Biden and BLM must set aside differences, focus on beating Trump
by Will Marshall, PPI President
Joe Biden isn’t nearly as visible, but he’s leading President Trump in every key battleground state and even some – including Texas – that no one expected to be up for grabs in 2020.
At the same time, the former vice president is taking heat from Black Lives Matter (BLM) and the progressive left, who complain that his stance on policing and criminal justice reform is too tepid.
These divergent realities reflect two large tensions that Biden must manage adroitly to unite his fractious party and prevent Trump from winning in November.
In a significant shift, majorities now approve of the Black Lives Matter movement and say racism is a key 2020 issue.
Biden knows some of the angry rhetoric arising from the streets bleeds into a generalized hostility toward police — a position anathema to him and rank and file Democrats.
