Some of us remember Lyndon Johnson renouncing the presidency in 1968, one of his finest moments. Some of us remember Nixon being forced out under pressure. Now we hold our collective breaths to see what Joe Biden will do. If he doesn’t resign, there is no hope of beating Trump in the next election. The results of which we leave to your imagination.
In one sense his decision will rest in the hands of his family, his wife Jill and his longtime followers. The more senile Joe has become, the more they have protected him. He offers us few press conferences, infrequent unstaged interviews, clichéd speeches, and the same old downhome Scranton working class bullshit. Senile people forever keep on referencing the past.
As someone who has done debate prep, it appeared to me that he likely had no professional coaching and relied solely on his White House cronies (Ron Klain, Bob Bauer et al.). James Carville said it too: “He doesn’t have advisers. He has employees.” Odds are they stuffed him with the obvious issues and canned responses. No professional coach would have let him appear as he did. Pee in your pants, call in sick, for God’s sake.
Presidential debates generally are more style than substance, and they are a perfect vehicle for a convincing conman. Trump rapidly floats his same (or worse) whoppers and gets away with it uncontested. He paralyzes our analytical powers and takes obvious joy in manipulating people. Many want to believe him because it’s their form of heroin. In the flood of this the truth cannot prevail; people like Truthful Joe cannot prevail.
Part of the problem is that Biden has usually wanted to avoid being in the public eye―and the public hasn’t been crazy about seeing him either. Lili Loofbourow in the WaPo nicely put it this way: “Biden’s unwillingness and inability to court attention has, for example, made it difficult for him to sell the public on his achievements.”
There have been many comments urging Biden to quit—and many urging the opposite. Among the best and most forthright of the former is Tom Friedman’s. He urges his friend Joe Biden to step aside.
I had been ready to give Biden the benefit of the doubt up to now, because during the times I engaged with him one on one, I found him up to the job. He clearly is not any longer. His family and his staff had to have known that. They have been holed up at Camp David preparing for this momentous debate for days now. If that is the best performance they could summon from him, he should preserve his dignity and leave the stage at the end of this term.
Finally, it’s not overly dramatic to say that the state of the nation is at stake and we face a drastic challenge to democratic rule. Your decision, like it or not, is a political one―to win the election. You can discount everything else: the mess that will be wrought on the Democratic convention if Biden drops out, loyalty to the party and the president, the shortcomings of other challengers. Trump made it this way. He cannot survive.
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Thanks for your illuminating reply, Jim.
I don’t think he should go and am somewhat confused as to why you say LBJ’s dropping out, a disruptive act that ultimately led to Nixon’s election and continuation of the war was his finest hour. i’d personally for enactment of the great society programs. Had a nice chat with your cousin kate Friday.
In the after debate commentary I thought Bob Woodward on MSNBC asked the most pertinent question. what happened to Biden that night? It Was even more relevant the following day I clips of his campaign event when a feisty Biden seemed the same person who gave the state of the Union speech. Woodward did not speculate but could it have been a medication issue, a slight stroke. None of it is good news, but he has never looked that wan and weak. Terrifying if he does or does not step down….a mess of monumental proportions for democracy. Fay
Joe must go-let’s hope that Jill & the rest of his family sit him.down & have an honest conversation.as to how that will happen. I could not watch after seeing him.falter in the first few minutes. Could have been a medication issue or even a “mini.stroke” but whatever he portrayed that evening was not a person who should or is able to handle our country. Sad but true,
And with Monday’s pending Supreme Court ruling on DT immunity, it’s been one hell of a stressful week here.
Spot-on, John. I’ve heard some commentators characterize Joe as having been “over-prepared.” For his opponent, whose playbook is to just make up on the fly whatever hyperbolic BS suits the moment, no preparation was required.
It’s so exhausting.
I’m so sad and depressed after seeing the debate. I was all in for Joe until then. I’m afraid he’s had a small stroke. My fear is that his family and close advisors have known that he’s been failing lately but have kept it under wraps…still believing Joe is the only person with enough name recognition to beat the reality star. It was a risk then but the greater risk now is for Biden to stay in the race. Just what I think.
Name recognition got Donald in the White House the first time around. Don’t discount it.
Dear Friends,
Forgive me for being blunt, but whether or not Joe withdraws, the real question is what are each of us going to DO (not kvetch) about the most serious threat to our democracy in our lifetimes?
Re-taking the House is the ultimate firewall to saving our democracy this year. The hard truth is that it’s more do-able than either the Senate or Presidency but only if we get the resources to the key House races. Fortunately, there is an efficient way to do this. Please join me on July 10 at an event that will show you how we accomplish this together. So, check out and then forward this link to anyone you think could help us.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Rhru1_x7g0vcNi6wYu_932wIOJbFSUWjLRjwt3owb7s/edit?usp=sharing
Thanks, Peter
I agree with you, John. The people who will vote for Biden if he stays in will vote for any Democrat opposing Trump. Joe himself no longer has followers, but a different candidate might bring out some voters who are not simply anti-Trump.
I agree with Peter regarding the importance of the House. If Trump is president, the country cannot afford to have a federal trifecta.
Yes, Joe must go. His staying is all ego. He is tied to the notion that only he can beat Trump. This is nonsense. The U.S. is crying out for new leadership. Go home Joe. Go home.
A Transition President, I think that’s what Joe said he was going to be…A Bridge…yet he did not hand over to a younger generation of Dems. I believe there is ample political talent around. And, how is a GEN X-er or younger relating to this current situation of old white men-? Why did this happen…did his trainers not think Trump would lie?
Also, they stifled Kamala for three years, gave her the Border portfolio that was not actionable, they kept her sidelined, and now they want to throw her out there to save his old white ass…I am a little angry and YES why did this happen–the Emporer is naked. Color me fed up!
Look what you’ve done, Dad. Inspired some good dialogue. That’s a damn good blog. Minus your comment on Scranton. Poor Joe.
Maybe the next blog will be on your candidate. Mine is The Reverend Raphael Warnock.
If he drops out, who has the abi
Ity to secure voters doubts about Biden?
Also, with the bullshit rulings coming from the SCOTUS, if they reappoint a new candidate at the DNC, and that Dem wins, we leave the country open to the bias court majority to overturn the people’s votes.
Would Harris leading the ticket really be the answer? What about her VP pick? That sounds really risky and unpredictable.
I definitely have my concerns about both geriatric choices. Perhaps, we should focus on uniting our votes to save our democracy from the Republican anti-christ candidate, and not so much on the aging orator with an impressive administrative record.