Top executives in the financial world and research reports by financial advisers are saying it’s clearly plausible that Pres. Joe Biden could drop out of the race and be replaced, perhaps, by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker or California Gov. Gavin Newsom, two possibilities mentioned by name.
That’s according to a recent column by Charles Gasparino, veteran financial reporter formerly with the Wall Street Journal and CNBC, now with Fox Business Network, known for his connections with Wall Street bigwigs.
Biden’s failing mental condition is the reason, Gasparino says, and the scenario of his withdrawal from the election is making the rounds on Wall Street. “You hear it in private dinners with top execs I’m privy to,” he says, and “increasingly in research reports floating around among financial advisers, including one recently published by the investment firm Piper Sandler that I got my hands on.”
Biden’s withdrawal could throw the Democratic Party and country into chaos, Gasparino’s sources say. If Biden is nominated or on the verge when he dropped out is “where, I am told, the bartering and the confusion begins,” Gasparino says.
Kamala Harris might then inherit the mantle “unless,” as Gasparino put it, “some real players, like California Gov. Gavin Newsom or Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois, do something crazy at the convention or shortly after, bend some rules and stage a do-over for the nomination.”
A messier “doomsday scenario” addressed by the Piper report Gasparino referenced is Biden dropping out after being nominated — “again a possibility given his declining health,” Gasparino reported. “That could set up a nasty, last-minute battle for a spot on the ticket with lots of uncertainty for the markets.”
But maybe Biden drops out before the end of the year, Gasparino says, and “the sooner the better,” according to Piper’s analysis. It allows Newsom and Pritzker time to get on state ballots and offer an opportunity for Democratic voters to nominate someone less lame than Biden or Harris, who has failed at every task given her (the border at the top of the list).”
Smart people in finance have good reasons to get this right, for reasons Gasparino also explains. Many financial firms fear the volatility that could easily spike if a nomination fight erupts. Others would profit from the instability. “Not knowing if a presidential nominee — currently president, no less — is sentient is certainly something that could roil markets and provide an opening for traders to take advantage of price dislocations,” Gasparino wrote.
Surely, however, Pritzker is not the kind of ambitious opportunist who would “do something crazy at the convention or shortly after, bend some rules and stage a do-over for the nomination” as Gasparino imagines. Right?