Our nation does indeed face a crisis and it is from Putin, Oben, Roberts of Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation and all the bots and dissemination of false reporting and so much disinformation. Some on says Biden is losing it and the media (fueled by russian money) runs with it. Trump in incoherent and babbles and freezes and is a criminal felon and the media does not say a gawd demmed word against him. THAT MY FRIEND IS THE CRISIS!!!!
I totally agree! Where is the media crawling all over Trump and his constant word salad? Why are they not calling on this emotionally disturbed man to withdraw from the race? He is a clear and present danger to our democracy and they stay silent!
As always, when someone does something that doesn’t make sense, Follow the Money. In today’s political climate, I just assume that EVERYTHING the Repubs, TFG, the media and the Supreme Six Shooters (SCOTUS) is about the money and its sibling, Power over all the ‘unwashed heathens’, aka all women and people of color
Of course he is overworked. The job of President is never ending. It indeed takes a toll on the person in the hot seat. As an Example go back and take a look at any of our past "working" presidents. Look at a photo of them at the inauguration then look at a photo of them at the end of their term. I would say look at President Obama. He is still a fit man, but the overall change from the start to the finish is quite evident. Biden is dealing with the trouble Herr Strumpet caused in his 4 years, with the problems we as a nation are expected to handle in foreign affairs, Ukraine, Saudia Arabia, the ever ongoing Israel/hamas war, dealing with the after effects of Storms, Flooding, Wildfires, Bridges and Roads all falling apart. and don't get me started with trying to deal with the people in Congress who are supposed to be working for the people they represent instead of their money handlers.
Give credit to Putin and his propaganda/corruption machine. He's winning.
The US economy is 25 times the size of Russia's. Yet he is in the process of making the US an extension of his Oligarchy. Putin and his gang have stolen $1 Trillion from the Russian people. If he succeeds in getting Donald back in the WH, how much can They (Putin, Orban, Trump World, Heritage Foundation, thug oligarchs, etc) steal from the US people? $25 Trillion? How many Dishonorable Congressional Objectors and judges can you buy with a $Trillion or two?
Donald thinks the President (as in himself) should have control of the Federal Reserve. Imagine America and the world if Donald gets control of the US dollar printing presses!
Are the Dems asleep to this impending reality? Will they (Biden or other) do what it takes to stop Donald and Vlad? Or will they twiddle and fiddle while the thieves steal America?
The Press is easily distracted by Donald's goofy stories. They miss the big picture. Donald is ALL about the MONEY. Putin is ALL about the MONEY. They will steal whatever they can get away with. They are breaking into our house and the Dems are cowering.
The Supreme Court gave President Biden a gift. The green light to take "bold and unhesitating action" to stop the Trump World thieves from stealing America. Does he have the balls to take bold action like Lincoln and Roosevelt and Truman?
Theresa, Having watched George Stephanopoulos’s broadcast interview with President Biden Friday evening, while Biden looked better and certainly more cogent than he looked during the debate, I hardly am alone in sensing that the interview raised new concerns, particularly that Biden either is resisting or is unaware of the fact that his situation is dire, that he appears to be losing in the view of many Democrats, let alone in the polls Stephanopoulos cited indicating he is losing to Donald Trump.
Most alarming, not exclusively for me, was Biden’s answer to one particular question from Stephanopoulos. Stephanopoulos asked Biden how he will feel in January if he has just lost to Donald Trump and all that he (Biden) has warned would happen came to pass. And this was his answer. He said, “I’ll feel, as long as I gave it my all and did the best job I know I can do, that that’s what this is about.” Setting aside the nonsense Trump spews, if ever a reply from Biden were disqualifying, this one, indeed, was.
I repeat - Of course he is overworked. The job of President is never ending. It indeed takes a toll on the person in the hot seat. As an Example go back and take a look at any of our past "working" presidents. Look at a photo of them at the inauguration then look at a photo of them at the end of their term. I would say look at President Obama. He is still a fit man, but the overall change from the start to the finish is quite evident. Biden is dealing with the trouble Herr Strumpet caused in his 4 years, with the problems we as a nation are expected to handle in foreign affairs, Ukraine, Saudia Arabia, the ever ongoing Israel/hamas war, dealing with the after effects of Storms, Flooding, Wildfires, Bridges and Roads all falling apart. and don't get me started with trying to deal with the people in Congress who are supposed to be working for the people they represent instead of their money handlers.
Theresa, Respectfully, I don’t see your comment’s relevance to my expressed concerns excerpted from Stehanopoulos’s broadcast interview with President Biden.
Adding an additional concern not included in my original comment, I would note that the Biden who emerged from his meandering debate performance, while talking to a lot of people, appears only to be listening to a tight group that tells him again and again he can win. Hence, what we see is a Joe Biden pumped up by the sentiments of a mere handful of people.
As a final point, I would advise we dispense with the so-called justifications for Biden’s weak performances if we are to handily defeat Trump.
I heartily wish the DNC would actually do something really BOLD & present Sen Cory Booker as a candidate. He is, I think, the first, if not the only Senator to speak up against the Israeli conduct of this war & call for a cease fire & immediate hostage release.
With him on the ticket, we’d have a great humanitarian, an assertive person to prosecute the case for the Democrats agenda & to stand up to Putin & Netanyahu. Sen Booker would bring the younger voter & the Muslim vote back to being excited about voting, excited about the future.
I’m old, 74, & though I’m intelligent, well read, educated, my physical body isn’t in the same place as my mind.
Biden is a GOOD person & has been a good president, able to build bipartisan support for bills; but there is no doubt in my mind, as an RN with 42 yrs experience in acute care ICUs & other areas & as an older person myself, Biden’s mental cognition has declined rapidly & will only continue to decline even more rapidly going forward.
I heard one pundit put forth Sen James Clyburn to top the ticket? No, enough with the elder statesman nonsense!
Just because you’ve spent the time, paid your dues so to speak, does not automatically make you presidential material. The DNC must bring forward one of the many younger qualified people in the party.
They must make a decisive decision & make it very soon, like within a few days.
Here’s the argument: Biden is a better man, a better leader, a better President - even if a diminished one - than his opponent could ever be. Trump is a monster who will take America and world order to its knees if elected. He is a liar, as much as sundowner as Biden but can appear at a debate with nothing to say but lie - with impunity. Media are rabid in their reporting on Biden being “unable”, when that is untrue.
Let’s look at reality: Biden has the experience, record and character to lead; he has stellar advisors; he has a huge “bank account”; he has the respect of the nation. Even if he’s diminished. Harris has low approval ratings and while a good Senator, doesn’t have what it takes - 4 months before an election - to become a President. She wouldn’t have the delegates, nor the team needed to lead.
Imagine a Convention next month where a new candidate is acclaimed. Unlikely. So, now we have an internal piss fight. And then…Media would have the Dem Party to talk about. 90 days before Americans vote.
Then there’s the bank balance - only Biden or Harris would have access to it.
All of this says: Biden stays. Like it or not. Time is not on our side. We must support Joe. AND ensure focus is on “outing” Trump - hourly. Kinda like what’s happening to Biden now - while the orange monster skates. Hell no. We stand and fight.
All of the facts you cite are already known. Look at the electoral map. It's now tilting decisively toward Trump, which means against Biden. He's clearly the wrong messenger to lead this fight. Without a dramatic shake-up Democrats are handing America back to Trump and the GOP.
They reveal nothing more than: who they polled, when they polled them and the exact question that was asked. But you/the average citizen will never know the answers to those questions…. So, you just assume the responses as presented are the actual intentions of voters. They are not.
I used to run a polling group. I understand how pollsters “interpret” data.
And did the debate not reveal much to you either? All the pollsters, from every organization, in both national and state polls, are wrong? Are they wrong in showing that Democratic Senate candidates are outperforming Biden significantly?
There are a lot of hinky things going on in these polls. They have Trump winning over 20% of the Black vote and 40% of the latino vote, yet they have each state within the 5 point margin of error.
How can that possibly be?
Trump should be far ahead in the polling if he's drawing this much vote from minorities- that tells me, something is very off with the methodology here.
Hi Marian: not necessarily…. Here’s some info. on polling. ( Important to remember though, today, as a result of caller ID, it means most of us don’t answer if we don’t know the caller. Which means the polling results aren’t a true representation of all demographics). Have a look…
No one should hang their hat on June polling. In 1988, when polls were considered more reliable than today, Dukakis was ahead by 17 points over Bush (the father) and Bush won by almost 8! Panic in June isn't an entirely appropriate response. President Biden has already made up some of the ground he may have lost in polling through subsequent appearances, in my opinion.
This may put pressure on the MSM to address Trumps mental and emotional disorders. No one thinks Biden is a certified sociopath, which puts him one up on Trump who also significantly trails on the mental issue, including only reading at the 5th grade level and comprehending possibly at an even lower level. Their comparative Presidential records differ like night and day too. Biden was ranked at our 14th best POTUS, while Trump was ranked last by Presidential Historians and Political Scientists, No one needs to be looking into a gift horse's mouth, when their the only horse in the barn has been proven fit to ride.
I can't imagine another person who has had to handle nothing but high stakes, difficult, and thorny issues better than Biden. Another difference to consider is Biden is an American President and not a Russian Asset or at a bare minimum self-serving on on the take type of character. Again, their foreign policy records are as different as a standard barer and Russian appeaser. Domestically, Biden is trying to help most Americans while Trump and his policies have already done away unnecessarily with at least 500,000.
I do agree with the points you’ve made here. I am reserving my final judgement on Biden’s mental, cognitive fitness until I see how he performs at the live, unscripted press conference tomorrow. If he is able to coherently answer the journalist’s questions, then I will once again throw my support behind him. I am absolutely terrorized by the thought of
Trump getting elected. It just can’t be allowed to happen.
Special elections are not necessarily predictive of general elections. And the red wave was not necessarily what the polls were showing, but rather a narrative propagated on the right and adopted on the left. Just look at the movement, it's all consistent. I think polls are imperfect, but pretty accurate in the aggregate. Anecdotal, of course, but I've seen a lot of black and Hispanic voters on tv who are supporting Trump, irrational though that may seem. That has different impact state by state.
You can’t govern by polls. They are notoriously inaccurate. Biden can win. If it wasn’t Trump as opponent, he might not. But Trump is so unpalatable to a general electorate, he will lose.
Agreed..there are all of a sudden so many "Biden can't win" OPINIONS since the debate, you'd almost think this was trolling and propoganda, who knows? Why WAS Trump's plane next to Russia's for 2 days last week?
The Jul 15 Time Magazine (Melinda Gates on cover) has an interesting article under the title “the polarization myth” with the comment “0ur brains mistake repetition for majority opinion” highlighted in yellow. It is well worth the read.
Never in all of my 68 years, 50 as a voter, have I felt so discouraged. The media and the right have continued to let a convicted racist, felon and rapist stay in the race. But those of us who are progressives have to constantly hear why Biden is a nightmare for this country. Yes he had a miserable night, he is old, but he has served his country admirably and did great things while President. But look at the years that Trump was in office. Christ, we can't go back to that. I am truly torn. If Biden stays in the race I will vote for him. I am so angry and sad we are in this place as a country.
Btw, everyone brings up how old and feeble Biden is. But seriously how is it that the religious right condemns Biden for his age, but has no problem believing Noah built the Ark when he was 400 years old and Abraham was able to father children and build a nation when he was in his late 600's.
The problem is not that Biden is old. The problem is that he is no longer able to defeat Donald Trump. The Trump team is praying out loud that he stays in the race.
As an early subscriber to your Substack I’ve gotta tell you I’m just about out, and done with reading your “realism” every freaking day. I know things get more dire daily but your incessant whining (that’s what it sounds like) about it is getting really tiresome, Steve. Your lack of even a tiny bit of hopefulness is going to drive people to sit this one out because you’re preaching about a negative outcome all the time. Other Substackers are also sounding alarms but seem more able to temper their posts with a little bit more of “we’re in this together”. Can you try it a little bit?
More to the point - the calls never come with a credible Candidate X that 120 days out won’t be as bad an internal coup and self-inflicted wound.
No way out may be the article. But, this plane is in the air. There is only landing this plane. Any attempts to get to November with changing planes in mid-air is true folly.
Nobody expresses a credible plan to deal with the threat of a lying criminal refusing to accept his own accountability in order to go all in to avoid jail throwing flack of lies and deceit; nor how switching Dem candidates to mystery politician X that can deal in 120 days a decisive defeat.
Fear mongering is panic. FLY the plane. Land the plane. Nothing else matters.
P.S., if anyone has a CREDIBLE solution that doesn’t impose additional risk of crash landing, I’m all ears. Kamala and the house not voting for a VP isn’t it either. We need the USA to just vote like UK did recognizing the real threat isn’t Biden’s age right now.
I agree with you that "the real threat isn't Biden's age right now." The voters must simply vote AGAINST Trump, regardless even if Biden becomes comatose. There is no person of sufficient national stature nor the time to replace him. Yes, I love Whitmer and Tester for instance, and I think either would make an excellent president, but it's just too late in the game.
I don't believe it is too late in the game; if Biden released his delegates the convention could choose a more vigorous and more progressive candidate who could prove what a foolish and dangerous liar Trump is in the September debate.
There will be six weeks left before the election when the convention ends. Does anyone doubt Democrats would have a better chance of winning if a strong, coherent progressive candidate ran on the Democratic ticket? If you have never listened to her, find out about Katie Porter. She would shred Trump, as would Warren, Swalwell, or Schiff.
We have to face it. Biden is a very weak candidate; we must not support the man over the goal of preventing a MAGA Reign of Terror. Trump has said he will execute people. Biden, his family, advisors and close associates would be among them. He will entertain his followers with televised kangaroo court trials, probably televised executions.
Don't let this happen. Please. STOP THE MADNESS!!!
Unfortunate, you just described 2 and there are four or five other names in the cue for succession planing incl. Newsom in 2026/28 mids/next election.
That scramble for who would be the one is fraught enough as we approach the beginning of final descent into Nov and early voting. Remember Ohio was going to miss legally including Biden on their ballot due to Aug convention date until they corrected the date.
If Biden stays in the race he must continuously denounce and expose Trump's lies and get the focus off of his physical/mental decline. Or he must pass the baton to the VP. If he says the Lord Almighty will tell him when to jump ship, circumstances will allow the Voice to be heard. If we are to keep power to the People the Dems must unite under a larger banner. Steve is vociferous in his approach. His current visit to the scenes of the crimes of the German fascist killing machine must be firing his concerns. And the latest Supreme court rulings give little confidence in how easily authoritarians will slither in and rob our unalienable rights. Now that Trump has denied Project 2025 more people will become aware of its threats. There is slim hope the tide will turn.
To my mind, the problem all along has been the democrats’ inability to continuously, instantly, and forcefully counter all MAGA lies and disingenuousness. Part of that I put at the feet of the media. Clang those cymbals, toot those horns, bang those drums, Do not stay silent. that is what is killing this country right now. Get out of the “OMG, this can’t be happening sphere - fight back. No lie or extreme exaggeration should be left unchallenged .
As long as Biden wins the election, it does not really matter how feeble he becomes. Unlike Trump and his cadre of dolts, Biden has smart, educated, skilled and most importantly, advisors of integrity and solid character. If advisors kept Trump from his most egregious desires, why can’t Biden’s advisors hold up him as necessary? After all, Reagan had Alzheimer’s and we even survived the Bush dynasty.
The polls were horribly wrong in 2020. -why not now? Nothing about the past 12 years has been close to historical - why should we expect it this time?
Ask 1 question, Who would want Biden to resign immediately? Let’s start with the war in Ukraine.
2. Why would Kamala accept such a deal to not carry forward the best policy programs running? and who would think 120 days for 3/4 are winning strategies?
Lots of desperate people looking for a DJT/R win and see the probable effects afterwards with the blue like UK results.
Really Garret? Steve had the misjudgement to pick or at least give his approval to Sarah Palin on the McCain ticket. He is a nice and smart guy but he doesn't always see the big picture or at least understand it. Afterall he was a Republican most of his life, so that tells you something, doesn't it?
We don't need his pessimism at this point. Just listen to Biden's speech today to see what he will be fighting for.
I missed that incident Bill. I need to find the footage of it. Yes, I agree he needs to get tough! He was today at his rally, but he needs to mention what he has done more. He did say that Trump had the morals of an alley cat, so I guess that was not very polite.hahaha
If Biden can do that, not only state his accomplishments, but he has to be able to say something about plans for the future- people want to be able to look forward, to have hope for a better future. He must strongly call out & correct the Trump lies.
The one that just makes me want to scream, & that neither Biden nor anyone else I’ve heard have corrected emphatically, is that Biden & Dems kill babies after they are born!!!
The severity of Trump danger doesn't lessen because "we're in it together". And with all due respect, I have not found Steve constantly preaching a negative outcome.
Write the White House, your elected representatives and anyone you can think of in the Democratic power structure to persuade Mr. Biden to step aside. Otherwise we are certainly going to endure four years of Fascism from Herr Trump.
Stepping aside is the ask. The answer of who else of Candidate X doesn’t exist. It’s just asking which will completely turn over the apple cart.
Let’s get real. Critique, fear mongering, without CREDIBLE path to Nov IS giving DJT the victory since he seems impervious to being asked to leave as a criminal felon, national security threat. Project 2025 are working to destroy USA and DJT/MAGA/GOP are aligned with that and complicit.
Remember: Summer 2016 McConnell was presented with classified info on DJT and McConnell said it was election interference. Sound familiar?
… to quote a quote from Nancy, “Truth has no concern for anyone’s comfort.” — Katherine Dunn ❤️ (and I so wish Steve’s (sadly and probably accurate) observations and analysis were NOT spot-on. But he certainly has the knowledge and background for me to (again, sadly) agree
This kind of talk is not useful. This is not the titanic. And if the republicans can pretend that Trump is a good man, we can pretend that Biden is well. Biden on life support is better than Trump on his best day. That’s the message that needs to be sent. And warning otherwise is not useful. The risks of a brokered convention at this late date are much worse than staying the course and convincing ourselves and everyone that Biden can qns and must win. Full stop
The media has never focused on Trump and his babbling as well as constant lying and today for those who did not know, the truth came out about the Heritage Foundation. This is not new and has been bubbling up for years. The Electoral College should have been gone decades ago. Many will be saying why vote. The question becomes. "Now what". If we don't vote blue there goes our Democracy. Trump has made it very clear that he will have mass deportations. Where is the labor going to come from to harvest our crops and build our houses. Where I live the put new cable throughout our area. The workers worked extremely hard in 100 degree heat. I have never heard an American say an immigrant to my job. There will be no legal help and innocent people will get caught up in it. Then what? As Trump said, he will get rid of his enemies. Then what? Will they go for the disabled? 2025 says they plan to get rid of Medicare and social security. So Steve, how do we remain calm and carry on when our whole way of life is about to go off the cliff?
I'm done with your relentless negativity. I don't even think you're wrong about a lot of things. But YOU, too, are part of this problem. Instead of pontificating all the time and pointing fingers go out there and do something. What do you do exactly? How different are you from Scarborough or the NYT? All I know to do is vote blue no matter who is offered up. Yes it's come to that. Most of us that just want the truth are so damn tired of the noise. You are not always successful in your endeavors, why should any of us listen to you? What is CONSTRUCTIVE? I don't subscribe fully, but am deleting your book mark and unsubscribing to what I do get. Who gives a damn if the candidate is Joe Biden at this point? Is this a perfect world? Someone used to say to me "look within yourself" and I advise you to do the same. You don't want Trump? You have a voice, put in the actual work. Don't be like David Brooks in his little ivory tower. That is how it looks on the outside Steve. Best, Deb P.
PS My point being, like Brooks, Carville, folks like yourself, aren't getting the message. You got behind Sarah Palin, for corn's sake. So don't lecture any of us on supporting Joe Biden (Is it disrespect for Kamala Harris?). I will support Biden unless another option is put forth, if not, I just wish everybody shuts up about it and votes blue. Just shut up about it unless you can constructive contribute to changing the existing circumstances.
The anti-trumpers are all for dumping Biden, but it’s fantasy candidate that will arise like Phoenix and save us all.
The dog-fight between the two candidates and closely approaching death spiral according to the pundits.
The evasion of a death spiral where both hit the ground is one breaks out, but then vulnerable to the other’s “guns”.
Trump is willing to ride the down escalator betting on Joe to pull out first. The true saving act for democracy is anti-aircraft from full on Blue support taking Donald out. People need to start working that a lot harder at everything to hit DJT with - period. The UK showed its voters understand the current affairs.
And I ask again in this forum: WHERE IS THE ELIGIBLE (AND ELECTIBLE) POLITICIAN WILLING TO STEP INTO THIS MORASS AND TAKE BIDEN'S PLACE? I see no public pronouncements, no hints of an answer. If they all knew the situation for months, where is the alternate candidate that would have arisen from the secret meetings that should have been going on for months? No Democrat is going to suddenly attract more voters than Biden will; their platform and agenda will be just the same as his. There is no savior out there. Either the people will think and vote to make the choice between governance or chaos, or they will go along with whatever happens and keep their mouths shut if they didn't vote.
Let's suppose just for a minute that you are wrong in your assessment. What would make you wrong? One small thing: that an elderly man had a bad day. Unless you know more than the many people that have spoken up for Biden, and I don't think you do, it is more likely that Biden's failure was an episode not a trend. Joe Scarborough, by the way, this morning related his two hours experience with Biden scant months ago. He likened Biden in his grasp of events to Mika's father. So what happened since then? If you are wrong, there is little worse one could do than joining the rabid, raucous crowd of panicked pearl clutchers. Why not wait a week or two, until we get a look at a relaxed Biden responding to probing questions by a serious interviewer?
Moreover, if the world can flip over its head against Biden in a single night, can it not flip back over in a week, or two? If we waited is all lost if Biden turns out to be as bad as he was against Trump? Of course not. And please don't cite lessons from campaigns of the past. We are in dangerously uncharted waters. If all the new Biden dumpers could guarantee for me that seeking a substitute would result in a better chance of defeating Trump in the fall, I might be tempted. But they cannot. It is even possible that the ensuing struggle over a new candidate would lessen our chances.
Here are the stakes. If the Democrats win the presidency and the two Houses, they can legislate Alito and Thomas off the Supreme Court, nominate two decent liberals, and overturn a decision that will wreck our democracy. You would think that option would sharpen our thinking and unite our efforts, not initiate a chaotic squabble over replacing Biden. What would be a real tragedy would be an election with the bulk of the country not even aware that salvation is at hand if they only vote.
What a sad irony for our country. A flat Biden, who has brought this country back from a twin catastrophe - Covid and Trump - causes a fevered and rabid reaction from all sides, with barely a whisper about the unhinged nut case that opposed him.
Sometimes, your writing is too stark. You can say that's the truth talking. Maybe it is, maybe it's somewhere in between. I think that the job of being the President of the United States is challenging in a way that only the people who have been in office can understand. I think it has left its mark on Joe Biden. He has done a wonderful job! He's a good man, father, grandfather and citizen. I want him to leave office with everyone cheering and clapping and giving the respect he is due. But the question that hasn't been answered is, "who will run in place of him?" The $240million belongs to him as a candidate as far as I know. Who can fill his shoes and beat Trump and Project 2025? Name this person and I think many people will get behind the change. I want younger people in office. I like older people in office, too, but the rigors of the job are daunting.
My objective is to beat Donald Trump. We clearly disagree on how to do that. I'm looking at several things: observation of Biden, especially in recent months, culminating in the debate fiasco; the obvious gaslighting by his administration while he is largely hidden from public view; polling trends, with are uniformly bad for Biden, both on issues, performance and capacity to govern. This is not a matter of surviving an interview. It's about waging an aggressive campaign, every day, in addition to having the ability to competently hold the office for another 4.5 years.
It is very likely election interference. from whom exactly hasn't been determined. The skyrocketing hysteria is just too off the charts, totally out of proportion to one lousy debate performance. IMHO.
Steve, I am about as low as can be right now, and sadly agree with what you say. But what do we regular citizens do about this now? tRUMP and project 2025 cannot succeed. I wish you had some constructive advice rather than just your dooms day narrative. (I’m not being critical) I think we all can agree that trump can never enter the White House again. Tell us how we can prevent it! Everyone on here knows that they will never vote for trump.. now want?
Summarizing, we’re in a hell of a mess! Will the Steohanopoulos interview impact things significantly! The media in general is complicit with Trump for the most part! MAGA cult is latched on to Project 2025. Damn, how do we hold on to our democracy?
Dem Convention will not coalesce around Harris - or any one candidate. Except Joe. He has all the delegates. He would have to resign and throw his support to another. Harris isn’t the one to take up the mantle. Her alleged numbers - until days ago - were in the 20+% range.
He has to stay. Prop him up, send him out. He’s the candidate - unless he declines.
In the scenario the Dem Party will be in chaos and Dem supporters against his resignation may stay home.
Anyway you cut it, he is our candidate - like it or not - he can beat Trump.
I do not for a moment believe the majority of voters will choose the monster - who has bald faced told us what he will do - over Joe Biden.
Polling is not an exact science - especially U.S. polling. It is almost always way off the mark!
There is over $100 million in the Biden/Harris campaign, she’s the only one besides Biden who could use it. Joe cannot run the energetic campaign to get the uninformed and undecided to the polls. She’s all we got, and she has strengthened her game some over 3 years.
Yes, we, the Democrat voters & the DNC will have to depend heavily on VP Harris to do most of the punching Trump in the throat. She has definitely upped her game this past year.
I do understand the real technicalities of the rules regarding who owns the delegates & the war chest.
I will absolutely do all that I can to get Dems elected all down the ticket, I’m already doing a lot more financially this year than ever before.
If I waver back & forth over Biden at the top of the ticket, it is because I’m just so afraid of Project 2025 & all that it means for our future
Our nation does indeed face a crisis and it is from Putin, Oben, Roberts of Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation and all the bots and dissemination of false reporting and so much disinformation. Some on says Biden is losing it and the media (fueled by russian money) runs with it. Trump in incoherent and babbles and freezes and is a criminal felon and the media does not say a gawd demmed word against him. THAT MY FRIEND IS THE CRISIS!!!!
I totally agree! Where is the media crawling all over Trump and his constant word salad? Why are they not calling on this emotionally disturbed man to withdraw from the race? He is a clear and present danger to our democracy and they stay silent!
As always, when someone does something that doesn’t make sense, Follow the Money. In today’s political climate, I just assume that EVERYTHING the Repubs, TFG, the media and the Supreme Six Shooters (SCOTUS) is about the money and its sibling, Power over all the ‘unwashed heathens’, aka all women and people of color
It is called big corporations Carol. It is all about tax breaks and Citizens United.
Here is Biden’s live interview today. https://www.youtube.com/live/k8LoAsHz-Mc?si=06kVppiu45DtL5ET
And a viral ad against Trump. https://youtu.be/9fn2vm_Qrpo?si=3jHHfI3vGrv6GKoK
Biden in Wisconsin. https://www.youtube.com/live/8W6HiZAhsoA?si=-goLMLbPslLKc9TS
Today I realize that Biden’s major mistake was that he overworked.
Of course he is overworked. The job of President is never ending. It indeed takes a toll on the person in the hot seat. As an Example go back and take a look at any of our past "working" presidents. Look at a photo of them at the inauguration then look at a photo of them at the end of their term. I would say look at President Obama. He is still a fit man, but the overall change from the start to the finish is quite evident. Biden is dealing with the trouble Herr Strumpet caused in his 4 years, with the problems we as a nation are expected to handle in foreign affairs, Ukraine, Saudia Arabia, the ever ongoing Israel/hamas war, dealing with the after effects of Storms, Flooding, Wildfires, Bridges and Roads all falling apart. and don't get me started with trying to deal with the people in Congress who are supposed to be working for the people they represent instead of their money handlers.
Also with Putin’s help the world is in turmoil specifically intended for Biden. So he lost a lot of sleep.
Yeah. Unlike trump who golfed and snoozed and watched tv for 4 years.
Also Trump spent his presidency just trying to sell out to promote his family business, to Saudi, Xi, and Putin.
Give credit to Putin and his propaganda/corruption machine. He's winning.
The US economy is 25 times the size of Russia's. Yet he is in the process of making the US an extension of his Oligarchy. Putin and his gang have stolen $1 Trillion from the Russian people. If he succeeds in getting Donald back in the WH, how much can They (Putin, Orban, Trump World, Heritage Foundation, thug oligarchs, etc) steal from the US people? $25 Trillion? How many Dishonorable Congressional Objectors and judges can you buy with a $Trillion or two?
Donald thinks the President (as in himself) should have control of the Federal Reserve. Imagine America and the world if Donald gets control of the US dollar printing presses!
Are the Dems asleep to this impending reality? Will they (Biden or other) do what it takes to stop Donald and Vlad? Or will they twiddle and fiddle while the thieves steal America?
The Press is easily distracted by Donald's goofy stories. They miss the big picture. Donald is ALL about the MONEY. Putin is ALL about the MONEY. They will steal whatever they can get away with. They are breaking into our house and the Dems are cowering.
The Supreme Court gave President Biden a gift. The green light to take "bold and unhesitating action" to stop the Trump World thieves from stealing America. Does he have the balls to take bold action like Lincoln and Roosevelt and Truman?
Theresa, Having watched George Stephanopoulos’s broadcast interview with President Biden Friday evening, while Biden looked better and certainly more cogent than he looked during the debate, I hardly am alone in sensing that the interview raised new concerns, particularly that Biden either is resisting or is unaware of the fact that his situation is dire, that he appears to be losing in the view of many Democrats, let alone in the polls Stephanopoulos cited indicating he is losing to Donald Trump.
Most alarming, not exclusively for me, was Biden’s answer to one particular question from Stephanopoulos. Stephanopoulos asked Biden how he will feel in January if he has just lost to Donald Trump and all that he (Biden) has warned would happen came to pass. And this was his answer. He said, “I’ll feel, as long as I gave it my all and did the best job I know I can do, that that’s what this is about.” Setting aside the nonsense Trump spews, if ever a reply from Biden were disqualifying, this one, indeed, was.
I repeat - Of course he is overworked. The job of President is never ending. It indeed takes a toll on the person in the hot seat. As an Example go back and take a look at any of our past "working" presidents. Look at a photo of them at the inauguration then look at a photo of them at the end of their term. I would say look at President Obama. He is still a fit man, but the overall change from the start to the finish is quite evident. Biden is dealing with the trouble Herr Strumpet caused in his 4 years, with the problems we as a nation are expected to handle in foreign affairs, Ukraine, Saudia Arabia, the ever ongoing Israel/hamas war, dealing with the after effects of Storms, Flooding, Wildfires, Bridges and Roads all falling apart. and don't get me started with trying to deal with the people in Congress who are supposed to be working for the people they represent instead of their money handlers.
Theresa, Respectfully, I don’t see your comment’s relevance to my expressed concerns excerpted from Stehanopoulos’s broadcast interview with President Biden.
Adding an additional concern not included in my original comment, I would note that the Biden who emerged from his meandering debate performance, while talking to a lot of people, appears only to be listening to a tight group that tells him again and again he can win. Hence, what we see is a Joe Biden pumped up by the sentiments of a mere handful of people.
As a final point, I would advise we dispense with the so-called justifications for Biden’s weak performances if we are to handily defeat Trump.
I heartily wish the DNC would actually do something really BOLD & present Sen Cory Booker as a candidate. He is, I think, the first, if not the only Senator to speak up against the Israeli conduct of this war & call for a cease fire & immediate hostage release.
With him on the ticket, we’d have a great humanitarian, an assertive person to prosecute the case for the Democrats agenda & to stand up to Putin & Netanyahu. Sen Booker would bring the younger voter & the Muslim vote back to being excited about voting, excited about the future.
I’m old, 74, & though I’m intelligent, well read, educated, my physical body isn’t in the same place as my mind.
Biden is a GOOD person & has been a good president, able to build bipartisan support for bills; but there is no doubt in my mind, as an RN with 42 yrs experience in acute care ICUs & other areas & as an older person myself, Biden’s mental cognition has declined rapidly & will only continue to decline even more rapidly going forward.
I heard one pundit put forth Sen James Clyburn to top the ticket? No, enough with the elder statesman nonsense!
Just because you’ve spent the time, paid your dues so to speak, does not automatically make you presidential material. The DNC must bring forward one of the many younger qualified people in the party.
They must make a decisive decision & make it very soon, like within a few days.
The media is the message....sadly
And the rightwing extremist culture and the Christian White Nationalists personify rear view mirror vision
Well said!
Here’s the argument: Biden is a better man, a better leader, a better President - even if a diminished one - than his opponent could ever be. Trump is a monster who will take America and world order to its knees if elected. He is a liar, as much as sundowner as Biden but can appear at a debate with nothing to say but lie - with impunity. Media are rabid in their reporting on Biden being “unable”, when that is untrue.
Let’s look at reality: Biden has the experience, record and character to lead; he has stellar advisors; he has a huge “bank account”; he has the respect of the nation. Even if he’s diminished. Harris has low approval ratings and while a good Senator, doesn’t have what it takes - 4 months before an election - to become a President. She wouldn’t have the delegates, nor the team needed to lead.
Imagine a Convention next month where a new candidate is acclaimed. Unlikely. So, now we have an internal piss fight. And then…Media would have the Dem Party to talk about. 90 days before Americans vote.
Then there’s the bank balance - only Biden or Harris would have access to it.
All of this says: Biden stays. Like it or not. Time is not on our side. We must support Joe. AND ensure focus is on “outing” Trump - hourly. Kinda like what’s happening to Biden now - while the orange monster skates. Hell no. We stand and fight.
All of the facts you cite are already known. Look at the electoral map. It's now tilting decisively toward Trump, which means against Biden. He's clearly the wrong messenger to lead this fight. Without a dramatic shake-up Democrats are handing America back to Trump and the GOP.
I guess you didn’t read my argument. Since the facts as I state them…are the facts. They are my argument why Biden must stay.
Clearly you disagree - even though you acknowledge my facts.
The electoral map shows polling - historically inaccurate.
You may have given up on Biden. I have not. For the reasons I outlined.
Wrong about the polls, but standard response from those who don't like what they reveal.
They reveal nothing more than: who they polled, when they polled them and the exact question that was asked. But you/the average citizen will never know the answers to those questions…. So, you just assume the responses as presented are the actual intentions of voters. They are not.
I used to run a polling group. I understand how pollsters “interpret” data.
In other words they “reveal” not very much.
And did the debate not reveal much to you either? All the pollsters, from every organization, in both national and state polls, are wrong? Are they wrong in showing that Democratic Senate candidates are outperforming Biden significantly?
There are a lot of hinky things going on in these polls. They have Trump winning over 20% of the Black vote and 40% of the latino vote, yet they have each state within the 5 point margin of error.
How can that possibly be?
Trump should be far ahead in the polling if he's drawing this much vote from minorities- that tells me, something is very off with the methodology here.
Wasn't Dukakis winning by 17 points in June, and then ended up losing by a clear margin in November?
Something is consistently off with these polls for the last couple of years.
on election day, the democrats have been out performing the polling by over 4 points.
Sheila is it true that the phone polling only calls landlines? I never answer my house phone if I don't recognize the caller's name or number.
Does that leave out all the people who only have cell phones these days?
If that is so then the polls are completely off.
Hi Marian: not necessarily…. Here’s some info. on polling. ( Important to remember though, today, as a result of caller ID, it means most of us don’t answer if we don’t know the caller. Which means the polling results aren’t a true representation of all demographics). Have a look…
https://www.pbs.org/publiceditor/blogs/pbs-public-editor/the-problem-with-polls/#:~:text=In%20order%20to%20uphold%20that,is%20answered%20by%20a%20recorded
The polls have been totally off since 2021.
the democrats are constantly underperforming to the models.
They are winning elections the polls say they are going to lose.
No one should hang their hat on June polling. In 1988, when polls were considered more reliable than today, Dukakis was ahead by 17 points over Bush (the father) and Bush won by almost 8! Panic in June isn't an entirely appropriate response. President Biden has already made up some of the ground he may have lost in polling through subsequent appearances, in my opinion.
This may put pressure on the MSM to address Trumps mental and emotional disorders. No one thinks Biden is a certified sociopath, which puts him one up on Trump who also significantly trails on the mental issue, including only reading at the 5th grade level and comprehending possibly at an even lower level. Their comparative Presidential records differ like night and day too. Biden was ranked at our 14th best POTUS, while Trump was ranked last by Presidential Historians and Political Scientists, No one needs to be looking into a gift horse's mouth, when their the only horse in the barn has been proven fit to ride.
I can't imagine another person who has had to handle nothing but high stakes, difficult, and thorny issues better than Biden. Another difference to consider is Biden is an American President and not a Russian Asset or at a bare minimum self-serving on on the take type of character. Again, their foreign policy records are as different as a standard barer and Russian appeaser. Domestically, Biden is trying to help most Americans while Trump and his policies have already done away unnecessarily with at least 500,000.
I do agree with the points you’ve made here. I am reserving my final judgement on Biden’s mental, cognitive fitness until I see how he performs at the live, unscripted press conference tomorrow. If he is able to coherently answer the journalist’s questions, then I will once again throw my support behind him. I am absolutely terrorized by the thought of
Trump getting elected. It just can’t be allowed to happen.
Do you remember that red wave back in 2022?
I'm not discounting what you say, but do you think polling is accurate these days?
Special elections are not necessarily predictive of general elections. And the red wave was not necessarily what the polls were showing, but rather a narrative propagated on the right and adopted on the left. Just look at the movement, it's all consistent. I think polls are imperfect, but pretty accurate in the aggregate. Anecdotal, of course, but I've seen a lot of black and Hispanic voters on tv who are supporting Trump, irrational though that may seem. That has different impact state by state.
I agree NanceeM. 100%.
If it can't be Biden, it has to be Harris.
and she has problems as a candidate too.
There are no unicorns here.
I don't know if you can govern by polls.
You can’t govern by polls. They are notoriously inaccurate. Biden can win. If it wasn’t Trump as opponent, he might not. But Trump is so unpalatable to a general electorate, he will lose.
Agreed..there are all of a sudden so many "Biden can't win" OPINIONS since the debate, you'd almost think this was trolling and propoganda, who knows? Why WAS Trump's plane next to Russia's for 2 days last week?
Same with Polls: follow the money. Who is behind the polls? My guess is the mainstream media
Michael Cohen claims trump paid for polling during the 2016 election in order to make him look more electable.
You’ve got that right!!
Thank you for making this point.
WE STAND AND FIGHT.
Well said Sheila. It IS up to us.
The Jul 15 Time Magazine (Melinda Gates on cover) has an interesting article under the title “the polarization myth” with the comment “0ur brains mistake repetition for majority opinion” highlighted in yellow. It is well worth the read.
Thanks Pat.
I read the article just now. It’s a good one. Worth a read.
https://time.com/6990721/us-politics-polarization-myth/
Never in all of my 68 years, 50 as a voter, have I felt so discouraged. The media and the right have continued to let a convicted racist, felon and rapist stay in the race. But those of us who are progressives have to constantly hear why Biden is a nightmare for this country. Yes he had a miserable night, he is old, but he has served his country admirably and did great things while President. But look at the years that Trump was in office. Christ, we can't go back to that. I am truly torn. If Biden stays in the race I will vote for him. I am so angry and sad we are in this place as a country.
Btw, everyone brings up how old and feeble Biden is. But seriously how is it that the religious right condemns Biden for his age, but has no problem believing Noah built the Ark when he was 400 years old and Abraham was able to father children and build a nation when he was in his late 600's.
Sorry for the long rant.
The problem is not that Biden is old. The problem is that he is no longer able to defeat Donald Trump. The Trump team is praying out loud that he stays in the race.
And their biggest fear is the Democrats will choose Gov. Gavin Newsom at their upcoming convention to be their candidate for President.
And....Biden will be better four years from now at 85 than Trump will be, four years from now at 82. So, there's that...
As an early subscriber to your Substack I’ve gotta tell you I’m just about out, and done with reading your “realism” every freaking day. I know things get more dire daily but your incessant whining (that’s what it sounds like) about it is getting really tiresome, Steve. Your lack of even a tiny bit of hopefulness is going to drive people to sit this one out because you’re preaching about a negative outcome all the time. Other Substackers are also sounding alarms but seem more able to temper their posts with a little bit more of “we’re in this together”. Can you try it a little bit?
More to the point - the calls never come with a credible Candidate X that 120 days out won’t be as bad an internal coup and self-inflicted wound.
No way out may be the article. But, this plane is in the air. There is only landing this plane. Any attempts to get to November with changing planes in mid-air is true folly.
Nobody expresses a credible plan to deal with the threat of a lying criminal refusing to accept his own accountability in order to go all in to avoid jail throwing flack of lies and deceit; nor how switching Dem candidates to mystery politician X that can deal in 120 days a decisive defeat.
Fear mongering is panic. FLY the plane. Land the plane. Nothing else matters.
P.S., if anyone has a CREDIBLE solution that doesn’t impose additional risk of crash landing, I’m all ears. Kamala and the house not voting for a VP isn’t it either. We need the USA to just vote like UK did recognizing the real threat isn’t Biden’s age right now.
I agree with you that "the real threat isn't Biden's age right now." The voters must simply vote AGAINST Trump, regardless even if Biden becomes comatose. There is no person of sufficient national stature nor the time to replace him. Yes, I love Whitmer and Tester for instance, and I think either would make an excellent president, but it's just too late in the game.
I don't believe it is too late in the game; if Biden released his delegates the convention could choose a more vigorous and more progressive candidate who could prove what a foolish and dangerous liar Trump is in the September debate.
There will be six weeks left before the election when the convention ends. Does anyone doubt Democrats would have a better chance of winning if a strong, coherent progressive candidate ran on the Democratic ticket? If you have never listened to her, find out about Katie Porter. She would shred Trump, as would Warren, Swalwell, or Schiff.
We have to face it. Biden is a very weak candidate; we must not support the man over the goal of preventing a MAGA Reign of Terror. Trump has said he will execute people. Biden, his family, advisors and close associates would be among them. He will entertain his followers with televised kangaroo court trials, probably televised executions.
Don't let this happen. Please. STOP THE MADNESS!!!
Actually, there will be about 10 weeks. I miscalculated.
Unfortunate, you just described 2 and there are four or five other names in the cue for succession planing incl. Newsom in 2026/28 mids/next election.
That scramble for who would be the one is fraught enough as we approach the beginning of final descent into Nov and early voting. Remember Ohio was going to miss legally including Biden on their ballot due to Aug convention date until they corrected the date.
If Biden stays in the race he must continuously denounce and expose Trump's lies and get the focus off of his physical/mental decline. Or he must pass the baton to the VP. If he says the Lord Almighty will tell him when to jump ship, circumstances will allow the Voice to be heard. If we are to keep power to the People the Dems must unite under a larger banner. Steve is vociferous in his approach. His current visit to the scenes of the crimes of the German fascist killing machine must be firing his concerns. And the latest Supreme court rulings give little confidence in how easily authoritarians will slither in and rob our unalienable rights. Now that Trump has denied Project 2025 more people will become aware of its threats. There is slim hope the tide will turn.
About a week ago I heard a person who called into the Michael Smerkonish program on the POTUS station; this was his solution:
1. Joe Biden resigns immediately.
2. Kamala Harris becomes the first woman president.
- this is under the condition that she not seek the presidency for four years
- Kamala finishes Biden’s term
3. We have a contested Democratic Convention and the winner becomes the candidate
4. Both Biden and Harris heartily endorse and campaign vigorously for this person
To my mind, the problem all along has been the democrats’ inability to continuously, instantly, and forcefully counter all MAGA lies and disingenuousness. Part of that I put at the feet of the media. Clang those cymbals, toot those horns, bang those drums, Do not stay silent. that is what is killing this country right now. Get out of the “OMG, this can’t be happening sphere - fight back. No lie or extreme exaggeration should be left unchallenged .
As long as Biden wins the election, it does not really matter how feeble he becomes. Unlike Trump and his cadre of dolts, Biden has smart, educated, skilled and most importantly, advisors of integrity and solid character. If advisors kept Trump from his most egregious desires, why can’t Biden’s advisors hold up him as necessary? After all, Reagan had Alzheimer’s and we even survived the Bush dynasty.
The polls were horribly wrong in 2020. -why not now? Nothing about the past 12 years has been close to historical - why should we expect it this time?
Ask 1 question, Who would want Biden to resign immediately? Let’s start with the war in Ukraine.
2. Why would Kamala accept such a deal to not carry forward the best policy programs running? and who would think 120 days for 3/4 are winning strategies?
Lots of desperate people looking for a DJT/R win and see the probable effects afterwards with the blue like UK results.
I don’t think the gd plane can make it there.
Shawn, you couldn’t say it better. There’s a difference between reality and negative pomposity. It’s a shame. Talk is cheap.
I would think Steve does understand the danger of abandoning an incumbent President in the middle of an election.
It is so dangerous.
Really Garret? Steve had the misjudgement to pick or at least give his approval to Sarah Palin on the McCain ticket. He is a nice and smart guy but he doesn't always see the big picture or at least understand it. Afterall he was a Republican most of his life, so that tells you something, doesn't it?
We don't need his pessimism at this point. Just listen to Biden's speech today to see what he will be fighting for.
The punch back with Joe giving hard nails on a reporter at the tarmac stating hard truths is Joe dropping the statesman niceties.
Refreshing actually. He should be more impolite to these repetitive BS narrative questions.
I missed that incident Bill. I need to find the footage of it. Yes, I agree he needs to get tough! He was today at his rally, but he needs to mention what he has done more. He did say that Trump had the morals of an alley cat, so I guess that was not very polite.hahaha
If Biden can do that, not only state his accomplishments, but he has to be able to say something about plans for the future- people want to be able to look forward, to have hope for a better future. He must strongly call out & correct the Trump lies.
The one that just makes me want to scream, & that neither Biden nor anyone else I’ve heard have corrected emphatically, is that Biden & Dems kill babies after they are born!!!
That is so outrageous, Dems must counteract that.
Doesn't sound like he understands it to me. Sounds more like the Pundit Olympics. And I like Steve Schmidt. But I too am done.
The severity of Trump danger doesn't lessen because "we're in it together". And with all due respect, I have not found Steve constantly preaching a negative outcome.
Okay. Maybe not every day. But it’s pretty close. On the days he isn’t, he’s tossing us an old post he wrote before. Just sayin’
Write the White House, your elected representatives and anyone you can think of in the Democratic power structure to persuade Mr. Biden to step aside. Otherwise we are certainly going to endure four years of Fascism from Herr Trump.
There's no such thing as "four years of fascism." It would have to be defeated, which is much more difficult once power is consolidated.
If they get power, they will NOT peacefully relinquish it.
Stepping aside is the ask. The answer of who else of Candidate X doesn’t exist. It’s just asking which will completely turn over the apple cart.
Let’s get real. Critique, fear mongering, without CREDIBLE path to Nov IS giving DJT the victory since he seems impervious to being asked to leave as a criminal felon, national security threat. Project 2025 are working to destroy USA and DJT/MAGA/GOP are aligned with that and complicit.
Remember: Summer 2016 McConnell was presented with classified info on DJT and McConnell said it was election interference. Sound familiar?
… to quote a quote from Nancy, “Truth has no concern for anyone’s comfort.” — Katherine Dunn ❤️ (and I so wish Steve’s (sadly and probably accurate) observations and analysis were NOT spot-on. But he certainly has the knowledge and background for me to (again, sadly) agree
Right there with you Shawn.
Nicely stated, Shawn. 👍
This kind of talk is not useful. This is not the titanic. And if the republicans can pretend that Trump is a good man, we can pretend that Biden is well. Biden on life support is better than Trump on his best day. That’s the message that needs to be sent. And warning otherwise is not useful. The risks of a brokered convention at this late date are much worse than staying the course and convincing ourselves and everyone that Biden can qns and must win. Full stop
Steve,
I too am a realist and I agree with you completely. Keep up the fight and stay safe.
Peace,
Steve Dundas
Stuart Stephens said this morning that no incumbent President has ever lost an election when the economy was doing this well.
Don't we lose some of the advantages of incumbency if Biden Steps down?
DO you think Joe Scarborough is LYING when he says he's talked with Biden and that he's still as sharp as a tack?
I haven't seen mental disintegration in Biden except for those 90 minutes.
The media has never focused on Trump and his babbling as well as constant lying and today for those who did not know, the truth came out about the Heritage Foundation. This is not new and has been bubbling up for years. The Electoral College should have been gone decades ago. Many will be saying why vote. The question becomes. "Now what". If we don't vote blue there goes our Democracy. Trump has made it very clear that he will have mass deportations. Where is the labor going to come from to harvest our crops and build our houses. Where I live the put new cable throughout our area. The workers worked extremely hard in 100 degree heat. I have never heard an American say an immigrant to my job. There will be no legal help and innocent people will get caught up in it. Then what? As Trump said, he will get rid of his enemies. Then what? Will they go for the disabled? 2025 says they plan to get rid of Medicare and social security. So Steve, how do we remain calm and carry on when our whole way of life is about to go off the cliff?
I'm done with your relentless negativity. I don't even think you're wrong about a lot of things. But YOU, too, are part of this problem. Instead of pontificating all the time and pointing fingers go out there and do something. What do you do exactly? How different are you from Scarborough or the NYT? All I know to do is vote blue no matter who is offered up. Yes it's come to that. Most of us that just want the truth are so damn tired of the noise. You are not always successful in your endeavors, why should any of us listen to you? What is CONSTRUCTIVE? I don't subscribe fully, but am deleting your book mark and unsubscribing to what I do get. Who gives a damn if the candidate is Joe Biden at this point? Is this a perfect world? Someone used to say to me "look within yourself" and I advise you to do the same. You don't want Trump? You have a voice, put in the actual work. Don't be like David Brooks in his little ivory tower. That is how it looks on the outside Steve. Best, Deb P.
PS My point being, like Brooks, Carville, folks like yourself, aren't getting the message. You got behind Sarah Palin, for corn's sake. So don't lecture any of us on supporting Joe Biden (Is it disrespect for Kamala Harris?). I will support Biden unless another option is put forth, if not, I just wish everybody shuts up about it and votes blue. Just shut up about it unless you can constructive contribute to changing the existing circumstances.
constructively, sorry
Or Charlie Sykes.
The anti-trumpers are all for dumping Biden, but it’s fantasy candidate that will arise like Phoenix and save us all.
The dog-fight between the two candidates and closely approaching death spiral according to the pundits.
The evasion of a death spiral where both hit the ground is one breaks out, but then vulnerable to the other’s “guns”.
Trump is willing to ride the down escalator betting on Joe to pull out first. The true saving act for democracy is anti-aircraft from full on Blue support taking Donald out. People need to start working that a lot harder at everything to hit DJT with - period. The UK showed its voters understand the current affairs.
Thank you. That’s what I was trying to say too.
All you want is for everyone to want what you want.
Don't we all? So clever.
And I ask again in this forum: WHERE IS THE ELIGIBLE (AND ELECTIBLE) POLITICIAN WILLING TO STEP INTO THIS MORASS AND TAKE BIDEN'S PLACE? I see no public pronouncements, no hints of an answer. If they all knew the situation for months, where is the alternate candidate that would have arisen from the secret meetings that should have been going on for months? No Democrat is going to suddenly attract more voters than Biden will; their platform and agenda will be just the same as his. There is no savior out there. Either the people will think and vote to make the choice between governance or chaos, or they will go along with whatever happens and keep their mouths shut if they didn't vote.
Let's suppose just for a minute that you are wrong in your assessment. What would make you wrong? One small thing: that an elderly man had a bad day. Unless you know more than the many people that have spoken up for Biden, and I don't think you do, it is more likely that Biden's failure was an episode not a trend. Joe Scarborough, by the way, this morning related his two hours experience with Biden scant months ago. He likened Biden in his grasp of events to Mika's father. So what happened since then? If you are wrong, there is little worse one could do than joining the rabid, raucous crowd of panicked pearl clutchers. Why not wait a week or two, until we get a look at a relaxed Biden responding to probing questions by a serious interviewer?
Moreover, if the world can flip over its head against Biden in a single night, can it not flip back over in a week, or two? If we waited is all lost if Biden turns out to be as bad as he was against Trump? Of course not. And please don't cite lessons from campaigns of the past. We are in dangerously uncharted waters. If all the new Biden dumpers could guarantee for me that seeking a substitute would result in a better chance of defeating Trump in the fall, I might be tempted. But they cannot. It is even possible that the ensuing struggle over a new candidate would lessen our chances.
Here are the stakes. If the Democrats win the presidency and the two Houses, they can legislate Alito and Thomas off the Supreme Court, nominate two decent liberals, and overturn a decision that will wreck our democracy. You would think that option would sharpen our thinking and unite our efforts, not initiate a chaotic squabble over replacing Biden. What would be a real tragedy would be an election with the bulk of the country not even aware that salvation is at hand if they only vote.
What a sad irony for our country. A flat Biden, who has brought this country back from a twin catastrophe - Covid and Trump - causes a fevered and rabid reaction from all sides, with barely a whisper about the unhinged nut case that opposed him.
well said
Thank you Martin for the “meat and potatoes” writing. Strong thoughts and ideas.
Exactly I'm staying with Biden too.
I think I was done with all the baloney, I read, when I wrote that. It's an administration.
Everyone knows it's a disaster to change The Incumbent this far in.
I reject that Biden isn't capable.
Sometimes, your writing is too stark. You can say that's the truth talking. Maybe it is, maybe it's somewhere in between. I think that the job of being the President of the United States is challenging in a way that only the people who have been in office can understand. I think it has left its mark on Joe Biden. He has done a wonderful job! He's a good man, father, grandfather and citizen. I want him to leave office with everyone cheering and clapping and giving the respect he is due. But the question that hasn't been answered is, "who will run in place of him?" The $240million belongs to him as a candidate as far as I know. Who can fill his shoes and beat Trump and Project 2025? Name this person and I think many people will get behind the change. I want younger people in office. I like older people in office, too, but the rigors of the job are daunting.
It's the wrong question when faced with the near certainty that Biden cannot win.
you know no such thing
Keep ignoring reality and we'll find out, too late.
what "reality"? nobody know what will happen 11/5.
That is completely inaccurate.
My objective is to beat Donald Trump. We clearly disagree on how to do that. I'm looking at several things: observation of Biden, especially in recent months, culminating in the debate fiasco; the obvious gaslighting by his administration while he is largely hidden from public view; polling trends, with are uniformly bad for Biden, both on issues, performance and capacity to govern. This is not a matter of surviving an interview. It's about waging an aggressive campaign, every day, in addition to having the ability to competently hold the office for another 4.5 years.
No worries Biden will live past his 2nd term.
He had a bad night.
My guess is he knew about the SCOTUS's ruling of Immunity, that evening.
You all have lost your minds, so what is the Actual thing that happened?!
Does he have a terminal illness?
What is it?
It is very likely election interference. from whom exactly hasn't been determined. The skyrocketing hysteria is just too off the charts, totally out of proportion to one lousy debate performance. IMHO.
Steve, I am about as low as can be right now, and sadly agree with what you say. But what do we regular citizens do about this now? tRUMP and project 2025 cannot succeed. I wish you had some constructive advice rather than just your dooms day narrative. (I’m not being critical) I think we all can agree that trump can never enter the White House again. Tell us how we can prevent it! Everyone on here knows that they will never vote for trump.. now want?
Summarizing, we’re in a hell of a mess! Will the Steohanopoulos interview impact things significantly! The media in general is complicit with Trump for the most part! MAGA cult is latched on to Project 2025. Damn, how do we hold on to our democracy?
The interview will be aired tonite....Friday
Should be interesting!
Dem Convention will not coalesce around Harris - or any one candidate. Except Joe. He has all the delegates. He would have to resign and throw his support to another. Harris isn’t the one to take up the mantle. Her alleged numbers - until days ago - were in the 20+% range.
He has to stay. Prop him up, send him out. He’s the candidate - unless he declines.
In the scenario the Dem Party will be in chaos and Dem supporters against his resignation may stay home.
Anyway you cut it, he is our candidate - like it or not - he can beat Trump.
I do not for a moment believe the majority of voters will choose the monster - who has bald faced told us what he will do - over Joe Biden.
Polling is not an exact science - especially U.S. polling. It is almost always way off the mark!
There is over $100 million in the Biden/Harris campaign, she’s the only one besides Biden who could use it. Joe cannot run the energetic campaign to get the uninformed and undecided to the polls. She’s all we got, and she has strengthened her game some over 3 years.
Yes, we, the Democrat voters & the DNC will have to depend heavily on VP Harris to do most of the punching Trump in the throat. She has definitely upped her game this past year.
I do understand the real technicalities of the rules regarding who owns the delegates & the war chest.
I will absolutely do all that I can to get Dems elected all down the ticket, I’m already doing a lot more financially this year than ever before.
If I waver back & forth over Biden at the top of the ticket, it is because I’m just so afraid of Project 2025 & all that it means for our future