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The 2022 midterm elections are still ten months away, but Democrats already have reason to be concerned about their presidential ticket in 2024 namely, over the fact that none of the potential candidates have the stature to win a general election, nor the experience to lead when in office.

President Joe Biden realistically will not seek a second term due to his age, and Kamala Harris is less popular than any other vice president in recent history. Even if Harris herself was slightly more viable, the Biden Administrations unpopularity has become a millstone around Democrats neck, and she would inevitably be tainted by the administrations political baggage.

Indeed, voters are turning on the Biden presidency: Republicans now lead in the 2022 generic vote for Congress; and in a hypothetical Trump-Biden rematch, 48 percent of voters say they would back Trump, compared with 45 percent for Biden.

Assuming Harris will not be the default nominee, we can expect that a drawn-out primary process will ensue in which progressives and moderates duke it out in a contest that further exposes the partys deep divisions. Other Democrats that could potentially win such a primarylike Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigiegmay be relatively stronger than Harris, though not much.

There is only one potential solution, which Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich recently suggested could happen: bring back Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton would offer Democrats a new approach that is separate and apart from the Biden Administration. She would also likely sweep in a primary race, allowing the party to quickly coalesce around one candidate.

Admittedly, a Clinton candidacy is unlikely to occur. However, the fact that it is even being discussed reflects the degree to which the Democrats have moved away from their traditional positioning, and how extreme the partys positions have become in international and domestic affairs.

That being said, the Biden Administration has three major problems that a Clinton candidacy could remedy.

First: their foreign policy. The administration either does not have a coherent foreign policy strategy, or their approach has failed.

In August, the world watched the U.S. botch the withdrawal of our troops from Afghanistan, which led to Taliban militants with ties to transnational terrorist groups seizing control of the country. The Biden Administration still has not articulated a strategy to deal with the wide-ranging fallout from Afghanistannamely, how to confront the militaristic aggression exhibited by China and Russia, two autocratic nations emboldened by the U.S.s strategic failure.

Second: the administrations rudderless domestic policyespecially following the failed effort to pass Bidens Build Back Better plan before the end of the year. To that end, majorities of voters disapprove of Bidens handling of major domestic issuesincluding the economy (53 percent) and immigration (56 percent), per a recent Politico/Morning Consult poll.

The third problema biproduct of the first twois President Bidens deteriorating overall approval rating, which now stands at just 43 percent approve, 53 percent disapprove, per Politico/Morning Consult.

Bidens overall decline is largely attributable to a drop among Independent voters. Though Biden won Independents handily in 2020, just 33 percent of Independents now approve of the job Biden is doing, while 59 percent disapprove.

In light of these three major problems, only a pivot to Hillary Clintonas desperate a move as that may becan save the party from evisceration in the midterms and a potential wipe out in 2024.

This would begin with Biden forcing a resignation from Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and elevating Clinton to the position. If appointed, she would become the frontrunner for 2024 in the event that Biden does not seek a second term.

In terms of addressing the first problem Ive identified; Clinton represents a clear new direction in foreign policy.

If past is precedent, Clinton would be tougher on China for their undemocratic actions toward Taiwan and Hong Kong, and for their human rights abuses against religious minorities. As Secretary of State, Clinton spear-headed the Obama Administrations pivot to Asia, and made it known early on that the U.S. would not sit by as China took aggressive actions in the South China Sea.

With regard to the Middle East, though Clinton has voiced skepticism about the Iranians, she was more cautious in her approach to the Iran Nuclear Deal than the president she served under.

On domestic policy, Clinton has one primary advantage: she would be able to create distance between herself and the letdowns of the Biden-Harris Administration, while still offering experience.

And in light of the controversy surrounding the abortion bans in Texas and Mississippi, Clinton could be uniquely positioned to excite groups of Democratic and Independent female voters. She has throughout her career championed womens rights, and of course, was the first women to be the presidential nominee of a major political party.

To be sure, I am well-aware that Hillary Clinton lost an election she should not have.

In retrospect, that was most likely the result of the October Surprise of FBI Director James Comey reopening the investigation into her email server. Some will say it had more to do with Russias interference, others will point to her campaigns lack of an economic message.

Clinton remains ambitious, outspoken, and convinced that but for Comeys intervention that she would have won the 2016 electionand she may well be right.

Thus, with the correct messaging, one could argue that Clinton has the stature, the positions, and the record that Democrats need.

If we are to have a foreign policy that is respected around the world and Democratic leadership at home that is a clear break from the Biden Administration, at this point, there is no clear alternative.

Douglas Schoen is a longtime Democratic political consultant.

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Democrats are on the decline could Hillary Clinton save them? - The Pasadena Star-News