Let’s face it, President Biden came out flat and did a poor job in last night’s first presidential debate. He certainly did not instill confidence in the voters with his halting performance. Predictably Donald Trump was, as Tom Friedman wrote in this morning’s New York Times, a “firehose of lies” as usual. While the “watch party crowd” will say that Trump won, there were really no winners, only losers. The big loser was the nation.
While the MAGA crowd gloats, Democrats are throwing up their hands and demanding that Biden step down and let a younger candidate come forward. Show me the candidate that can fill in and triumph and just maybe. But understand that such action could easily lead to disaster at this point.
Presidential debates are really not “debates” but too often performances to catch opponents in “flubs” and “gotchas” that do not square with a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses. They are nothing more than political sit-coms. And one debate does not an election make.
Right now, Joe Biden is our only hope.