46 tests positive

A Reversal

The time apart, the loneliness, the fear of what would happen to him, fear for his health, for his presidency, the exhaustion she felt over the unrelenting attacks on him had all been like a fog, a heavy blanket confusing her, restricting her, obscuring the way forward.

She was so frustrated with the way he was being treated. Traveling the country, attending events with Joe, without him, they were never sure of the reception they'd get on the street, driving by. Seeing those disgusting Brandon flags and knowing what the sentiment really meant hurt. It hurt more than she was willing to acknowledge to anyone. Anyone that is but Joe. They talked about it, what it meant, what it said about the country. She was disgusted that her husband would be thought of in such a way, that the presidency had been reduced to this slur.

That a fine and decent man, working so hard for everyone would have such abuse hurled at him was unimaginable to her. She knew that what was said about him in the darkest places on the internet must be so much worse. She knew about some of the threats against him, against her, Kamala, Doug, the family. She tried to push it away but some days it was more difficult than others.

When Joe saw those flags he felt anguished for the country, for the deep divisions it represented. But he didn't take it personally. How, she would never understand. To him it made him work harder, dig deeper, redouble the efforts for the government to work for everyone, to make sure those who felt marginalized had a voice.

She reached across and kissed his hand, still held within her own. He was a better person than she was, that's for sure.

How he could even say the name Brandon, let alone joke about it at the correspondence dinner was beyond her. But he had explained to her that by doing so he was letting people know that he knew, he got the message but he was also turning it back on others. By taking ownership then he took some of the power away.

She pushed that thought away. Finally he was starting to get some good press. It had taken eighteen months of hard slog, unending patience and unwavering optimism to get some of the serious legislation passed but suddenly, within a heady two weeks things seemed to be on a better track.

Today would tell a lot. Today, if the bill got through the Senate then it would be a massive win. She laughed grimly. Any of the bills he had gotten through were massive in their own right. At another time, another presidency each one would be held up as a huge achievement, lauded, praised from the rooftops.

But for Joe, in this time and place, he had to pass five historic bills in two weeks for the media to begin to grudgingly, finally acknowledge that he might actually know what he was doing. She sighed derisively. It was pathetic. She knew politics inside out, saw it close up over 50 years and she knew that every single bill Joe was getting through was each worthy of its place in the history books. Him. Joe. Her Joe. President Biden. She still smiles whenever she says that, she thinks. His presidency was ultimately going to be viewed as so consequential. It's just a pity that the press couldn't actually just acknowledge that now; give everyone a break.

Today, hopefully the bill would pass the Senate, that was the big test. Then it faced the House which she knew Joe wasn't worried about, that would be the victory lap. After it passed anyone still calling his presidency a failure was clearly just blatantly obtuse, failing at presenting facts, actively misrepresenting him. She moved closer to him, ran her hand along the length of his arm. She could live with that. Joe had made his mark and she knew he wasn't near finished yet. The history books would look favorably on him, she was sure, and that settled her.

He swallowed, his breathing changed, he moved his limbs and murmured, eyes partly opening before fluttering closed again, on the cusp of wakefulness. She sat up, leaned over him, watched with loving eyes as he began to come awake. He deserved a special start to this important day, she thought. She smiled and gazed at him in the early morning light. Softly she ran her fingers along his face, the feel of his stubble under her fingertips setting off delicious explosions within her body. He sighed deeply and murmured again, more awake than asleep, still neither fully.