There’s no doubt about it, there’s definitely frigging in the rigging. It appears that as these primaries are going on, the more moderate wing of the Democratic party may be exerting a little influence. While a die hard socialist like Bernie Sanders may never waver, Elizabeth Warren seems to have moderated her heath care stance a bit, by coming out for a Medicare for all “option.” That seems to be in opposition to her earlier stated goal of entirely government run healthcare, with no private insurance interference in the market. Maybe she got the memo that her stance was limiting her appeal.

But that is not the reason for this article, just a little news tidbit thrown in for your consideration. The main thrust of this article is what may appear to be a dynamic in the race that is starting to show, but that is not based fundamentally on policy. For this purpose I am going to reference both national as well as early primary state polling.

I’ll be blunt, I’m terribly disappointed in Joe Biden. Even before he got in the race, he was the odds on front runner. But after a balls-to-the-wall online roll out, followed by a door buster announcement rally, the campaign has languished. He has seemed to be lackluster and uninspired, and has struggled with his past record. He has also been gaffe prone, which may have led his campaign to shelter him from too many personal appearances, which is exactly the opposite of what early state primary voters want, they crave the personal attention. Worst of all, his debates have been terrible. I expected a much better showing from Joe Biden, a man I greatly respect.

On the other hand, at least 3 polls show South Bend Mayor Pete Buttieing topping the field in Iowa, outside of the margin of error in two of them. And there is at least one poll that shows him a strong third place in New Hampshire, the first in the nation primary, a week after the Iowa caucuses. Buttigieg is the mayor of the third largest city in the state of Indiana, which is not known for being a population giant. And yet he is surging in the early state polls.

Why? There is a plethora of other highly qualified, highly personable, and highly effective campaigners out there, looking to make their mark. But when you look at the polling, you have a man whom many consider to be too “mainstream” for the party’s recent bent leading the national polls, and a young up and comer, with no relative national exposure, half of whose supporters call him “Mayor Pete,” to avoid his last name, surging to the front. What gives.

I have a theory. Pet Pete Buttigieg and Joe Biden on one side of a line, and everybody else in the field on the other. Now, look at Biden and Buttigieg, how they look, how they appear, just how they feel. And then do that on the other side. I think you’ll find that when you look at Biden and Buttigieg, you’ll realize that there’s something there, something ephemeral, something you can’t quite put into words, but something that you know is there just as surely as you know exactly where to scratch when it itches. It’s called decency. There’s just something about the two of them that says that they’re decent men. That isn’t to say that all of the other candidates aren’t decent, but these two just seem to exude it naturally.

And that may be about to become important. Because this isn’t just any election, and the winner isn’t going up against just any opponent. After more than three years of the arrogant, self indulgent, blatantly criminal, racist, sexist misogynistic assault of Donald Trump, the majority of the people in this country are worn out. Even moderate Republicans pine for the day of a decent man like Barack Obama. They may have hated him, but at least they didn’t have to cringe with every word that came out of his mouth. Bill Maher put it nicely when he said “I’d give anything for a president who bored my balls off!” Most people just want a president that they don’t have to be embarrassed by.

Don’t get e wrong, policy is still important. But as this primary campaign has gone on, I’ve come to realize that there just really aren’t that many great differences in the candidates policies. That’s why they spend three hours once a month in fighting ceaselessly over the minutiae of their plans and policies. They all agree in principle, it’s just the mechanics of the plans that are different, hard Medicare for all vs a Medicare option notwithstanding of course. As long as people are offered viable solutions, the mechanics of the solutions are not of primary concern.

Every one of these candidates are calm, dedicated, professional, qualified, committed, and Donald Trump isn’t worthy to shine a one of their shoes. But Joe Biden looks like the Grandpa who says “Pull on my finger, kid,” and Pete Buttigieg looks like the kid who did his homework on Friday nights, opens the door for ladies, and carries groceries home for granny. But in a world stomped on and defiled by Trumpenstein, when all other things are basically equal, decency just could be the deciding factor.

To know the future, look to the past. before the insanity of the 2020 election, relive the insanity of the 2016 GOP primary campaign, and the general election, to see how we got to where we are. Copies of President Evil, and the sequel, President Evil II, A Clockwork Orange are available as e-books on Amazon, at the links above. Catch up before the upcoming release of the third book in the trilogy, President Evil III: All The Presidents Fen