Joe Biden continues to have problems enunciating certain sounds, and I also think that "angry" Joe Biden doesn't work for him. That said, here's his entire press conference this afternoon. It's only 13 minutes long. Watch for yourself and decide if, speech issues aside, he seems in any way cognitively limited. As usual, it strikes me that if you watch the whole thing instead of just reading about it or looking at snippets, he seems fine.
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not only does he seem fine, he's demonstrated that he's fine by running a successful administration.
That's the key. FDR, our most successful President, was described as having a second rate intellect but a first rate temperament.
Except where Biden called Egypt Mexico, and correctly identified Egypt later in the same sentence he was fine. Angry. Incensed. On point with the disgusting reference about his dead son. The press were a pack of jackals (which I am sure was the President's peoples intention). All in all, this will be a win for Biden.
That’s just the kind of minor slip people make speaking off the cuff all the time
Particularly in a week when the Mexican border has been much on Biden’s mind
When Biden said Mexico when he meant Egypt, he misspoke. It's a textbook case of "misspoke," a common thing among politicians. We all knew exactly when he meant, and we all knew he knew exactly what he meant.
When Trump called Victor Orbán the "leader of Turkey," he may have misspoke too. We are less sure Trump has firm ideas about the differences between Hungary and Turkey. But either way, what Trump said was far worse. He praised Orbán and called him "a great guy." "He has my full support," Trump said about the right-wing, anti-democratic leader.
Biden made a minor mistake. Trump made an error of judgment that should be disqualifying for anyone serving or seeking to serve as president of the United States.
Which one will we hear about from now until November?
That tells you everything you need to know about the biggest problem to come out of yesterday's press conference: the misguided American press corps that can't tell the difference.
Sorry, but despite special counsel Mueller's report being a Deep State joke, and special counsel Hur's pathetic reasons for not recommending Biden's indictment, the report of the Special Counsel that Joe Biden is a doddering old fool who can't remember what he did yesterday is a finding of fact that cannot be questioned. This is now Trump Republican campaign theme #1.
Biden should fire Garland. He won't, of course, but he should. Garland's handling of the investigation into Trump's coup attempt has been atrocious. Garland's appointment of Hur was unforgiveable. Remember this?
It took Republican stooge Hur 380 pages to say the same thing, taking the opportunity to abuse his authority to make gratuitous comments about the president's mental state.
You've convinced me that you've convinced yourself that you're right.
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Just wrote a similar comment below before seeing yours. Garland has been an absolutely horrible attorney general. Biden should appoint Hillary Rodham Clinton. She is seemingly about the only Democrat in Washington who understands the full depravity of the GOP, and comprehends their utter lack of ethics.
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I never watch these things, so I was pleasantly surprised with just how confidently and reassuringly he speaks. Given how often this topic comes up, I was braced for a performance that was going to be slightly worrying.
Biden is old. I don't personally care, but it is a thing nonetheless. He seems perfectly capable to ordering the US military to bomb and assassinate Muslim terrorists so what is there to complain about?
He’s going to lose anyway or so says Kevin’s friend Ruy.
https://www.liberalpatriot.com/p/the-disappearing-democratic-coalition
“Instead the hard work of convincing persuadable voters, including many in traditionally sympathetic groups, that Democrats are actually better on the economy and at least not so bad on border security, crime, and other difficult issues must be embraced. That will be difficult and means above all that Democrats must leave the comforting confines of the bubble so many of them inhabit. They will have to talk about issues they’d rather avoid like immigration and crime. And they will have to confront, not dismiss, the realities of voter concerns on the economy rather than contentedly singing the praises of their fine economic performance.”
I don’t know if that’s going to work. I’m telling people who won’t vote for Biden to go eff themselves. Their suffering is not my concern.
Biden IS old, and he should have re-read his promises to be "a transitional president". It's too late now; he's going to be the nominee, and if he wins he'll do a workmanlike job. But he probably won't last the entire term. Though he certainly may live another four years, he very well may be 25th Amendmented. I surely do hope that Kamala is up to the task that will befall her.
If confirmed Alzheimer's patient Ronald Reagan could make it through his second term, I'm sure Joe Biden can too. Presidents do get the absolute best medical care possible, so their longevity is much longer than "regular" octogenarians. And it's not like his competition is a totally stable genius either, so what's the point of airing your concerns here?
I don't frankly get all the concern about Kamala Harris being "up to the job." I've heard other commentators -- never-Trumpers in fact -- ask "do you think Kamala Harris is 'ready to be president'?"
Checking my notes: Juris Doctor. District Attorney in a major city. Attorney General of the most populous state. Member of the U.S. Senate for 4 years. Vice President for 4 years. Speaks French.
No, I suppose she's not "ready." She should definitely host a fake TV reality show to prove her readiness.
I seem to recall my warning of a "McConnell Moment" a while back. What the SC did was a blatant cheap shot, but it's a blessing it happened now and not Nov 1.
This is the second year in a row that President Biden has refused to speak to the American people just before the Super Bowl.
This is inexcusable....can you image Trump turning down this opportunity, or any contender for that matter? This is cowardly...
Of course I will vote Biden, I will work for his re-election...but I am damned unhappy about his piss poor judgement....I am as angry with him as I was with Ms Willis.
Bad judgement...that will deliver the United States to Mr Trump, but also Europe to Putin.
I spit on the ground at Biden's feet. Stupid he is to not recognize that he cannot counter this ever expanding negativity swirling around him... Traveller
"This is inexcusable....can you image Trump turning down this opportunity, or any contender for that matter?"
No, because Trump is a media whore. So are most other Republican contenders. What's your point? It's obviously not a *requirement* to speak before the Super Bowl, since something like three-quarters of our past presidents didn't do so.
The President must be invited by the Speaker for the SOTU. Big Mike Johnson's invite was for March 2. Maybe Xtians like Mikey don't watch football or realize its major Constitutional importance.
"Of course I will vote Biden, I will work for his re-election...but I am damned unhappy about his piss poor judgement...."
That describes me also, except for the part about working for (or contributing to) his re-election.
His judgement is indeed flawed, beginning with his decision to run again at his age. He should have been that bridge to a younger generation of Democrats, like he promised four years ago.
But it doesn't end there. His judgement of picking Garland seems more and more dubious. He has gotten played badly by Mr. Netanyahu. And remember that fist bump with Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, the journalist murderer?
Cowardly? Are you fucking serious? I personally would have preferred to see him seize the opportunity to get free media. But we have absolutely no idea what the specific calculus is regarding the decision whether or not to do the interview. Maybe they were worried of being sandbagged, who knows? Maybe they think it's not the best kind of venue for him.
Apropos of nothing, Bob Somerby over at the Daily Howler really loved your post! If you haven't checked out his admiring take on it, please do.
Might be instructive to watch TRUMP speak for 13 minutes, without a prompter and responding to a lot of shouted questions and comments, just for comparison, and THEN decide who makes more slips and gaffes and ... spouts almost completely incomprehensible gibberish.
Look, "Biden is old" is at this point almost all the Republicans have got, except for "noun-verb-BORDER!!" (which hit a couple of pretty big bumps this week), so they're gonna pound it until it's flat and then peel it up and pound it some more. And it's undeniable -- he IS old. But I'll take his mental acuity -- not to mention his judgment, empathy, and motivations -- over Trump's ANY day. By comparison, Trump is a drooling idiot with the judgment, empathy and motivations of a particularly nasty child. That this happens also to be the case with a material fraction of the American electorate is unfortunate, but it doesn't excuse or elevate it in any way.
As a minor factual matter, I do think that Biden used a prompter for his prepared remarks.
To your larger point, you are correct, but I think we must recognize that Trump might come across like he's losing it, but he doesn't come across as frail. I think there are a lot of people who are concerned about Biden's *frailty* more so than his mental acuity, and telling them "watch Trump speak" will not convince them of anything - they will watch him speak and say "yeah, Trump seems much stronger than Biden" - even if Trump says a bunch of crazy nonsense about drinking bleach and Nikki Haley being in charge of Capitol security on January 6.
Yeah, between the bronzer and the Adderall, Trump comes off as more vigorous and younger in his best on-camera moments. But watch him doddering around -- by comparison, Biden walks like an Olympic athlete -- or catch him when he's not spun up with the drugs full-on, and he looks OLD too.
I think this is a real difference between the coverage they're PRESENTLY getting, and it's a systemic problem for Biden. The President is ALWAYS on, while a challenger can choose his moments. They gotta get the media to get behind the scripted moments.
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To me, the bottom line is the following POTUS knowledge test:
You will be the most powerful person on the planet. You will make decisions that will have a significant negative effect on the lives of other people. Do you care about those people? Choose one of the following options:
Option 1 is yes.
Option 2 is no.
In his words and deeds, President Biden has repeatedly passed the knowledge test by choosing Option 1. In his words and deeds, former President Donald has repeatedly failed the knowledge test by choosing Option 2.
If two candidates are vying for a position of authority, including dog catcher and let alone POTUS, where Candidate A passes the knowledge test, and Candidate B fails the knowledge test, then Candidate A gets the job, and Candidate B doesn't. Translation: WRT supporting Biden in the current context, his competence is effectively irrelevant.
If President Biden is competent, that's a bonus. If former President Donald fails the competence test, that's good news based on my answer to another test, which is ... you are about to face evil. Choose one of the following options:
Option 1 is an evil genius.
Option 2 is an evil buffoon.
It’s hard not to wonder whether criticism from media pundits, particularly right wing media pundits, has some basis in defending their colleagues who, once again, came across as a bunch of braying jackals with no concept of impartiality.
I’m 82. Which would you prefer a thoughtful old guy who occasionally mis-speaks or another old guy who occasionally mis-speaks and is also a lying psychopath. That apparently will be our choice.
Look, there's really no honest way to spin this as a good development, but it happened on February 8, not October 28. Biden's age is a thing, it has long been a thing for a lot of voters, and it's going to continue to be a thing unless and until the campaign actually confronts it. If the campaign folks are smart about it, they'll take this as a wakeup call and realize that there is no actual way to hide from this issue. They need to put Joe out there more and let people judge the results for themselves. My guess is that Joe will do more or less what Joe did yesterday - he'll still deliver the occasional gaffe or misstatement, but he'll also demonstrate a basic command that shows that he's still capable. And if Biden really can't do that, and they are actually hiding him (i.e., ducking the Super Bowl interview? Seriously?), then he needs to LBJ himself.
I know exactly zero people who are looking forward to hearing the president speak or not speak at the Super Bowl. I literally never knew any president ever spoke before it in the past, until this year when suddenly it became A Thing Biden Is Avoiding. And I'm actually a political junkie who hates football and watches solely for the commercials while socializing with friends and eating junk food. So... it seems like perhaps Not Speaking Before The Super Bowl isn't something many regular people care about?
I'm with you on the ads and food and socializing. The game itself seems unnecessarily brutal, and they keep stopping it to show the most brutal take-downs over and over and over again, in ultra-slow mo, which is even more offensive. Bring on the ads!
And how is the President supposed to fit into this Carnival of Capitalism and Carnage? Is that a joke?
I also have never heard of this "tradition". I watch the Super Bowl most years and spend a chunk of every day of my life keeping up with the news. If someone held a gun to my head and said my life depended on me knowing the answer to "before what popular event does the President traditionally give an interview?" I would be dead. I've also never heard anyone, ever, day after the Super Bowl, bring up the President's interview.
Similar sort of thing. If somebody told me "The president always does an interview before the Superbowl," I'd say "Huh--I guess I've heard about such interviews in the past, so that could be true."
But if somebody said "The president almost never does an interview before the Superbowl," I'd likewise think that statement could also be true.
Because either way, it's not something I've ever paid attention to or cared about.
I don't know why Biden isn't doing an interview before the Superbowl (or why he would if he were), but I don't feel like I'm owed one. Hope he enjoys his Sunday, and/or that he spends the time doing some presidenting instead.
Well, remember when LBJ deep-sixed himself, we got two terms of Richard Nixon. True, one term was completed by Gerry Ford. But for folks who hated Johnson because of the Vietnam War, Nixon carried it on for years afterwards.
Also, please name the three leading Democrats who can immediately step into Joe's shoes. In 1968, there were a lot: RFK (the original), Gene McCarthy, and Hubert Humphrey. They were all literally in the running.
This year? Jill Stein. Oh, and Marianner Williamson dropped out.
Off the top of my head, Gretchen Whitmer, Andy Beshear, Gavin Newsom. And for all the flak he's getting for being the only Democrat with the courage to challenge Biden, Dean Phillips. Phillips is a mainstream Democrat who sees electoral reality for what it is in this country, and that appears to be disqualifying in today's Democratic Party.
Why must what happened when LBJ dropped out be deemed as inevitable this time? The circumstances are much different. There were American boots on the ground in Vietnam, many not returning home.
LBJ decided not to run on March 31. Still, the Hubert Humphrey came close to winning, even though as VP he had to support Johnson's war policy
Oh, yes, this country is FULL of people just yearning to see an obscure House back-bencher named [checks notes] Dean Phillips to step into the White House. Of course, he's up to the job, not like that inexperienced Kamala Harris.
Why yes. Biden himself said that there were about 50 Democratic politicians who could beat Trump.
Left unsaid: he's not one of them.
What other official, high-profile criminal report would contain this political hit-job language? None. Wouldn't happen. Merrick Garland HAS to have reviewed this. Not excising this gratuitous personal slur on Biden is a Comey-esque lapse of judgment.
Then Hur would have let it leak that "serious concerns" about Biden's mental health were CENSORED!1! in the report by Garland and it's a huge coverup now and arglebargle ftpthhh!!!
So yeah, Garland basically Comeyed this, figured the price of being accused of a coverup would be worse than just letting the language in there stand. I guess history will judge if he fucked up or not, too.
Not excising this gratuitous personal slur on Biden is a Comey-esque lapse of judgment.
Wrong. The lapse in judgment was appointing a MAGA Republican in the first place. As others have noted, the excising of offensive passages would have been leaked, and accusations of "cover up" would have immediately ensued, thereby creating a scandal. Once Hur was on the case, the best thing to do was let the chips fall where they may. The fact is it's only February, and the SC can (and should) be painted us a deeply unserious MAGA political operative.
But no, Garland had no business appointing that Stefanik-like figure to such a role. Merrick needs to go. He just seems to have been asleep for the last couple of decades, and doesn't comprehend what the party of Lincoln has become.
Biden has an easy defense if the public has a misunderstanding of his current mental abilities/memory etc: Biden could do several, relatively free form, public facing events.
I read that Regan, after charges of mental decline, actively increased his public facing agenda. In contrast, passing on the Super Bowl, interview feeds into the narrative that the Biden team is hiding him.
Or else, perception in a hyper media world, quickly becomes reality
I was waiting for him to say "Of course I remember when Beau died - it was Saturday, May 30, 2015." (I had to look that up in Google, of course, so maybe Biden would have been accused of doing the same.)
this is the 2024 version of the dean scream
The national news program I was watching broadcast a commercial for Rexulti right before it breaking away to the President's press conference.
He should take a page from the Trump playbook and just keep repeating "COMPLETE AND TOTAL EXONERATION." Eventually the stupid and lazy press will get tired of saying "Well, actually" and just parrot it.
Why the hell did Merrick Garland appoint that MAGA frat boy as a special counsel? Does our AG not have any working brain cells? What part of "Republicans are 24/7 partisan hacks" is complicated? Is there some law I'm unaware of that says Democrats can't serve as special counsels?
You can't trust these MAGA fucks to play it straight. They always subordinate ethics in the service of their God Emperor. Always. Biden should fire Garland's ass today.
"Democrats have to be adults and play fair and by the rules and go out of their way to appear bipartisan. Republicans are allowed to basically go wilding however they want."
Direct quote from the "Welcome to the White House Press Corps" pamphlet every reporter gets when they start the job.
Dates back to "Newt" Gingrich. right?
"My memory is so bad, I let you speak," made me bust out laughing!
Politicians misspeaking is so commonplace, if it were a drinking game, we'd all permanently be drunk. Same for the rest of us. This morning I accidentally said Barbara Boxer when I meant Dianne Feinstein. I tried to name the president of Mexico, and the first name that came to mind was Brazil's. When I worked in an elementary school the kids frequently called their teachers "mom" by mistake.
I've had many relatives with real memory issues, and he doesn't remind me of them at all. Nor do I think it's all that big a deal that he has some "senior moments." Presidents aren't competing on Quiz Bowl. And they dont actually seem to be more frequent than the bits of mistaken speech that many younger politicians have made. W seemed to make them often as well 20 years ago, and he hasn't been diagnosed with alzheimer's yet.
Here we are talking about Biden's acuity -- which is just fine -- while Trump basically talks word salad all day and probably couldn't tell you what he ate for breakfast that morning. Last year in his deposition in the E. Jean Carrol case, he swore up and down he had never met Carrol and had no idea who she was. When presented with photos of them together at various social events in NYC over the years, Trump demurred and said he didn't remember any of that. He then proceeded to misidentify Carrol as his ex-wife Marla Maples.
And Biden's the one with memory problems?
But, but, but... Trump could tell the difference between a whale and a giraffe!
I would like to see him take that dementia/brain damage test again: on camera.
I’m a solid Democrat, but Biden’s ego (or those of his regency) are going to lead to a 2nd Trump presidency. He promised to be a transitory president. He never sits for broadcast interviews or press conferences. He won’t even sit for a softball interview from CBS for 5 minutes at the Super Bowl. Yes, he was able to read off the teleprompter yesterday, but that doesn’t eliminate the concern about his decision making and mental acuity.
All the commenters on this blog, blaming this latest example of Biden not being up to the job on the Special Counsel or on Garland, are missing the point. Biden has done NOTHING to show the public he is anything more than a propped-up cardboard cutout as his minders run the country (Albeit a million times better than Trump would run the country). The reality is Biden has a huge image problem and has/is doing nothing to address it. Now, we’re screwed as a nation, as there is no Plan B for the Democrats.
Luckily, Biden didn't waste his "1-day dictatorship" on his first day in office, and instead can use it to negate the election results and give himself a second term!
Yeah, Biden's done nothing to show he's up to the job. The economy is tanking...oh wait.
"Biden has a huge image problem and has/is doing nothing to address it. Now, we’re screwed as a nation"
Not yet, although things are not looking good right now. We ARE screwed with Biden. Remember those polls where a "generic Democrat" beat Trump soundly and ran at least 10 points ahead of Biden?
Let's put a name to "generic", and have a chance.
Besides the speech impediment and unappealing affect he seems fine?
There's a rave review.
Just how many times do you want to hear reporters ask Biden if he's too old? Because our political press isn't really doing anything else.
As for being a puppet held up by competent minders, I would ask: even if true, why would that matter? I've never really understood the American obsession with the president as a leader of a fan club, or as someone to "inspire" the populace.
There really is no way that FDR would have ever been able to run for president in our current political and media culture.
It may just feel better to people if they have a leader who has strong leadership qualities as opposed to one who doesn't.
I like Angry Joe.