Joe Biden: Our Great American Soap Opera

This article first appeared in New English Review.

President Biden has done himself no good in the wake of his debacle debating former President Trump. In short, the damage control is not working. Sure, he went to Raleigh, North Carolina and gave -or tried to give- a "stemwinder" of a speech (with teleprompter) to prove that he really does have the energy to serve as president for another four years.  The only thing he showed was that he was an angry old man.

Then he gives a radio interview to a black-owned station in Philadelphia (WURD).  His interviewer later admitted that the questions she asked Biden had been sent to her in advance by Team Biden. (She has now been fired by WURD.)

And then there was the 22-minute interview in Wisconsin on ABC in which George Stephanopoulos basically asked him variations of the same question throughout. Biden insisted that his debate performance was a one-off. Several times, he repeated that it was his fault but also repeated the lines about having a cold and suffering from jet lag. That was in reference to his June trip to France for the D-Day commemoration, followed by a disastrous trip to Italy for the G-7 summit. The Italian newspapers (unlike the US media) were buzzing about his embarrassing episodes, begging off from a ceremonial dinner for Italian President Sergio Mattarella, wandering away from the other world leaders as Italian parachutists were landing at their feet, and seemingly drifting off as Andrea Bocelli was reaching his climax of Nessun Dorma (which happens to mean "nobody sleeps" in Italian). Then he flies to California for a fundraiser before returning to Washington and Camp David to prepare for the debate. In all that flying, he was also probably stuck in a middle seat on Air Force One, right?

And they only served him peanuts and a coke!

Even more astounding in that interview was when he claimed that Trump was yelling at him during the debate, and that had distracted him. Millions of people who watched the debate live can testify that is a ridiculous statement. 

Also, while Biden was in Wisconsin, he gave another energy-filled "stemwinder" (with a teleprompter) in which he promised his audience that he was going to beat Trump again in 2020!! 

And as all this is going on, Biden insists he will not drop out of the race as the groundswell rises from within his own party for him to withdraw. With some exceptions, they realize that Biden has reached the end of the road and will likely lose to Trump in November. They (and the media) should have realized in 2020 that he was in a state of mental decline. Then again, maybe the powers that be in the party figured they could more easily control him. Somebody clearly has been. For the left, the only thing that matters is that their agenda is carried out, and under Biden's inept rule, it has.

At any rate, it seems inevitable that the Democrat leaders in Congress are gearing up to march down to the White House and have that talk similar to when the Republican leaders told Nixon that his presidency was over. Nixon, whatever his faults, was not senile, and he was persuaded to put the country above himself. I honestly wonder if Biden, in his current condition, can be convinced to withdraw. He is a stubborn man, and stubbornness only increases with senility. In his public appearances since the debate, he appears to be in a state of denial.

And you know who the real "bad guy" in this sordid mess is? That would be the First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden herself. She is the one person who could have convinced him it was time to go back to Delaware. I have no doubt that she is the person Joe Biden depends on the most, the person he listens to the most. But she is clearly determined to hold onto power as First Lady, so she encourages him-pushes him- to stay in the race. What a disservice to the nation. The First Lady cannot claim senility on her part for her refusal to admit the truth. She can only be described as a conniver.

So with the rest of the world in turmoil, the American drama drags on as the Democrat party tries desperately to pull a rabbit out of the hat. The spin doctors can claim all they want that Biden is "bouncing back", but when even the mainstream media is now forced to admit there is a problem with the President's mental well-being, the chances for a Biden reelection seem more and more remote.