A Few Minutes with… Stu Loeser

The calendar now says 2023, but with President Biden poised to make a reelection decision, and Ron DeSantis emerging as the Republican frontrunner, the 2024 presidential race is already underway. What do voters see in Biden, despite his frequent verbal gaffes and public missteps? When will DeSantis make his move? And what role can the Jewish vote play in 2024?

For insight, we turned to top Democratic strategist Stu Loeser, whose bare-knuckles approach and keen political instincts won him positions inside the 1996 Clinton-Gore and 2000 Gore-Lieberman presidential campaigns. Stu also served as communications director for Senator Chuck Schumer and chief spokesperson for former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. Since 2012, his media strategy and corporate intelligence firm Stu Loeser & Co. has helped organizations and individuals navigate the world’s most complicated news markets to stay two steps ahead of their opponents.

The interview was conducted last Wednesday for Mishpacha’s new podcast, “Power Politics,” and condensed and abridged for this week’s magazine.

Based on your presidential campaign experience, can you give us some insight into President Biden’s thought processes in deciding whether to run again in 2024?

Shortly before this interview, the president arrived for a week’s vacation in the Virgin Islands with his wife Jill. He has hinted he’s going to run, and said he would talk about it with his wife and family over their vacation. Before that, I’d spoken to senior people in the White House, and some of the smartest and most skeptical reporters who cover this White House. They say he is absolutely running, and not only that, but he feels that there isn’t anyone else in the country who could run.

By Joe Biden’s own definition, he has been the most successful president of almost any of our lifetime. He obviously has his detractors. But from bringing chips manufacturing back to the United States, down through climate change programs, and his massive infrastructure bill, he has arguably been a successful president.

The accomplishments Biden can cite don’t resonate with every voter, especially independents and swing voters that he will need. Can Biden win enough votes from non-Democrats to win a second term?

Every campaign is about the future. Campaigns are tough. You never get enough credit when you’re running for the work that you’ve done. Everyone who’s running for office will tell you they’ve been incredibly effective. And voters are always asking, what’s next? So, is it enough to win an election? It depends who they run against.

That brings us to our next question. Who is Biden afraid of? Donald Trump? Ron DeSantis?

I don’t know if he’s afraid of Ron DeSantis. He should be afraid of Ron DeSantis, because Ron DeSantis is an extraordinarily effective, smart, and thorough politician. I’m not saying that as a fan. I’m saying that as an admirer of his skill.