Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance
When some Democrats and left leaning media sites describe Joe Biden’s performance during the debate in unflattering terms, things do not spell well for the Biden Campaign. Democrats, many hoping and predicting that Joe Biden would wipe the floor with Donald Trump, quickly became disappointed when Joe Biden began to speak. His debate performance appeared to be a continuation of his luck involving freezing up, wandering off, and needing to be guided.
From Politico:
The alarm bells for Democrats started ringing the second Biden started speaking in a haltingly hoarse voice. Minutes into the debate, he struggled to mount an effective defense of the economy on his watch and flubbed the description of key health initiatives he’s made central to his reelection bid, saying “we finally beat Medicare” and incorrectly stating how much his administration lowered the price of insulin. He talked himself into a corner on Afghanistan, bringing up his administration’s botched withdrawal unprompted. He repeatedly mixed up “billion” and “million,” and found himself stuck for long stretches of the 90-minute debate playing defense.
And when he wasn’t speaking, he stood frozen behind his podium, mouth agape, his eyes wide and unblinking for long stretches of time.
“Biden is toast — calling it now,” said Jay Surdukowski, an attorney and Democratic activist from New Hampshire who co-chaired former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley’s 2016 presidential campaign in the state.
In text messages with POLITICO, Democrats expressed confusion and concern as they watched the first minutes of the event. One former Biden White House and campaign aide called it “terrible,” adding that they have had to ask themselves over and over: “What did he just say? This is crazy.”
“Not good,” Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) wrote.
POLITICO spoke to about a dozen Democrats, some of whom were granted anonymity to discuss Biden’s performance.
Biden’s team was quick to defend the president’s performance. First they said he had a cold (and that he was negative for Covid-19). Then they insisted Trump was hurting himself by insulting Biden’s presidential record.
The article continues on and describes Joe Biden as doing a little better than his performance in the beginning. This is a possible indication that Biden may have taken a combination of medications intended keep him lucid during the debate, and those medications kicked in later than hoped.
Additional Reading:
Kashinky, L., Cancryn, A. & Daniels, E. (2024, June 28). Dems freak out over Biden’s debate performance: ‘Biden is toast’. Politico. Link.
Category: 2024 Election, Donald Trump, Joe BIden
