It’s Democrats’ time to rally — for Joe Biden and for solutions | Editorial

The coronavirus that shattered life as we know it has also exposed a deep awareness of the profound fissures in American society around income and economic inequality, the failings of the health-care system, and education inequities.

In ending his bid for the presidency last week, Sen. Bernie Sanders — who has spent years pushing these very issues to the forefront of political discourse — has to believe that the universe has a cruel sense of irony.

Sanders’ campaign wasn’t necessarily a victim of the health crisis that ground campaigning — and every other aspect of life — to a halt. As a candidate, he was both galvanizing and divisive. Though his campaign is over, he still has work to do in helping energize the Democratic Party to embrace its presumptive candidate, Joe Biden — and to continue pushing the arguments and policy proposals that will address the country’s profound problems even after coronavirus dims in importance. Those problems will remain and require massive work to fix.

» READ MORE: Joe Biden courts Sanders backers with new health, college debt plans

But with the need for big structural change, this moment has also led to a deep yearning for normal — against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s multilevel failures to operationally manage this crisis, and communicate honestly and clearly about what it demands. For many in America, and the vast majority of Democrats, the competencies of the Obama-Biden White House was the good kind of boring. Biden’s personal life story, buffered by loss and pain, also makes him uniquely situated to be the empathetic leader that America lacks.

» READ MORE: Trump’s utter lack of grief, empathy is the coronavirus dog that didn’t bark | Will Bunch

With no ability to campaign in the near feature, and with a lot of disadvantages against an incumbent, Biden’s work to unite the Democratic Party and expand the coalition beyond his primary voters base needs to start immediately, and with concrete action:

Next generation: Biden beat Sanders in almost every demographic, except people under 40. The future of the Democratic Party is not excited by Biden. Sanders can help by making the case for Biden, but ultimately, it is on Biden and his campaign to reach out and listen. The earlier he can bridge the gap between his platform and the agenda of younger Americans, the faster his campaign will grow.

Climate/Energy: America was very ill-prepared for the coronavirus pandemic. But the looming climate crisis will require a much bigger, more coordinated response. It is imperative that we transition away from fossil fuels, but how is key, especially for Pennsylvania workers. The better Biden can articulate a plan, the more likely he is to build a broad coalition in this critical swing state.

Economy: The so-called thriving economy that Trump has taken full credit for collapsed virtually overnight, in part because it was built on a weak foundation that favored corporate wealth over collective benefit. If elected, Biden’s job will not be to rebuild the old economy, continuing a patch job, but take bolder actions for transforming it.

One resounding lesson from the current crisis is that we will not survive unless we pull together for the greater good. Biden, Sanders, and the Democratic Party must take that to heart — as a matter of survival.