political career isn’t enough to disqualify someone from being the leader of the free world. Biden has learned from his past and has changed his mindset on these issues.

A big disqualifying factor for Sanders is that he is a Democratic Socialist with far too life-altering and outlandish ideas for the country. Government teacher Toni Kellinger said, “I think Biden is the more attractive candidate for Democrats in general because he is someone who you would consider fairly mainstream and…the Democratic leadership was a little afraid of someone representing their party who says he’s a socialist.” He has proven he won’t budge from his ideas and thus will only be a president for the uber left-wing, satisfying just his base and no one else. And by running with that attitude, he would get nowhere near the White House.

The Democratic Party wants someone who can connect with people and be an empathetic leader. Biden is that exact person with both his folksy charm and viable policies that make people hopeful the government will get stuff done. Mrs. Kellinger said, “My gut feeling is that Joe Biden will get the nomination and will pick a younger, probably minority, vice president.” Compared to Sanders, Biden has a deeper understanding of what the people want and is capable of giving it to them. 

Sanders is dividing the Democratic Party into two parts, one centrist group and one group that desires a revolution. He has such extremist views that he seems a lot like Trump, an out-of-control authoritarian who has radical and non-viable policies that play off people’s emotions but will never actually happen. But Biden offers hope, clarity and unity for the entire nation, and unlike Sanders, Joe is the one who will get it done. “Bernie Bros” need to fall in line and help support the Democratic Nominee so America does not get another four years of Trump.