Joe of good faith: Biden bows out

US Presidential Race: Biden Withdraws and Harris Emerges

• Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the 2024 Democratic presidential race via a Twitter post on a Sunday, providing approximately one minute's notice to his aides.
• The decision follows a "calamitous" performance in the first presidential debate and a sustained drop in polling numbers relative to Donald Trump.
• Biden immediately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor, citing her seniority, White House experience, and control of the existing campaign infrastructure.
• Harris is positioned to become the first female president and the first woman of African and Asian descent in US history if nominated.
• Despite inheriting the Biden campaign machinery, Harris lacks a proven track record of winning nationwide elections; her 2020 primary campaign was described as unsuccessful.
• Political analysts suggest a contested nomination process would benefit Harris and the party more than a "coronation," though the primary convention is set for mid-August (roughly three weeks away).
• Plausible rivals who could challenge Harris include Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock, and former astronaut Mark Kelly.
• Current polling data shows Harris's numbers are similar to Biden's, as the public struggles to separate the Vice President from the sitting President's approval ratings.
• Analysts view Donald Trump as "polarizing" and "not a very strong candidate" despite a recent boost from the Republican National Convention and surviving an assassination attempt; they argue a competent Democratic opponent can defeat him.
• Biden's legacy is currently contingent on the election outcome: his major legislative wins (COVID recovery, climate legislation, Ukraine support) may be overshadowed by a Trump victory if he had not withdrawn sooner.
• The administration's "inside game" success is contrasted with the difficulty of running a national election, with concerns that Harris's rise from California state politics may not fully prepare her for a general election against Trump.

Governance Strategy: Arguments for More States in India

• Leo Morani argues that India's current structure of 28 large states is inefficient for governing a population of 1.4 billion, as individual states like Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh contain populations comparable to entire European nations.
• The proposal suggests creating new states through simple parliamentary acts, a process that does not require consent from existing states, to decentralize power to municipalities and metropolitan regions.
• The 2014 creation of Telangana is cited as a success story, with the state rising from 10th to 3rd in per capita income rankings over a decade.
• Key factors in Telangana's success included the freedom from "policy baggage," a strong local government motivated by the statehood movement, and strategic investment in irrigation and power.
• Telangana implemented a unique business clearance policy where approvals are deemed granted if no response is received within 15 days, contrasting with the multi-departmental bottlenecks elsewhere in India.
• The primary drawback of the Telangana model is regional inequality; prosperity concentrated heavily in the capital city of Hyderabad, leaving rural areas behind and leading to the defeat of the founding party in recent elections.
• Potential future states include a reinstated "Jammu and Kashmir," aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's campaign promises.
• Creating more states would increase political complexity by desynchronizing election cycles, potentially leading to constant campaigning, and would require significant negotiation over resource sharing.
• Despite these complications, the report asserts that creating new states is the only viable solution to improve administrative efficiency and economic outcomes without compromising national unity.

Obituary: Dr. Ruth Westheimer

• Ruth Westheimer (Dr. Ruth), a pioneering American sex therapist who died at age 96, passed away after a career of dismantling American puritanism regarding sexual health and education.
• Born in Germany in 1928, she survived the Holocaust as a child on the Kindertransport to Switzerland before becoming an orphan in a children's home where her parents were killed; she later emigrated to Israel and underwent military training as a sniper.
• She launched her media career in 1980 with a 15-minute radio show, "Sexually Speaking," which expanded to an hour and later moved to television as "The Dr. Ruth Show" in 1984.
• Her on-air persona combined a "grandmotherly" German-Jewish accent and short stature (4'7") with frank, often humorous discussions on topics like masturbation, contraception, and relationships.
• Westheimer used her platform to challenge cultural taboos, famously prompting David Letterman to walk out of his show and convincing Johnny Carson to admit that masturbation does not cause blindness.
• Despite her "giggling" public image, she maintained a serious, "old-fashioned" moral compass, advocating for long-term relationships and the use of contraception, frequently quoting the Talmud.
• She was known to have lost a quarter-inch of height in her 80s but remained active as a national expert on sexuality well into her late 90s.