Both Biden and Trump have grave flaws.
Both are on track to be nominated.
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| Biden: "I don't know about you, but I'm going to go to bed." |
Trump is in trouble because he did troubling things. Trump echoes Charlie Brown in the 1959 hit song about a high school bad boy. Charlie Brown smokes, gambles, throws spit balls,, and mocks the teacher. He then complains, "Why is everybody always picking on me?"
You will see two things. First of all he makes rambling seven-minute answers to questions, of which the meander into John Wayne and pony-faced liars is one. You may choose not to watch it all. Neither will most voters. Skip to the two-minute mark. He clearly knows some things and has access to information, but he presents it as a disorganized slow stream of consciousness. It does not inspire confidence. Quite the opposite. Biden appears to lose all sense of his message, place, circumstance, and audience. You will see clips of this in GOP advertisements during the general election.I hear partisan Democrats tell me, "Biden isn't that bad." I consider that the equivalent of Republicans who say, "Trump isn't that bad." It is an expression of hope and denial, not political reality.
Since Trump has firm support with a segment of Republican voters and is on track to be the GOP nominee, GOP officeholders need to deny the reality of Trump mis-deeds and complain alongside Trump about the prosecution. They call to defund the FBI, the Justice Department, and state prosecutors. It makes them look hypocritical and defensive, and it injures the public's overall respect for institutions of justice.
Trump is presumed innocent of crimes for now, but his actions are a matter of public record, done openly and proudly. He defiantly took government documents, some secret, and showed them off carelessly. He hid them and moved them around to avoid returning them. He openly attempted to retain office by getting people to sign false documents saying they were duly elected. He admits it. He is proud of it. Republicans know Trump's effort to get Mike Pence to throw out ballots was morally indefensible and unconstitutional. The proof of that pudding is that every Republican readily agrees that it would be outrageously illegal if Kamala Harris were to do that. Loyalty to their likely nominee requires that Republicans somehow pretend not to see what is obvious and distasteful to 70% of Americans. That is the elephant in their room.
Biden had a bad incident. Alas, Democrats have an elephant, too. I bring up Biden's age and demeanor because it is an ongoing problem, most recently a press conference at the G-20 meeting. I realize he was sleepy. This arguably is bad staff work. He should never have been in front of a camera, but he was. It is part of the public record. Watch.
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| Click Here |
I do not intend to be cruel or unfair. I try to see Trump and Biden as do low-engaged swing-type voters. People have an opinion about Trump. A majority of people see him as a charismatic lying con man. Biden creates his own instant opinion. If we encountered a man like Biden at a grocery store, we would flash "frail old man." We might guess he will fiddle at the cashier and fumble paying with cash or remembering his PIN. Presidential politics is not about detailed policy checklists. Most people vote their party and their guts. Trump is crazy. Biden is frail and doddering.
Republicans appear to be stuck in their fate. Their voters choose Trump. Democrats are only stuck if no one steps up to free them. A legitimate and electable candidate -- not RFK, Jr. and not Marianne Williamson -- might break the chains of silence and party loyalty and give voters a chance to acknowledge the elephant and give Biden a chance to retire gracefully.
I made a short 53-second version of this blog to post to social media:
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https://youtu.be/Iuj0XYO54kg |
[Note: To get daily delivery of this blog to your email go to: https://petersage.substack.com and subscribe. The blog is free and always will be.]
17 comments:
Peter is too right about both likely candidates, but it couldn’t be more obvious which of our regrettable choices would be most abominable.
Among established western democracies, only in America has a defeated leader attempted a coup, and only in America is the coup leader likely to once again be the nominee of a major party. For all its extremist tendencies, I never expected the GOP to so quickly and thoroughly degenerate into an authoritarian party.
I would gladly choose a grandfatherly-type with whom I mostly agree over a vile traitor, crook and sexual predator.
I doubt it will happen, but his handlers need to play this clip to him repeatedly, until he accepts that he is not up to 4 more years in the Job. He has a fine Legacy, one which is only tarnished by incidents like this one.
My support for the incumbent has been at best, grudging. Now, I just don't know.
I will be flamed for saying so, but he needs to step back, t h exsooner the vetter.
(Received an error message, so this is a repeat - Modified)
Voters also need to consider very important policy differences and the appointment of Supreme Court justices and federal judges.
It is like choosing a mate or business partner. Is this person of good character? Do you have the same values and goals? Do you trust this person?
The author of this blog constantly harps on the superficial aspects of President Biden. He also overly focuses on the negative, like an overly critical (abusive) parent who is always riding his kids.
Not actually “two elephants“:
* a narcissistic, amoral elephant
* a doddering decrepit donkey
It would be great if the two parties could get rid of both of them. Fingers crossed that Iowa and New Hampshire can start the process.
49% of Americans consider themselves politically independent - Google it
It’s disappointing to me that Biden doesn’t step down. I suspect he stays on believing he is the best chance of beating Trump and would step down if Trump is removed from the equation. He is a good president, but he is too old. It’s not ageism, it’s just reality that our bodies and brains give out at a certain point. Pro athletes who are great try to maintain but father age always wins it’s a matter of when not if. Death and taxes are the certainties in life.
I make no bones about preferring a younger Candidate, Male or Female.
That said, have no doubt that I will vote Blue, from the top of the Ticket to the bottom.
Anonymous; Peter pointing out that Biden is old and frail is trying to wake people up to an obvious fact, and is not a "superficial" aspect, but reality. You should try some.
Nothing is more imperative than the re-election of President Biden.
What happens after that will reflect the politics of the moment.
I fear that we are again at a RBG moment. She should have retired and allowed for a younger healthier Progressive on the Court when Obama could have gotten it through, but hubris and an overconfidence in the Clinton candidacy brought us Trump and the situation we are facing at present.
Similarly, Joe Biden should have stepped down in 2022, right after the midterms, which I suspect will be noted by history as his high point. He knew he was vulnerable with Hunter.
Well, spilt milk. Now there is no alternative to re-election. Republicans will contest a loss in 2024, the Big Lie will endure, regardless.
But please stop raising the obvious, irrelevant issue of Biden's age. Think of him like the Queen, or the Pope: a revered figurehead who embodies the values we cherish.
Reality: Women are the majority in the Democratic Party. Black Americans are a very significant voting block in the Democratic Party.
The D Party might implode if Democrats do not support President Biden OR Vice President Harris for top job. Are you ready for that?
Biden is too old, but at least he’s pleasantly confused. Trump is dangerously insane. If he wasn’t rich, he’d be one of those characters you see walking down the street yelling angrily at everybody and nobody.
Supposedly rational Republicans try to minimize the threat Trump poses and chide us for focusing on him instead of the issues. What they conveniently ignore or just don’t care about is that Trump’s coup attempt and the Republican Party’s overwhelming support of it has made preserving our democracy one of the critical issues of the day.
Our nation is facing two existential threats: Trump and his party’s contempt for our democratic principles, and climate change. Republicans don’t want to talk about either of them. They are the issue.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.. Biden needs to bow out at the Convention and let the delegates decide who takes on Trump. Someone younger and more dynamic.
I assume tge cuts between Biden's statements were planned to make him look incompetent. Pretty underhanded, I must say. I wonder how he came across for reals. Probably not perfect, but presumably WAY BETTER than what it looked like in the video
Excellent points and very well-stated.
How is his son a vulnerability? There is no evidence Biden did anything wrong, and his son never held an elected or appointed office.
If you want to see family based corruption, TFG is the one to look at.
The voters have been trained to vote D or R, not who might be the better candidate. Unfortunately, that doesn't always work. The primaries determine only who the D and R preferences are for their respective party delegates when voting at their respective conventions. Past history shows the incumbents easily get 50%+ during their party's primaries, while the challenging party's primaries rarely produce winners who get more than 30% of the votes in the party primary.
I'm reminded of Rumsfeld's words in 2004:
“As you know, you go to war with the Army you have. They’re not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time.”
We just may get stuck with the wrong candidates in November 2024.
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