How naive are people to take Hur’s report as being anything than a hit job. Biden could loose half his memory and still have 10 times the knowledge to run the country. The Democrats need a spine and they need a spine now! You’re running against a lier, fraud, rapist, marital betrayer, insurrectionist and Putin apologist with the intent of destroying the country! Wake up Democrats!!!!
Todays Times has an opinion piece comparing diminished Biden to unpredictable Trump. WTF. Where is the evidence of how Biden is diminished besides the repeated media claims that began before he was elected? Repetition doesn’t make lies true (just effective).
What is unpredictable about Trump except how low and traitorous he will go?
It is going to be hard to counter the drum beat against ageism, which this is. I start by listing the older than Biden people that prove being older isn’t a problem. Warren Buffett is older than 90, for example.
Agree, DK. Steam is coming out of my ears. The NYT seems to be willfully understating Trump's danger to democracy. It's treason in its own sly and underhanded way. Shame on those commenters and on the Times for printing this BS.
Encouragingly, the Quinnipiac poll for 1/25 - 1/29 has 24% of registered voters responding that preserving democracy is the #1 "urgent issue" facing America, with the economy and immigration tied for 2nd with 20% each. So despite the MSM's attempts to equivocate about the candidates, people seem to be waking up to the threat that tfg poses to the nation.
The media need to get their heads straight. First Amendment doesn't protect aiding and abetting treason. That's what Trump is loudly proclaiming and promoting. The media -- led by the once-venerable NYT -- have labeled it silly "crazy talk" rather than the deadly serious fascist plan that it is (see Project 25).
we all need to write in the NYT daily and in every article in the comments sections to stop this insanity of biden's age being the issue--look what he has done and who he chooses to make decisions with him... ezra klein??... what is he thinking???? thanks robert--once again you re-committed me to civil fighting.
Exactly why when I get one of those cheapy email ads for the NYT I write back saying they aren't worth my time much less my money.
Robert is right on here. Biden's age is a bullshit excuse. He's twice the man Trump is. How long would it take to write down all of Trump's negative points? More time than I'm going to spend on it. Plainly, he's garbage and anyone or anything trying to hide that is wasting your time and mine. Hear that, NYT.
I dropped my subscription to the Times quite a while ago. They keep offering me a year for $50. I still haven't taken them up on it. Know that if you are currently paying $8/wk, you can cancel your subcription in protest and resubcribe at a later date AND save some money. Clearly the only thing that will make them take notice is if it hits their bottom line ($$). And for those that maintain their subscription for the NY Times crossword puzzle and other games, they have a games only subscription for $50/yr.
I still have my Washington Post subscription but that is mostly for a few writers like Jennifer Ruben and the abilty to post in the comments. Periodically I will post ways to get involved in grassroots groups and links to substacks that I like - e.g., Robert's and other like minded authors. I got tired of reading posts saying "Vote Blue" as though that were sufficient to save our democracy.
The rules for Special Counsels should be changed to keep them in their lane, and not allow extraneous opining. I get it that we want them to have independence and freedom to pursue leads, but the damage Hur did will be difficult to repair.
One thing I don't hear anything about is that with the reelection of President Biden, we get a competent, functioning Executive branch, with a Cabinet stocked with capable, proven professionals. With the Quadefendant, we get a dictator, chaos in the Executive branch, and a restocked "Tool" Cabinet. With a 3rd party candidate or a replacement Democrat, we don't know what we'll get. President Biden gets my vote, without reservation.
Love Quadefendant. And if he manages to get money for his appeal bond from a foreign source, we will have a totally compromised candidate. How could he guide national policy about, say, Saudi Arabia if he owes assorted Saudis (even not the government) half a billion dollars?
It’s not a question of a spine it about how the Democrats respond. Going head to head with MAGA is not the answer but steady and reliable performance and accomplishment gets noticed above the sounds and fury.
You are right. The problem is how to get word of all those accomplishments out when the media seem intent on airing negative news about Dems and ignoring the negatives and antidemocratic intentions and actions of the GOP.
Much easier for the “flock media” to cover Trump. He is in our faces endlessly and all day long! Many of us support that with a “click” to OFF of the remote! We can hardly take any more. Trump treats it as FREE ADS! Free ads while Trump receives MAGA support with donations for his legal funds? Gag!
Yup. He's good for the media bottom line. Remember what Les Moonves of CBS said in 2016? He said Trump is bad for the country but great for CBS, and he encouraged Trump to keep on doing what he does.
Simon Rosenberg posted Joe Biden's latest add in today's post for Hopium Chronicles or you can check it out directly on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ffwkBpChy0E
I think we all need to take it on ourselves to combat mis- and disinformation by writing letters to the editor and the people who are writing this garbage. Also be prepared to work on people within your sphere of influence. Check out this resource from Indivisible:
Also you can spread the counter message that Biden has accomplished a lot under very difficult circumstances. Democracy Labs (which Robert linked to) and DemCast (https://demcastusa.com/) are excellent resources, as is Red, Wine and Blue's Rally Your Squad (https://redwine.blue/rallyyoursquad/) and Activate America's Amplifly 9https://www.activateamerica.vote/amplify0
Not a thing wrong with a little head to head with MAGA (Meet A Gullible Ass). If one recognizes that's where they're coming from and treat them just like that you will not be a bit confronted by them. Last week it was published that 30% of them believed the Taylor Swift BS. That takes a GA and they need to know that.
They're not doing it because they prefer Trump; they're doing it because they are convinced Biden can't win. I've tried to change folks like these minds and I keep failing. They usually call me a fool for believing otherwise.
In 1948, progressive Dems fell for Henry Wallace, nearly costing incumbent Harry S. Truman election. In 1980, progressive Dems (like me) tried to replace Jimmy Carter with Ted Kennedy - one of the factors that led to Carter’s defeat. Huge mistake. Good news this time - no Democrat of any stature has any intent of trying to take down Joe Biden, and Joe Biden is not leaving and is not quitting. So, Ezra Klein and all the rest of the silly commentators can just go home because the game is over. Biden will be the Democratic nominee and, if we do the work, he will win in November.
In 1968 "progressives" like me couldn't bring themselves to vote for Hubert Humphrey, with the result that Nixon - who had committed treason in intervening in the Vietnam peace talks that fall - became president (winning by 500,000 votes and a margin of 1.4%), thereby adding four more years and the majority of casualties to the war, bringing the Unreconstructed Confederates into the GOP (who are the ones who have wrecked the party over the past 40 years), and did I mention Watergate? We sure made everything better, didn't we? And we got to feel self-righteous to boot!
I remember in ‘68 when my self-righteous friends joked aout how Humphrey was running third in the polls, while I was working my tail off for him. After Election Day I walked around in a daze at the idea that the American people would choose Nixon and Agnew (remember him?) over Hubert Humphrey and Ed Muskie.
You were right, Jon. In fact, Nixon wasn't so much "chosen" as Humphrey was not supported. Those 500,000 votes were the people in the extreme end of the antiwar movement. Our not voting for Hukmphrey gave the world Nixon. It's a lesson I haven't forgotten, and why I rail at the self-righteous "single issue voter' clucks today.
Hubert was like Joe, a good and decent man. He would have made a fine president. Even as an anti-war and civil rights activist I voted for him and was shocked when he lost by so little to a crook.
I don’t agree with a Klein but unfortunately he is voicing concerns voters have and it’s the elephant in the room. We need to have faith that if it’s Biden vs.Trump that the voters make the decision to pick the safer more reliable choice.
It's not actually an "elephant in the room" since everyone is talking about it. Ad nauseam. I'm so tired of hearing about it, but you are right: we must keep the faith!
Elephant??? It's not even the kitten in the room. It's a nothing burger. How has Biden's age stopped him from being the best President in at least the last 40 years? Biden has about convinced me that all our Presidents should be over 75.
And, lest we forget, the elephant in the room is the fascism and the groveling to Putin that the other guy so freely exhibits. Trump is the biggest POS that has run for President in my lifetime and should not even be compared with Biden. If you want to compare Trump with anyone try Idi Amin.
Wonderful and well-deserved "hit job" on the Klein proposal, Robert! Keep it up! And thanks for the info about where VP Harris stands in the rankings.
Heather Cox Richardson's latest Letter talks of Lincoln's unpopularity just before he was reelected. To me, it relates to the "Biden should step aside" opinion.
Lynell, I invoke Rebecca Solnit’s astute remark “Voting is a chess move, not a valentine,” as a stark reminder that in a near 50-50 race Biden votes largely are chess moves while Trump votes nearly are entirely valentines. Not meant as a defense of Klein’s proposal, my point is, however hard we believe we can work, we need to work harder and smarter.
I agree completely and the light at the end of the tunnel is the Republicans have no real platform to run on and strongmen comments are not a platform and voters are smarter than we give them credit for.
Stephen, To lock in every one of your stated outcomes, I would propose, at its core, that the Biden-Harris campaign ought not only to be about organizing and truth-telling, but also about beating back the substantial swath here in the States that traffics in lies, in falsehoods, in hatred, and in divisiveness.
Stephen, In my view, a necessary start entails that leadership is focused and disciplined and does not allow MAGA Republican deceptions and distortions to go unanswered.
Louis, Indeed, not for you and me, but tragically for far more Americans than I had imagined in 2016. I would add, what truly shocks, is the sustaining power of the movement he has built.
Christopher, On one hand, I agree; on the other, as shown in my comment relative to the 24 presidential race, reframing her original intent a bit, in my view, helps to clarify the path forward.
Thanks for that link. It puts things in perspective. We'll have to see how Super Tuesday goes, but if it follows along with the recent primaries, Biden should do well. Maybe that will shut up some people!
So sad to hear of Ezra Klein’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea about getting Biden off the ticket. What on earth is he thinking???? This all needs to stop, NOW. Enough already. I’m all in on Biden, as are millions of Americans who are thrilled, and rightly so, with what he has accomplished in a crazily closely divided Congress filled with insane MAGA cult Republicans! The fact that he got the Infrastructure bill passed with Republican votes is beyond amazing.
Personally, I am moving forward with excitement as I approach a season of door knocking for Biden/Harris in Kenosha, WI, just over the border and only a little more than an hour from my home in Evanston, IL.
And finally, who on earth could actually believe that kicking Kamala Harris off the ticket could be a good thing for Dems???? A huge part of the Democratic base is composed of black women! I can’t imagine they would appreciate having one of their own, who, by the way, has done a fine job in the role, cast aside for no good reason.
Give me a break. Wake up, smell the coffee, and let’s all get to work!!!
I made the same point about Kamala a few days ago. Backlash from minority women will not help the cause. I’m afraid many will stay home. I’d be tempted myself if the alternative to not voting weren’t Trump.
You CANNOT stay home! Just do more to encourage black women to vote. That is the antidote to discouragement. I'm sure you are already engaged, but find more things that involve black women. You will feel better!
We are certainly trying, and making some progress. Very actively engaged and have an army of volunteers we have organized to help. Along with our local communities I am actively engaged with Seniors Taking Action as well where we are reaching out to young and old to join us.
Yes, you are! Same here, both with Postcards to Voters and somewhat with Seniors Taking Action. I would like to add black women to my list for Postcards, but does Seniors Taking Action differentiate among different groups? I'm worried about young people, and have thought of going to my daughter's old high school and helping with registering those kids over 18. This is what we can do. And look at the elections our efforts have helped win, both in 2022 and this year. Hang in there, Ilene! You're doing good work!
Kathleen The groups we work with probably can probably parse their lists so that they can reach out to specific groups so reaching out to the Black Community and women in particular can be possible. I think it is possible.
Harris is not well perceived by many Democrats in part because she is a black woman who for many reasons has not performed in their eyes. She did not run a good presidential campaign in the primaries and represents a threat to many white racists men.
Here, I will repeat the freely translated Yiddishism specifically taking into account how much Biden has accomplished with a legislature having a majority of insurrectionist cretins...just imagine what he could accomplish, absent that nonsense.
Love it, Mr. Lipman! You hit the damn nail directly on the head! This isn't even a matter of perfect being the enemy of the good...Klein's suggestion is more like the face of certain disaster masquerading as a "looks-good-on-paper" idea.
It's shocking how little that information seems to reach significant people. I do think young people are the answer here. I'm going to find ways to reach out to young people. And thankfully, my grandkids will be working for Biden by getting kids regisstered on college campuses, and are unafraid of Biden's age. But we need more young people to be engaged!
Jiddish is written in Hebrew letters, but here at least is a transliteration "a khisorn az di kale iz tsu sheyn" meaning 'it's a drawback that the bride is too beautiful'.
I don’t understand when people like Klein propose something that is clearly a losing strategy. He can’t seriously think the idea has legs, so why does he want to hurt the Democrats and thereby help Trump? And thank you for pointing out the viability of VP Harris. Why does everyone act like she has been invisible for the last three years? How is someone with her qualifications, and the experience Biden has made sure to give her, still treated like window dressing, just someone they need for that 51st vote when needed? I’m looking forward to your stories from the road.
Remember Susan Sarandon in 2016, saying a Trump win over Hillary would "speed the revolution"?
There's a reason why the far left has never created anything worthwhile - and has generally created something worse as the "cure" - in the past 150 years.
We have never elected a woman president in this country let alone a woman of color. I think many of us don’t want to take the chance on measuring the degree of misogyny and racism. Not when Trump is the alternative.
Truly astounding that the vile, amoral, convicted fraud and indicted for multiple crimes orange creature is preferred by a large segment of our citizens!
I certainly understand your point. But making Harris invisible not only refuses to take a chance on the degree of misogyny and racism, it contributes to it.
I don’t think that she’s been kept invisible. She often speaks in platitudes . I’ve read a lot of articles about how much she loves cooking and shopping trying to make her relatable – which I deplore. There are other women whose lived experience and communication styles would make them more palatable to the voting public specifically, the swing states which apparently will control the election.
It’s not a losing strategy but a theory or thinking out loud that unfortunately many people have actually thought about. He has tapped into a nerve and brought the idea to life and our discussing it and giving it light is the only way we can effectively deal with it. It is a stark reminder we need to deal with this issue.
Sure, lots of people have thought about whether the Democrats should run a younger candidate. I hope the Democrats have a pipeline full of younger candidates. But moment for that was a year ago. The reality is that in this election, the candidate will be Joe Biden. So I believe it's a losing strategy in the sense that the timing is wrong and the risk of making Democrats look weak and chaotic is unacceptable. We have to stop giving oxygen to all the wrong things. The Republicans are running someone who actually is incompetent. That's what we should be talking about. My two cents.
Robert, Ezra Klein can kiss my ass! I am progressive to a point but I totally disagree with him because there aren’t skilled people out there who could come close to accomplishing what the Biden-Harris admin has done. If they want to eventually ride on his coattails, fine, but not now. I’d like to know how they’d handle Putin, Hamas, or Netanyahu! People are pissed because we have provided weaponry to Israel while Israel kills innocent people. I get the anger and the frustration regarding that situation. Plus, they’re upset about Garland being the AG but what Klein is doing is trying to split the Dems in two. Worked so successfully for the R’s, right?? Nope…it’s Joe and only Joe.
One of Pres Biden's many strengths is that he respects and follows the advice of “far” left members who come up with proposals. He has wanted to be the US Pres for most of his life and knows how to operate a presidency. He has a “team of rivals” and uses their proposals well. Lucky combo. He has surrounded himself with younger, talented policy wonks. Great idea!
I was blessedly unaware of Ezra Klein's piece. I have been busy trying to counter the horrible intrusion into our local city council elections by right-wing PACs. More on that, later.
The PAC tactics are akin to the "hit job" Mr. Groesbeck rightly calls Hur's report (his characterization in this comment section). Once again, Fanni Willis has shown us the way to respond.
She is experiencing a hit job, and we all should respond to these hit jobs the way that she has: despite everyone's advice not to, she marched into the courtroom, displayed her anger and disgust at the lies contained in the pleadings, insisted on ensuring that people understood the truth behind each lie, and refused to engage in any discussion that she resign. She was wonderful.
All of us need to respond to Hur's report that way, and NOT Ezra Klein's way.
And I think we should take Robert's advice in an earlier piece and continue to complain long and loud to any media entity and political commentator that treats the age issue like they did Hillary's emails.
Back to sunny Florida. We have a city council election coming up in March. The election of Mayor is also on the ballot. It is a nonpartisan race. The candidates are either Independents or Republicans. For mayor, Democrats have to choose the candidate who has the most independence from real estate developers and Christian Nationalists. Most Democratic voters settled on one candidate.
Enter a PAC, who did a "hit job" on that candidate, by sending a deceptive mailer targeted to all registered Democrats in the city, stating that the candidate is "proudly supporting DeSantis's anti-abortion agenda". The wording led Democrats to believe that this mailer was sent by the candidate. Several recipients sent me a copy of the mailer, stating they would now never vote for her. I am spending my time trying to undo the very real damage done to this election, explaining the tactic.
If these PACs are successful, the council will be taken over by real estate development interests. Completely. That will undo all the progress we have made regarding issues that I personally have been working on here, namely, preserving an historic African American community in the city that is threatened by sea level rise and gentrification, and on bringing resiliency to the low- and moderate-income areas in flood prone areas. The other two mayoral candidates will never care about those issues.
Some of us here have been so engaged in the issue of reproductive rights, that we fail to realize that this issue is not even in the jurisdiction of the city council, and that we are allowing the extreme rightwing to "play" us with our own issue. Our national elected Democrats have for the most part done very well combating this right-wing tactic.
We all need to take responsibility for seeing through these "hit jobs", these tactics, and help our fellow progressives and liberals support the candidates best suited to advance our values.
We need a lot of help, especially in Miami Dade. There seems to be some action on Mobilize in other populous counties, but crickets here in Baghdad By the Sea.
I Fani Willis was in a relationship that she did not disclose with a subordinate. If they can prove or even have some reasonable doubt about when this relationship began, then they will take both of them off the case. Many of us have made similar mistakes, but none with such catastrophic results for democracy and
Listening to her testimony, I do not agree with your characterization of the issue. I think this is a hit job on her plain and simple, and the way in which they have characterized this is not at all how it happened. They have stretched facts in a way that makes it look like how they want it to look, and they placed falsehoods in their pleadings.
Democrats need to be careful about not adopting their characterization of what happened.
The "they" who have the authority to take her off the case is the Judge, and presumably he will follow the actual law that would justify it. He will have to find a personal financial interest in her pursuing this case and in her hiring of Wade, who is not a subordinate, by the way. There is no such circumstance.
Just like, Biden being old, is not a reason for him to withdraw from the Presidential race.
In case anyone thinks it's just drooling lefty con artists like Klein, AFTER Fani Willis successfully defended herself in court, Chairman of the Committee for the Suppression of Vice and the Promotion of Virtue Richard Painter posted that she still should recuse herself, to prevent "appearances of misconduct."
How these lefty morons manage to put their Earthshoes on in the morning amazes me. Painter says that, despite the fact that if Willis were to recuse, there likely isn't another DA in Georgia who would take up the case, meaning the conspirators Painter claims to oppose, would win. Proof that just because you can graduate from law school and become a law professor is no demonstration of actual intelligence.
I hate it when people this stupid claim they're on my side.
I consider myself a lefty. I don't drool and no longer wear earthshoes. People can disagree without public name calling. I don't agree with what Klein is doing on this issue. It's a big umbrella and we don't need to insult each other.
Yes! Thank you. Ezra Klein went off the rails. It happens with the Times’s stars; they begin to take themselves too seriously.
And I will repeat, Biden’s politics are better now than they were thirty years ago. He is one of those rare people who go on developing into their later adulthood.
For weeks I have been writing in defense of age, and in defense of the set up of having a vice president, which everyone needs as backup. So, I have said it is the Biden-Harris ticket, and she has had tutelage under a master politician if she needs to step in to Biden's place. However, as for age, I am living in a city in Germany, where more than half the population is over 60. In the art group I am about to attend, one of the women is 91. She is fit and full of intellectual wit and charm. Her artwork is both aesthetic and conceptually interesting, and so is her conversation about art. She either takes public or rides her bike to our workshops. Her commentary is sharp and incisive. I happen to know several people 90 and above. My mom is one of them. Her friends are other examples. One of whom I see on weekends and other times at rallies. Our conversations are interesting, and I never have doubt of their lucidity. My maternal grandmother lived on her own until she was 98, and moved into a home then, but lived to be 99.5 years old. I still had good conversations with her up to that point. My paternal great-grandmother lived to be 109. The USA has a lot of Centinarians, some of whom live on their own. So, if Biden has any memory issues, which stress can affect, let someone else handle the mundane. The brain prunes out extraneous stuff so that our synapses can respond more quickly in thinking, which may still be slowed down by forgetting a name or date. Yay for instant ways of looking these things up. What cannot be replaced by someone younger is experience and wisdom, that takes time to earn. Biden has it in spades. He is a master politician as evidenced by his excellent running of our government despite the hindrances at every turn from obstructionist Republicans. Harris as vice president benefits from that, as well as her own political experiences. So, we have a great team there, and we should believe in it. Biological age varies in people, and one cannot know Biden's biological age, but clearly in that he is younger than Trump! it is his age in years that people are looking at because they do not understand biology. I was told at 43 that I had the fertility of a 20 year old. There is a range of biologies, which is not measured in actual years. People need to understand that to get over their fear of age and aging. They also need to understand that being deliberative and considered, is a good quality in a president. Testosterone laden speeches rarely pan out in good policy. See Trump if you do not understand what I mean.
Thank you Robert for all you pull together for us. As to Klein , doing Putin's work is the singular issue right now and it must be stated as such. I will have to look into DemLabs. Between you and Jessica, there are an awful lot of opportunities to make a diffrence. You are on a trip of a lifetime, one we all should embark on while we still can. I'll be waiting for your reports. Enjoy!
Biden is by far the best candidate. I know you said to Not discuss the Klein suggestion, but I must say, as a sociologist, the depth of age stereotyping runs very deep and wide in the US. Klein doesn't realize with his recommendation he is setting in motion a self-fulfilling prophecy of his own aging. Each of us is creating our own definitions of aging as we live on with strong social networks, purpose, and persistence.
Please call or email Mr Klein to voice opposition to his ridiculous idea of having Joe Biden step aside.
He needs to realize we are working hard at the reelection of what history may record as one of our most successful presidents, and he is working against us.
Thanks, Lynn. I forwarded Today's Edition with this Letter to Mr. Klein. I included my address and phone, omitted here.
I am sure you have already received a copy of Robert Hubbell's Today's Edition, just as I am sure you will probably never see this or read this. But I needed to tell you that your argument to replace Joe Biden is severely flawed and dangerous. Robert Hubbell's piece tells you why better than I can.
Biden will not, nor should he, step aside, but your words will be used as ammunition for the guns of the MAGA movement to convince faint hearted Democrats and Independents to think the election is a horse race between an old guy and a slightly less old guy, whom you are not, as far as I know, saying should step aside in favor of a younger Nikki Haley even though Trump is clearly impaired and dangerous. When you are providing ammunition to MAGA you are helping point a gun at American democracy.
You and Jon Stewart (who sounded the alarm about Biden's age last week, as I know you know) and others of the media elite whom I often have read and admired need to get your heads on straight and consider not what makes an "interesting column" or a "what if" that one can ponder over a drink at an exclusive restaurant with other "cool kids." This is not just a game, Mr. Klein. You need to be asking yourself every day, "How can I communicate to my audience the raw truth of Trump's perfidy, incompetence, and madness, and the threat he poses to democracy."
If we wake up in November to a Trump victory, you will probably say, "I told you so, America. Why, Oh why didn't Joe Biden listen to me?" One simple answer is that had he done so you and the NYT would have run headlines that said, "Dems on the Run," "Biden Tosses in the Towel." If that horrible November, which millions are working hard to prevent occurs, you will be insulated by your wealth and power, at least for a time, from the consequences of your foolishness. The rest of us out here on the landscape of America: the old, the young, women, immigrants, non-whites, and the poor will suffer and die. If that happens, I don't expect you will recognize your shame and the real contribution to that outcome. The shame will not be that Biden and the Democrats did not listen to you, but that too many half-hearted Americans and the MAGA message makers did.
If you provide ammunition to Trump and his allies, you need to realize in your heart and soul where their guns are pointing.
I would write him if I were willing to read his article. I am just not. I did look up his picture, and he does not look much older then the last offensive NYT person I wrote, whose name is Aiden Gardiner. https://www.aidangardiner.com/about
I wrote Gardiner, and he was unable to address my criticism of the NYT lack of diverse voices and life experience covering the election. Now here is Ezra Klein. https://www.nytimes.com/by/ezra-klein
I see that he is 39. Not whom I would want running the country or around my mom (she is 90), or myself for that matter. He does not seem to like old people. I feel that my daughter at almost 19 is more comfortable with age than he is. I just cannot deal with these idiots at the NYT, who have no life experience, do not know human biology, spent way too much on their educations (for the lack of complexity of thinking), and are in way over their heads when it comes to covering this election. So, I am not reading their election coverage because it sucks.
Thanks Linda, I do really appreciate your thoughts here. I actually didn't read his NYT piece, I heard some of it on his Feb 16th podcast, (which is a reading of the NYT piece) until I could take no more. Much of this opinion piece is about how Joe Biden has been a very good president and very good for this country. In my opinion, he never did make any kind of case for having Joe step down. So to me, he just created the headline "Democrats have a better option than Biden" and he never makes a good case for that. I am glad I emailed him and told him how dangerous this type of behavior is for this country. I have to wonder if the NYT's editors made Mr Klein do this, as he did a poor job at substantiating that headline.
What's wrong with people?! It seems that when we finally have something good, I mean really, really GOOD (Joe Biden) it's as though some feel we have to take a wrecking ball to it- as if we are not deserving of what will certainly be the best president of my lifetime, for another 4 years.
At the end of this piece he adds: "I recognize there’s going to be a lot of questions and comments and pushback to this piece. So we’re going to do an “Ask Me Anything” episode next week — on this, on 2024 broadly. We’ve set up a voice mail box, if you want to leave a message that could get played on the show." Perhaps this last question I just noted here is something I should ask him.
Lynn, thank you for responding to him. I am so fed up with the NYT people I cannot even reply to them because it falls on deaf ears. I am also wondering why they do not have some more mature people reporting on the presidential race. In my opinion, they should be hiring someone 81 or older who is willing to work for them, just to cover this race. And, if they hire a damned Republican they had better hire a Democrat too.
The hand-wringing over Biden’s age needs to stop-NOW. Biden WILL be the Dems’ nominee and there IS no other viable alternative to save us from the certain disaster of another Trump term. The sooner all those who oppose Trump accept these facts, the better chance we have to deny Trump a victory and keep our democracy.
How naive are people to take Hur’s report as being anything than a hit job. Biden could loose half his memory and still have 10 times the knowledge to run the country. The Democrats need a spine and they need a spine now! You’re running against a lier, fraud, rapist, marital betrayer, insurrectionist and Putin apologist with the intent of destroying the country! Wake up Democrats!!!!
Thanks Robert!
Todays Times has an opinion piece comparing diminished Biden to unpredictable Trump. WTF. Where is the evidence of how Biden is diminished besides the repeated media claims that began before he was elected? Repetition doesn’t make lies true (just effective).
What is unpredictable about Trump except how low and traitorous he will go?
It is going to be hard to counter the drum beat against ageism, which this is. I start by listing the older than Biden people that prove being older isn’t a problem. Warren Buffett is older than 90, for example.
Agree, DK. Steam is coming out of my ears. The NYT seems to be willfully understating Trump's danger to democracy. It's treason in its own sly and underhanded way. Shame on those commenters and on the Times for printing this BS.
Encouragingly, the Quinnipiac poll for 1/25 - 1/29 has 24% of registered voters responding that preserving democracy is the #1 "urgent issue" facing America, with the economy and immigration tied for 2nd with 20% each. So despite the MSM's attempts to equivocate about the candidates, people seem to be waking up to the threat that tfg poses to the nation.
But if we say “the media is the enemy” we are accused of being against the first amendment.
I guess I need to qualify it “ sometimes some of the media is acting like the enemy”.
Maybe that’s better.
The media need to get their heads straight. First Amendment doesn't protect aiding and abetting treason. That's what Trump is loudly proclaiming and promoting. The media -- led by the once-venerable NYT -- have labeled it silly "crazy talk" rather than the deadly serious fascist plan that it is (see Project 25).
we all need to write in the NYT daily and in every article in the comments sections to stop this insanity of biden's age being the issue--look what he has done and who he chooses to make decisions with him... ezra klein??... what is he thinking???? thanks robert--once again you re-committed me to civil fighting.
Exactly why when I get one of those cheapy email ads for the NYT I write back saying they aren't worth my time much less my money.
Robert is right on here. Biden's age is a bullshit excuse. He's twice the man Trump is. How long would it take to write down all of Trump's negative points? More time than I'm going to spend on it. Plainly, he's garbage and anyone or anything trying to hide that is wasting your time and mine. Hear that, NYT.
I dropped my subscription to the Times quite a while ago. They keep offering me a year for $50. I still haven't taken them up on it. Know that if you are currently paying $8/wk, you can cancel your subcription in protest and resubcribe at a later date AND save some money. Clearly the only thing that will make them take notice is if it hits their bottom line ($$). And for those that maintain their subscription for the NY Times crossword puzzle and other games, they have a games only subscription for $50/yr.
I still have my Washington Post subscription but that is mostly for a few writers like Jennifer Ruben and the abilty to post in the comments. Periodically I will post ways to get involved in grassroots groups and links to substacks that I like - e.g., Robert's and other like minded authors. I got tired of reading posts saying "Vote Blue" as though that were sufficient to save our democracy.
The rules for Special Counsels should be changed to keep them in their lane, and not allow extraneous opining. I get it that we want them to have independence and freedom to pursue leads, but the damage Hur did will be difficult to repair.
One thing I don't hear anything about is that with the reelection of President Biden, we get a competent, functioning Executive branch, with a Cabinet stocked with capable, proven professionals. With the Quadefendant, we get a dictator, chaos in the Executive branch, and a restocked "Tool" Cabinet. With a 3rd party candidate or a replacement Democrat, we don't know what we'll get. President Biden gets my vote, without reservation.
Amen, Bob!
Love Quadefendant. And if he manages to get money for his appeal bond from a foreign source, we will have a totally compromised candidate. How could he guide national policy about, say, Saudi Arabia if he owes assorted Saudis (even not the government) half a billion dollars?
Business as usual for him.
grrrr
It’s not a question of a spine it about how the Democrats respond. Going head to head with MAGA is not the answer but steady and reliable performance and accomplishment gets noticed above the sounds and fury.
You are right. The problem is how to get word of all those accomplishments out when the media seem intent on airing negative news about Dems and ignoring the negatives and antidemocratic intentions and actions of the GOP.
Eff the media!
Much easier for the “flock media” to cover Trump. He is in our faces endlessly and all day long! Many of us support that with a “click” to OFF of the remote! We can hardly take any more. Trump treats it as FREE ADS! Free ads while Trump receives MAGA support with donations for his legal funds? Gag!
it is free ads and the news media has been doing it since Trump came down the escalator.
Yup. He's good for the media bottom line. Remember what Les Moonves of CBS said in 2016? He said Trump is bad for the country but great for CBS, and he encouraged Trump to keep on doing what he does.
Simon Rosenberg posted Joe Biden's latest add in today's post for Hopium Chronicles or you can check it out directly on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ffwkBpChy0E
It's a good one. Please share.
We can only hope and pray that this idea doesn't take hold. Are people blind? And deaf?
I think we all need to take it on ourselves to combat mis- and disinformation by writing letters to the editor and the people who are writing this garbage. Also be prepared to work on people within your sphere of influence. Check out this resource from Indivisible:
https://indivisible.org/campaign/truth-brigade
Also you can spread the counter message that Biden has accomplished a lot under very difficult circumstances. Democracy Labs (which Robert linked to) and DemCast (https://demcastusa.com/) are excellent resources, as is Red, Wine and Blue's Rally Your Squad (https://redwine.blue/rallyyoursquad/) and Activate America's Amplifly 9https://www.activateamerica.vote/amplify0
Mostly MAGAS are dumb.
Not a thing wrong with a little head to head with MAGA (Meet A Gullible Ass). If one recognizes that's where they're coming from and treat them just like that you will not be a bit confronted by them. Last week it was published that 30% of them believed the Taylor Swift BS. That takes a GA and they need to know that.
They're not doing it because they prefer Trump; they're doing it because they are convinced Biden can't win. I've tried to change folks like these minds and I keep failing. They usually call me a fool for believing otherwise.
Fabulous, Christopher! Agreed!! Thank you!!
In 1948, progressive Dems fell for Henry Wallace, nearly costing incumbent Harry S. Truman election. In 1980, progressive Dems (like me) tried to replace Jimmy Carter with Ted Kennedy - one of the factors that led to Carter’s defeat. Huge mistake. Good news this time - no Democrat of any stature has any intent of trying to take down Joe Biden, and Joe Biden is not leaving and is not quitting. So, Ezra Klein and all the rest of the silly commentators can just go home because the game is over. Biden will be the Democratic nominee and, if we do the work, he will win in November.
In 1968 "progressives" like me couldn't bring themselves to vote for Hubert Humphrey, with the result that Nixon - who had committed treason in intervening in the Vietnam peace talks that fall - became president (winning by 500,000 votes and a margin of 1.4%), thereby adding four more years and the majority of casualties to the war, bringing the Unreconstructed Confederates into the GOP (who are the ones who have wrecked the party over the past 40 years), and did I mention Watergate? We sure made everything better, didn't we? And we got to feel self-righteous to boot!
God save me from idealist morons.
I remember in ‘68 when my self-righteous friends joked aout how Humphrey was running third in the polls, while I was working my tail off for him. After Election Day I walked around in a daze at the idea that the American people would choose Nixon and Agnew (remember him?) over Hubert Humphrey and Ed Muskie.
You were right, Jon. In fact, Nixon wasn't so much "chosen" as Humphrey was not supported. Those 500,000 votes were the people in the extreme end of the antiwar movement. Our not voting for Hukmphrey gave the world Nixon. It's a lesson I haven't forgotten, and why I rail at the self-righteous "single issue voter' clucks today.
exactly. I fell for the same thing. Regretted it on election night and ever after.
You were not alone. Young, oh so noble, idealistic. MAybe no russian bots, but someone misled us.
Hubert was like Joe, a good and decent man. He would have made a fine president. Even as an anti-war and civil rights activist I voted for him and was shocked when he lost by so little to a crook.
I don’t agree with a Klein but unfortunately he is voicing concerns voters have and it’s the elephant in the room. We need to have faith that if it’s Biden vs.Trump that the voters make the decision to pick the safer more reliable choice.
It's not actually an "elephant in the room" since everyone is talking about it. Ad nauseam. I'm so tired of hearing about it, but you are right: we must keep the faith!
Elephant??? It's not even the kitten in the room. It's a nothing burger. How has Biden's age stopped him from being the best President in at least the last 40 years? Biden has about convinced me that all our Presidents should be over 75.
And, lest we forget, the elephant in the room is the fascism and the groveling to Putin that the other guy so freely exhibits. Trump is the biggest POS that has run for President in my lifetime and should not even be compared with Biden. If you want to compare Trump with anyone try Idi Amin.
We have to work our tails off to make sure Biden is elected. We can do this.
Wonderful and well-deserved "hit job" on the Klein proposal, Robert! Keep it up! And thanks for the info about where VP Harris stands in the rankings.
Heather Cox Richardson's latest Letter talks of Lincoln's unpopularity just before he was reelected. To me, it relates to the "Biden should step aside" opinion.
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/february-18-2024
Finally (really), if you can, please provide mini maps of your travels down the Mississippi River. Thanks so much!
Lynell, I invoke Rebecca Solnit’s astute remark “Voting is a chess move, not a valentine,” as a stark reminder that in a near 50-50 race Biden votes largely are chess moves while Trump votes nearly are entirely valentines. Not meant as a defense of Klein’s proposal, my point is, however hard we believe we can work, we need to work harder and smarter.
I agree completely and the light at the end of the tunnel is the Republicans have no real platform to run on and strongmen comments are not a platform and voters are smarter than we give them credit for.
Love this, too, stephen, especially "strongmen comments are not a platform."
Stephen, To lock in every one of your stated outcomes, I would propose, at its core, that the Biden-Harris campaign ought not only to be about organizing and truth-telling, but also about beating back the substantial swath here in the States that traffics in lies, in falsehoods, in hatred, and in divisiveness.
A nobel goal but we need a generational change to change the dynamics
Stephen, In my view, a necessary start entails that leadership is focused and disciplined and does not allow MAGA Republican deceptions and distortions to go unanswered.
Love this, Barbara Jo.
Thanks Lynell. Praise from you indicates I’m on the right track.
Wow; I'm honored, BJ.
Well said.
Somehow, the orange creature does not evoke a vision of a Valentine!
Louis, Indeed, not for you and me, but tragically for far more Americans than I had imagined in 2016. I would add, what truly shocks, is the sustaining power of the movement he has built.
Rebecca Solnit really hits the nail on the head.
Christopher, On one hand, I agree; on the other, as shown in my comment relative to the 24 presidential race, reframing her original intent a bit, in my view, helps to clarify the path forward.
Read Heather Cox Richardson this morning and thought the same thing!
Robert, I would echo everything Lynell says here, and add that if you can include a few photos from your travel, I would love that.
Thanks for that link. It puts things in perspective. We'll have to see how Super Tuesday goes, but if it follows along with the recent primaries, Biden should do well. Maybe that will shut up some people!
So sad to hear of Ezra Klein’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea about getting Biden off the ticket. What on earth is he thinking???? This all needs to stop, NOW. Enough already. I’m all in on Biden, as are millions of Americans who are thrilled, and rightly so, with what he has accomplished in a crazily closely divided Congress filled with insane MAGA cult Republicans! The fact that he got the Infrastructure bill passed with Republican votes is beyond amazing.
Personally, I am moving forward with excitement as I approach a season of door knocking for Biden/Harris in Kenosha, WI, just over the border and only a little more than an hour from my home in Evanston, IL.
And finally, who on earth could actually believe that kicking Kamala Harris off the ticket could be a good thing for Dems???? A huge part of the Democratic base is composed of black women! I can’t imagine they would appreciate having one of their own, who, by the way, has done a fine job in the role, cast aside for no good reason.
Give me a break. Wake up, smell the coffee, and let’s all get to work!!!
I made the same point about Kamala a few days ago. Backlash from minority women will not help the cause. I’m afraid many will stay home. I’d be tempted myself if the alternative to not voting weren’t Trump.
You CANNOT stay home! Just do more to encourage black women to vote. That is the antidote to discouragement. I'm sure you are already engaged, but find more things that involve black women. You will feel better!
We are certainly trying, and making some progress. Very actively engaged and have an army of volunteers we have organized to help. Along with our local communities I am actively engaged with Seniors Taking Action as well where we are reaching out to young and old to join us.
Harris is so supportive of women and especially Black women. They should certainly support her! Vote Biden-Harris!
Yes, you are! Same here, both with Postcards to Voters and somewhat with Seniors Taking Action. I would like to add black women to my list for Postcards, but does Seniors Taking Action differentiate among different groups? I'm worried about young people, and have thought of going to my daughter's old high school and helping with registering those kids over 18. This is what we can do. And look at the elections our efforts have helped win, both in 2022 and this year. Hang in there, Ilene! You're doing good work!
Kathleen The groups we work with probably can probably parse their lists so that they can reach out to specific groups so reaching out to the Black Community and women in particular can be possible. I think it is possible.
Yay! I'll see what I can find on Seniors Taking Action. Thank you, Ilene!
Harris is not well perceived by many Democrats in part because she is a black woman who for many reasons has not performed in their eyes. She did not run a good presidential campaign in the primaries and represents a threat to many white racists men.
Such a searing indictment on our culture that a female and not ‘pure’ white is not welcomed as a candidate for the Presidency!
I agree, Nancy. Especially with the "get to work" part!
Here, I will repeat the freely translated Yiddishism specifically taking into account how much Biden has accomplished with a legislature having a majority of insurrectionist cretins...just imagine what he could accomplish, absent that nonsense.
"What's the matter? The bride is too beautiful?"
Love it, Mr. Lipman! You hit the damn nail directly on the head! This isn't even a matter of perfect being the enemy of the good...Klein's suggestion is more like the face of certain disaster masquerading as a "looks-good-on-paper" idea.
👍👍👍
It's shocking how little that information seems to reach significant people. I do think young people are the answer here. I'm going to find ways to reach out to young people. And thankfully, my grandkids will be working for Biden by getting kids regisstered on college campuses, and are unafraid of Biden's age. But we need more young people to be engaged!
Love this. think we should all learn to use it!
Would love to hear that expression in Yiddish!
Jiddish is written in Hebrew letters, but here at least is a transliteration "a khisorn az di kale iz tsu sheyn" meaning 'it's a drawback that the bride is too beautiful'.
I don’t understand when people like Klein propose something that is clearly a losing strategy. He can’t seriously think the idea has legs, so why does he want to hurt the Democrats and thereby help Trump? And thank you for pointing out the viability of VP Harris. Why does everyone act like she has been invisible for the last three years? How is someone with her qualifications, and the experience Biden has made sure to give her, still treated like window dressing, just someone they need for that 51st vote when needed? I’m looking forward to your stories from the road.
Remember Susan Sarandon in 2016, saying a Trump win over Hillary would "speed the revolution"?
There's a reason why the far left has never created anything worthwhile - and has generally created something worse as the "cure" - in the past 150 years.
We have never elected a woman president in this country let alone a woman of color. I think many of us don’t want to take the chance on measuring the degree of misogyny and racism. Not when Trump is the alternative.
Truly astounding that the vile, amoral, convicted fraud and indicted for multiple crimes orange creature is preferred by a large segment of our citizens!
I certainly understand your point. But making Harris invisible not only refuses to take a chance on the degree of misogyny and racism, it contributes to it.
I don’t think that she’s been kept invisible. She often speaks in platitudes . I’ve read a lot of articles about how much she loves cooking and shopping trying to make her relatable – which I deplore. There are other women whose lived experience and communication styles would make them more palatable to the voting public specifically, the swing states which apparently will control the election.
It’s not a losing strategy but a theory or thinking out loud that unfortunately many people have actually thought about. He has tapped into a nerve and brought the idea to life and our discussing it and giving it light is the only way we can effectively deal with it. It is a stark reminder we need to deal with this issue.
Sure, lots of people have thought about whether the Democrats should run a younger candidate. I hope the Democrats have a pipeline full of younger candidates. But moment for that was a year ago. The reality is that in this election, the candidate will be Joe Biden. So I believe it's a losing strategy in the sense that the timing is wrong and the risk of making Democrats look weak and chaotic is unacceptable. We have to stop giving oxygen to all the wrong things. The Republicans are running someone who actually is incompetent. That's what we should be talking about. My two cents.
Robert, Ezra Klein can kiss my ass! I am progressive to a point but I totally disagree with him because there aren’t skilled people out there who could come close to accomplishing what the Biden-Harris admin has done. If they want to eventually ride on his coattails, fine, but not now. I’d like to know how they’d handle Putin, Hamas, or Netanyahu! People are pissed because we have provided weaponry to Israel while Israel kills innocent people. I get the anger and the frustration regarding that situation. Plus, they’re upset about Garland being the AG but what Klein is doing is trying to split the Dems in two. Worked so successfully for the R’s, right?? Nope…it’s Joe and only Joe.
Like most of the far left, their proposals always result in a worse outcome.
One of Pres Biden's many strengths is that he respects and follows the advice of “far” left members who come up with proposals. He has wanted to be the US Pres for most of his life and knows how to operate a presidency. He has a “team of rivals” and uses their proposals well. Lucky combo. He has surrounded himself with younger, talented policy wonks. Great idea!
Hopefully we can channel this emotion to getting Biden elected.
I was blessedly unaware of Ezra Klein's piece. I have been busy trying to counter the horrible intrusion into our local city council elections by right-wing PACs. More on that, later.
The PAC tactics are akin to the "hit job" Mr. Groesbeck rightly calls Hur's report (his characterization in this comment section). Once again, Fanni Willis has shown us the way to respond.
She is experiencing a hit job, and we all should respond to these hit jobs the way that she has: despite everyone's advice not to, she marched into the courtroom, displayed her anger and disgust at the lies contained in the pleadings, insisted on ensuring that people understood the truth behind each lie, and refused to engage in any discussion that she resign. She was wonderful.
All of us need to respond to Hur's report that way, and NOT Ezra Klein's way.
And I think we should take Robert's advice in an earlier piece and continue to complain long and loud to any media entity and political commentator that treats the age issue like they did Hillary's emails.
Back to sunny Florida. We have a city council election coming up in March. The election of Mayor is also on the ballot. It is a nonpartisan race. The candidates are either Independents or Republicans. For mayor, Democrats have to choose the candidate who has the most independence from real estate developers and Christian Nationalists. Most Democratic voters settled on one candidate.
Enter a PAC, who did a "hit job" on that candidate, by sending a deceptive mailer targeted to all registered Democrats in the city, stating that the candidate is "proudly supporting DeSantis's anti-abortion agenda". The wording led Democrats to believe that this mailer was sent by the candidate. Several recipients sent me a copy of the mailer, stating they would now never vote for her. I am spending my time trying to undo the very real damage done to this election, explaining the tactic.
If these PACs are successful, the council will be taken over by real estate development interests. Completely. That will undo all the progress we have made regarding issues that I personally have been working on here, namely, preserving an historic African American community in the city that is threatened by sea level rise and gentrification, and on bringing resiliency to the low- and moderate-income areas in flood prone areas. The other two mayoral candidates will never care about those issues.
Some of us here have been so engaged in the issue of reproductive rights, that we fail to realize that this issue is not even in the jurisdiction of the city council, and that we are allowing the extreme rightwing to "play" us with our own issue. Our national elected Democrats have for the most part done very well combating this right-wing tactic.
We all need to take responsibility for seeing through these "hit jobs", these tactics, and help our fellow progressives and liberals support the candidates best suited to advance our values.
Judy,Thanks for all you’re doing in Florida !😎
You may be aware of investigative reporter, Jason Garcia➡️ https://jasongarcia.substack.com/p/florida-republicans-may-shift-more
💙
Thanks. First I've heard of him.
We need a lot of help, especially in Miami Dade. There seems to be some action on Mobilize in other populous counties, but crickets here in Baghdad By the Sea.
You’re doing good work there!
I Fani Willis was in a relationship that she did not disclose with a subordinate. If they can prove or even have some reasonable doubt about when this relationship began, then they will take both of them off the case. Many of us have made similar mistakes, but none with such catastrophic results for democracy and
Accountability.
Listening to her testimony, I do not agree with your characterization of the issue. I think this is a hit job on her plain and simple, and the way in which they have characterized this is not at all how it happened. They have stretched facts in a way that makes it look like how they want it to look, and they placed falsehoods in their pleadings.
Democrats need to be careful about not adopting their characterization of what happened.
The "they" who have the authority to take her off the case is the Judge, and presumably he will follow the actual law that would justify it. He will have to find a personal financial interest in her pursuing this case and in her hiring of Wade, who is not a subordinate, by the way. There is no such circumstance.
Just like, Biden being old, is not a reason for him to withdraw from the Presidential race.
I hope you’re right
me too
You seriously haven't been paying attention.
In case anyone thinks it's just drooling lefty con artists like Klein, AFTER Fani Willis successfully defended herself in court, Chairman of the Committee for the Suppression of Vice and the Promotion of Virtue Richard Painter posted that she still should recuse herself, to prevent "appearances of misconduct."
How these lefty morons manage to put their Earthshoes on in the morning amazes me. Painter says that, despite the fact that if Willis were to recuse, there likely isn't another DA in Georgia who would take up the case, meaning the conspirators Painter claims to oppose, would win. Proof that just because you can graduate from law school and become a law professor is no demonstration of actual intelligence.
I hate it when people this stupid claim they're on my side.
I consider myself a lefty. I don't drool and no longer wear earthshoes. People can disagree without public name calling. I don't agree with what Klein is doing on this issue. It's a big umbrella and we don't need to insult each other.
The far left can kiss my. ass.
Look up who were the people that fought back against the Nazis in 1930s Germany. There's a place for all of us. Otherwise we lose to the other side.
Mine as well...it's a far easier target!
Please stop with the pearl clutching. It's not a big umbrella. It's democracy or fascism.
I don't have pearls. Living in a democracy means not having to walk in lock step with each other. We are living in a multicultural democracy.
Oh TC -- Earth Shoes😂😂😂 I had a pair and they were actually hard to differentiate between Right and Left--allegorical much?
"How these lefty morons manage to put their Earthshoes on in the morning amazes me." Oh TC, you crack me up. Thanks for the laugh this morning.
Who the hell is the sanctimonious r. Painter! What a bull shit name for an organization!
I invented it, because the "cause" is bullshit.
Yes! Thank you. Ezra Klein went off the rails. It happens with the Times’s stars; they begin to take themselves too seriously.
And I will repeat, Biden’s politics are better now than they were thirty years ago. He is one of those rare people who go on developing into their later adulthood.
🩷🩷🩷🩷❤️🔥
For weeks I have been writing in defense of age, and in defense of the set up of having a vice president, which everyone needs as backup. So, I have said it is the Biden-Harris ticket, and she has had tutelage under a master politician if she needs to step in to Biden's place. However, as for age, I am living in a city in Germany, where more than half the population is over 60. In the art group I am about to attend, one of the women is 91. She is fit and full of intellectual wit and charm. Her artwork is both aesthetic and conceptually interesting, and so is her conversation about art. She either takes public or rides her bike to our workshops. Her commentary is sharp and incisive. I happen to know several people 90 and above. My mom is one of them. Her friends are other examples. One of whom I see on weekends and other times at rallies. Our conversations are interesting, and I never have doubt of their lucidity. My maternal grandmother lived on her own until she was 98, and moved into a home then, but lived to be 99.5 years old. I still had good conversations with her up to that point. My paternal great-grandmother lived to be 109. The USA has a lot of Centinarians, some of whom live on their own. So, if Biden has any memory issues, which stress can affect, let someone else handle the mundane. The brain prunes out extraneous stuff so that our synapses can respond more quickly in thinking, which may still be slowed down by forgetting a name or date. Yay for instant ways of looking these things up. What cannot be replaced by someone younger is experience and wisdom, that takes time to earn. Biden has it in spades. He is a master politician as evidenced by his excellent running of our government despite the hindrances at every turn from obstructionist Republicans. Harris as vice president benefits from that, as well as her own political experiences. So, we have a great team there, and we should believe in it. Biological age varies in people, and one cannot know Biden's biological age, but clearly in that he is younger than Trump! it is his age in years that people are looking at because they do not understand biology. I was told at 43 that I had the fertility of a 20 year old. There is a range of biologies, which is not measured in actual years. People need to understand that to get over their fear of age and aging. They also need to understand that being deliberative and considered, is a good quality in a president. Testosterone laden speeches rarely pan out in good policy. See Trump if you do not understand what I mean.
I agree with you completely Linda.
Thank you Robert for all you pull together for us. As to Klein , doing Putin's work is the singular issue right now and it must be stated as such. I will have to look into DemLabs. Between you and Jessica, there are an awful lot of opportunities to make a diffrence. You are on a trip of a lifetime, one we all should embark on while we still can. I'll be waiting for your reports. Enjoy!
Biden is by far the best candidate. I know you said to Not discuss the Klein suggestion, but I must say, as a sociologist, the depth of age stereotyping runs very deep and wide in the US. Klein doesn't realize with his recommendation he is setting in motion a self-fulfilling prophecy of his own aging. Each of us is creating our own definitions of aging as we live on with strong social networks, purpose, and persistence.
Please call or email Mr Klein to voice opposition to his ridiculous idea of having Joe Biden step aside.
He needs to realize we are working hard at the reelection of what history may record as one of our most successful presidents, and he is working against us.
ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
212-556-7300
Thanks, Lynn. I forwarded Today's Edition with this Letter to Mr. Klein. I included my address and phone, omitted here.
I am sure you have already received a copy of Robert Hubbell's Today's Edition, just as I am sure you will probably never see this or read this. But I needed to tell you that your argument to replace Joe Biden is severely flawed and dangerous. Robert Hubbell's piece tells you why better than I can.
Biden will not, nor should he, step aside, but your words will be used as ammunition for the guns of the MAGA movement to convince faint hearted Democrats and Independents to think the election is a horse race between an old guy and a slightly less old guy, whom you are not, as far as I know, saying should step aside in favor of a younger Nikki Haley even though Trump is clearly impaired and dangerous. When you are providing ammunition to MAGA you are helping point a gun at American democracy.
You and Jon Stewart (who sounded the alarm about Biden's age last week, as I know you know) and others of the media elite whom I often have read and admired need to get your heads on straight and consider not what makes an "interesting column" or a "what if" that one can ponder over a drink at an exclusive restaurant with other "cool kids." This is not just a game, Mr. Klein. You need to be asking yourself every day, "How can I communicate to my audience the raw truth of Trump's perfidy, incompetence, and madness, and the threat he poses to democracy."
If we wake up in November to a Trump victory, you will probably say, "I told you so, America. Why, Oh why didn't Joe Biden listen to me?" One simple answer is that had he done so you and the NYT would have run headlines that said, "Dems on the Run," "Biden Tosses in the Towel." If that horrible November, which millions are working hard to prevent occurs, you will be insulated by your wealth and power, at least for a time, from the consequences of your foolishness. The rest of us out here on the landscape of America: the old, the young, women, immigrants, non-whites, and the poor will suffer and die. If that happens, I don't expect you will recognize your shame and the real contribution to that outcome. The shame will not be that Biden and the Democrats did not listen to you, but that too many half-hearted Americans and the MAGA message makers did.
If you provide ammunition to Trump and his allies, you need to realize in your heart and soul where their guns are pointing.
Thanks Patrick, an awesome letter! You said it very well.
Thanks for your kind words. I admire your postings and gain fortitude from all I read on Today's Edition. Work, Think, Read, Plan, Do.
Thank you - just sent my email to him.
Thanks Marla! I emailed him right before I commented here.
I would write him if I were willing to read his article. I am just not. I did look up his picture, and he does not look much older then the last offensive NYT person I wrote, whose name is Aiden Gardiner. https://www.aidangardiner.com/about
I wrote Gardiner, and he was unable to address my criticism of the NYT lack of diverse voices and life experience covering the election. Now here is Ezra Klein. https://www.nytimes.com/by/ezra-klein
I see that he is 39. Not whom I would want running the country or around my mom (she is 90), or myself for that matter. He does not seem to like old people. I feel that my daughter at almost 19 is more comfortable with age than he is. I just cannot deal with these idiots at the NYT, who have no life experience, do not know human biology, spent way too much on their educations (for the lack of complexity of thinking), and are in way over their heads when it comes to covering this election. So, I am not reading their election coverage because it sucks.
Thanks Linda, I do really appreciate your thoughts here. I actually didn't read his NYT piece, I heard some of it on his Feb 16th podcast, (which is a reading of the NYT piece) until I could take no more. Much of this opinion piece is about how Joe Biden has been a very good president and very good for this country. In my opinion, he never did make any kind of case for having Joe step down. So to me, he just created the headline "Democrats have a better option than Biden" and he never makes a good case for that. I am glad I emailed him and told him how dangerous this type of behavior is for this country. I have to wonder if the NYT's editors made Mr Klein do this, as he did a poor job at substantiating that headline.
What's wrong with people?! It seems that when we finally have something good, I mean really, really GOOD (Joe Biden) it's as though some feel we have to take a wrecking ball to it- as if we are not deserving of what will certainly be the best president of my lifetime, for another 4 years.
At the end of this piece he adds: "I recognize there’s going to be a lot of questions and comments and pushback to this piece. So we’re going to do an “Ask Me Anything” episode next week — on this, on 2024 broadly. We’ve set up a voice mail box, if you want to leave a message that could get played on the show." Perhaps this last question I just noted here is something I should ask him.
Lynn, thank you for responding to him. I am so fed up with the NYT people I cannot even reply to them because it falls on deaf ears. I am also wondering why they do not have some more mature people reporting on the presidential race. In my opinion, they should be hiring someone 81 or older who is willing to work for them, just to cover this race. And, if they hire a damned Republican they had better hire a Democrat too.
The hand-wringing over Biden’s age needs to stop-NOW. Biden WILL be the Dems’ nominee and there IS no other viable alternative to save us from the certain disaster of another Trump term. The sooner all those who oppose Trump accept these facts, the better chance we have to deny Trump a victory and keep our democracy.
Let’s give Donald a new nickname: “Trumpolini.”
He embraces that. I prefer shitler.
That's actually a good fit!