Biden didn’t win the nomination by running a great campaign; in fact, he won several states without really campaigning at all. He ultimately prevailed because African-Americans trusted him after years of service, because the majority of the electorate thought socialism was a losing bet, and because Warren was uniquely vulnerable to an identity-based campaign. That’s not going to be enough in November.
Biden is going to need plenty of help from surrogates in the general election. How should he do that? Here are my suggestions:
1. Secretary of Uplift: Barack Obama. No one in my lifetime has provided inspiration like Obama. No one is even close. The GOP has nothing like him.
2. Negative Campaigning: Elizabeth Warren. Warren lost primarily because the voters understood that everything about her fed Trump’s narrative about over-educated elites. That aside, Warren has a unique ability to find and go for the jugular. Give her plenty of money and let her run.
3. Minority Outreach: Kamala Harris. Biden needs someone to pay his debt to African-Americans and bring excitement to his campaign. Harris will do the trick quite nicely as the junior member of the ticket.