In a one-on-one race, Trump would have endless attack fodder that mirrors his own far more serious flaws and could help neutralize them, from Biden’s insensitive handling of the Anita Hill hearing in 1991 (to counter Trump’s women problem), to his verbal slips (to undercut the problems of Trump’s own word salad and limited, repetitive vocabulary), to Biden’s tendency to tell voters that if they like their private or employer-based health insurance, they can keep it (recalling President Barack Obama’s utterly unrealistic promise that PolitiFact named lie of the year in 2013 — and which Trump could use to divert from his own constant lies).

Biden would bring administrative experience to the government (among his other vice presidential responsibilities, he successfully oversaw the distribution of nearly $800 billion in stimulus money), not to mention a heart in the right place. His likability is off the charts, and he certainly understands the threat Trump poses to America’s identity, values and future.

But he is not Obama. It would be a nerve-wracking campaign for Democrats, and if he won, a Biden presidency would not be all balm. Could Democrats relax if they were always worrying about what he would say next? And that’s not even counting the millions of voters who would be on edge about Biden possibly giving away the store to his good friend in the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.