Mark Shields

Regular readers of this space may recall that I believe Americans are the most optimistic of voters. Think about it: With the exception of those who were already here when Christopher Columbus arrived and those who were brought here against their will in chains, every American is either an immigrant or the direct lineal descendant of immigrants. Much has been written, even rhapsodized, of the courage required to immigrate: to leave behind family and friends, to strike out across the sea or the continent, to live among people you have never known and to learn a language you have never heard.

But to be an immigrant is also a profound statement of optimism: Here we are, free to make our lives and the lives of those whom we love fairer, fuller and better. That same optimism has shaped Americans’ presidential vote. When a president disappoints us, we almost immediately go looking for the next presidential candidate with the qualities that were missing in his predecessor who just let us down.

For example, Richard Nixon was arguably the most experienced White House nominee ever elected. His credentials included service in the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate, followed by eight years as Dwight Eisenhower’s vice president. But the criminality of Watergate and Nixon’s resignation in disgrace gave experience a bad name. In the next election, Jimmy Carter, a former one-term Georgia governor, could make the case to American voters that his lack of Washington experience was a plus.

President George H.W. Bush ran into rough economic seas when running for reelection, and when Bush appeared unfamiliar, even confounded, by the electronic price scanner at a supermarket checkout, voters wondered if he understood the hard times they were enduring. His Democratic challenger told them, “I feel your pain,” and the electorate found the empathy in Bill Clinton they were seeking.

In Joe Biden, American voters saw the empathy, trustworthiness, experience and likability that were lacking in the Republican incumbent. Not for the first time, optimistic Americans went looking for – and finding – those very qualities missing in the president who had most recently disappointed them.