(2) If, in the future, he can't do his job, what's wrong with President Kamala Harris?
The answers are Yes and, for me: Hurray!!
[The following is based on Rob Flaherty to Simon Rosenberg, whose Hopium Chronicles on Substack are to me the #1 source for the data and reasoning on why Trump is not winning this election: How people vote, actual election results, not polls, not "approval ratings," tell us most reliably how people will vote.]
As to Biden doing his job: 90 minutes on a debate stage do not negate 3½ years of results.
Joe Biden is extremely good at being president. Let's not forget that the guy up on stage:
Expanded health care to millions of families
Lowered the price of insulin to $35 for seniors
Created more jobs than any president in history
Vaccinated the country and reopened our schools
Took the largest climate action in the history of the world
Canceled student loans for nearly 5 million people
Rallied the world in support of Ukraine, and expanded NATO while doing it
Passed the largest national funding for passenger rail since the founding of Amtrak
Banned chokeholds and no-knock entries by federal law enforcement, and restricted the transfer of military equipment to police departments
Passed the largest investment in bridges and roads in our history
Pardoned thousands of Americans federally convicted of marijuana possession
Expanded benefits to veterans who have been exposed to toxic chemicals
Officially protected same-sex marriage federally
Passed the first gun violence prevention bill in 30 years
Saved the pensions of more than 1 million union workers
Averted a banking crisis (remember that?)
Expanded paid overtime to working families
Made birth control pills available over the counter
Made renewable energy the #2 source of electricity in America
Moved to reschedule marijuana
Shifted the microchip supply chain back to the United States
Thank you Eric. It's also completely ridiculous that Joe Biden, a man of such great success, it being attacked by Dems as a person who does not know when he should retire? How ageist and condescending of people who make such a patronizing assumption. Who do these people think they are? People need to spend a bit more time thinking and not just reacting.
Ageism is the one accepted bigotry these days. The economist recently published and article with this headline:
“Baby-boomers are loaded. Why are they so stingy?
The mystery matters for global economic growth”
If you read down into the article you get to the explanation — those stingy boomers want to save so they can pass their wealth on to their kids, they want to save to meet the very real prospect of needing long term care (so they don’t bankrupt their kids)
I am hating the dystopian moment we are living in because we allow ageism. I know a lot of 90-year-olds because my mom is 90, I also have a 91 year old woman in my art class. She is dynamic, creative, exceptionally incisive and very fit. I feel like the USA is filled with whiny children crying, "why didn't daddy live up to our expectations of being immortal?" They feel they are entitled to Biden campaigning well. NO! They are entitled to him governing well. The fact that except for that debate he has been campaigning well is icing on the cake. Write your politicians like I did today, and insist that they be behind Biden fully in word and deed. Just because Nancy Pelosi stepped aside when she has a lot of people who are rising up to replace her is not the same as Biden's role. He is a victim of fascist propaganda techniques and if the press and stupid people get Biden to step down, they will have destroyed the USA just as Putin and Trump want him to. It won't be the fault of the MAGAs this time, but the fault of the Democrats to not be well informed enough to understand what is going on. People, if you are doubting Biden, you need to start reading and listening to fascism experts because you are falling victim to them.
Yes, it’s just ageism at work. I’m with Joe as long as he wants to continue as an our President. And if he can’t make it through the next 4 years, Kamala will do just fine!
Adding to your very apt comments, the President just spent a lot of time representing us proudly at the D-Day ceremonies and back to Europe again for the G6 conference.
And lots of environmental actions such as expanding or creating national monuments, killing really environmentally bad actions, involving Native Americans more in public land management, etc.
For all those reasons and more, wearing my Dems Make Life Better T-shirt feels better than ever — The compliments I get fill me with hope. So much hope.
The back of the T-shirt lists Biden’s top priorities.
Nobody is saying Biden hasn’t been a great President, but he is unable to continue. I am friends with a neurologist and she suggests that Biden is suffering from vascular disease and has noticed a difference in him since February. She says it will only get worse. Dems have a great bench. It is time to call on the Bench to defeat Trump. If Biden loses the election to Trump, Biden’s legacy will be ruined. We can’t stick our heads in the sand. My friends and family will vote for Biden regardless but voters who are not that interested in politics will have a hard time voting for Biden. It’s time to go Joe
Hi, Alan. I think your comment raises some of the issues I discussed in today's newsletter.
No one is asking your stick your head in the sand, and it is an unfair to suggest those who support Joe Biden are asking you to do so. If you want a replacement, then work your tail off to advance another candidate from the "great bench" you refer to. Electing a candidate takes hard work. You want someone other than Joe? Go do the hard work of getting someone to emerge from the pack and create a path to victory, but don't cast aspersions at those of us doing the hard work to elect Joe Biden. We disagree with you. You disagree with us. That's okay. We are on the same side. Let's treat each other accordingly.
I am so tired of Doctor’s, Psychiatrist’s and Psychologist’s who have never treated Biden diagnosing him. To me that is just unethical. Biden has been a great President, he has done wonderful things for our country. He has advisors and a cabinet that is top notch and will be able to continue. IF, and I mean IF, because NONE of us know, he cannot serve when he is into his second term, we have a capable and prepared Vice President who will be able to step in and take over.
The doctor is ethically prohibited from diagnosing a person she hasn't examined. She is entitled to her opinion as a citizen. So it is okay to say, "I have a friend" who believes X, but saying that "I have a neurologist friend" imputes to the doctor an opinion that doctor cannot ethically endorse as a licensed physician.
I want that doctor to explain how that supposed vascular disease had disappeared by the day after the debate when Biden gave that great speech at that rally in NC. I have had relatives with cognitive decline from vascular disease and they didn’t change greatly from day to day.
Biden has arthritis in the foot he broke which makes walking painful. Apparently walking gait is now another indicator of ability to be president.
I didn't know that about President Biden's foot. I'm 78 and what I admire most about President Biden is that he could easily retire and enjoy life with his family and friends. But he still wants to serve because he knows he can. For that alone, besides all of his accomplishments, I'm with him until he himself tells us hes done. Blessings,
What is your friend’s long distance diagnosis of Trump?
As for having a great bench, we do. Kamala Harris. Sadly, if she were to be the candidate the likelihood of Trump winning would be improved significantly. As for any other Democrat, the legal and practical obstacles to starting a successful presidential candidacy 4 months before Election Day make riding a bicycle nonstop to the top of Everest look easy. Barring Joe gets hit by a truck, he is our candidate. End. Of. Story.
Has your friend examined him? No. Biden is the victim of agism and ableism. He has a life long speech disability. Stand in the shoes of a person with a speech disability for once. It is a sobering experience in compassion and understanding. The focus should be on the other guy.
Yes Alan, “she suggests” without an examination, and states “vascular disease” which is broad term. That’s irresponsible. Citizens are free to be thoughtless as such, but as a physician she should not be so careless.
As someone mentioned, has she given a diagnosis to the king of word salads, the Convicted Felon? Hannibal Lecter, sharks versus electrocution, “Congress is doing numbers that are unbelievable “, his washing machine rant. He does it all time, but if Joe talked like that, he’d be crucified.
I am so tired of the asymmetry with the attacks on our President.
With all due respect to your friend, isn't it malpractice to diagnose somewhat without a review of medical records, patient history and medical exam? I seem to remember that from days as a plaintiff's attorney. And I agree that the Dems have a truly great bench. The 2028 primary is going to be great!
No ethicaPl medical professional or mental health provider would give a diagnosis opinion on a person who is not a patient and if the person is a patient to do so would be a HIPPA violation., I dispose of your friends assessment. Support Joe. but more important focus on voting for democracy. Who the candidate coiuld be is only a distraction from the REAL issue.
Thank you for this list! I missed a few of those things when they happened. We could add in the vets who were pardoned, after being dishonorably discharged, for being gay.
But, but, but he single-handedly caused world-wide inflation with his big spending ways but has had nothing to do with our economy which is so strong that the World Bank revised its estimates of global economic growth because and this was the reason:
“World Bank: ‘Impressive’ US economy is powering the world”
I have asked several of my Democratic friends who stay reasonably well informed if they had heard about this action of the World Bank but not one of them had.
Yeah that's because the MSM is so obsessed with dogging on Biden that they aren't willing to broadcast anything positive. It's not a money maker for them, because reporting on his accomplishments might just lead to a boring election where Biden wins by 10 points. I imagine they're salivating at the prospect of the conservative court messing with the election - sooooo many clicks to harvest...
You’re missing an important point. People imagine at the end of his term Biden will be 86 and think either he will be delusional and need a walker or not functional. The image of an 86 year old is not pretty for many.
Not everyone ages the same way. President Biden takes care of his health and is likely to be as sharp at 86 as most 66 year olds. Most of us can think of many examples of vibrant, active 90 year olds. My dad was actively farming at 90, Betty White was making movies at 90 and beyond. The list of healthy, active 90+ year olds is long. Are these people the exception?Maybe, but Joe Biden is also an exceptional man and I trust him to know what he can no longer do the job.
Hey I’m 80 and live in a retirement community with the an average age is 84. In the health club many 80 plus folks are exercising all the time. We unfortunately live in a world where youth and vitality is promoted and expected. I agree with you that Biden is physically strong but for a few folks he looks old. The sad part is this election is not about age or health but about the future of democracy. Everything else is a distraction
Joe Biden is NOT as physically/mentally fit as most 66 year olds. Most people in their 70's and 80's would think he is not. I do and I'm 78. Just wishful thinking like buying a quick pick lottery ticket.
There is no way I could have kept up with Biden’s recent foreign travel, speeches, rallies, etc. when I was in my forties. Biden got up the day after the debate, flew to NC and gave a great, very energetic speech.
Yeah, I think Biden's performance was much more affected by fatigue and jet lag than any dementia issues. But it planted that seed in a much wider field than it was before. This was more a case of bad judgement and over estimating what he can/could do than anything mental. Trump on the other hand would have had this explanation out there immediately after his poor performance.
In the last year he also made a trip to Asia where he conferred with leaders in eight or nine countries, in different time zones, over a day or two. That is amazing!
I don’t know how Joe Biden will be at 86. But I know that Trump at 78 is a clear and present danger, and that no other Democrat is as likely to win this year as Joe Biden.
Also Harris is more than ready to step in if needed. She has been a very involved VP, meeting regularly with Biden. She has also made successful foreign trips to Africa, Southeast Asia, South America and Europe that our shallow, lazy media couldn’t bother covering. I only learned about this when I heard longtime foreign policy/national security expert David Rothkopf say how impressed he had been after a meeting with Harris because the media can’t be bothered covering her. Some of them did, however, make time to cover her giggling and not in a positive way.
(Rothkopf made these remarks in an episode of his podcast Deep State Radio a few months ago. )
I think Biden has been very deliberately training Harris, ensuring that she could take over if need be. And I feel like she's done a great job of learning what she needs to know. I was very disappointed when Biden chose her, but I've come to have a lot of confidence in her, and I wear my Biden-Harris shirt proudly.
I wouldn't say Biden has been “training” Harris. He just treats her as a partner and gives her a lot of responsibilities just like Clinton did with Gore and Obama did with Biden. That is how all VPs should be treated to prepare them for the possibility of taking over as well as taking some of the load off the president. FDR was a great president but keeping Truman out of the loop on so many things was reckless. I always wonder what Truman was thinking when he was told about the Manhattan Project and that we had developed — or were very close to developing an atomic bomb. He must have been gobsmacked!
The media is wrong to ignore what VPs do. Instead of treating Dan Quayle as a joke they should have been telling us about the damage he was doing as head of Bush’s powerful White House Council on Competitiveness:
“The new game in town:
Regulation, secrecy, and the Quayle Council on Competitiveness”
“Since its founding in June 1990, the Quayle Council has meddled in numerous complex regulatory issues—including Clean Air Act regulations, wetlands protection, and nutrition labeling standards—inserting weakening changes designed to benefit business and industry. In addition, the Quayle Council recklessly pursues its deregulatory agenda in complete secrecy by refusing to comply with even the most basic standards of open government, such as the Freedom of Information Act.”
Which is exactly how 45 would handle the country. He doesn't give a damn.
Attempting to change the Democratic nominee at this point is playing into 45's and the far right think tanks hands. It cannot be done without permanent harm to the Democratic party.
If you look at all Biden has done since 2020 - all clearly documented; despite having magas block him at every turn, his wisdom and knowledge of the political ins and outs have greatly benefited us all. Yes, he is old and I take comfort in that he knows what he is doing. He had a bad debate. So f'in what! He knew he looked bad and he come out fighting the next day. I would much prefer a senior full of competent wisdom that walks slow to a truly deranged psychopath that WILL destroy our country. That is our choice in November. Who will you choose?
“How they feel”? Of course. There is difference between recognizing how people “feel” vs promoting the notion that “because some feel that way, Biden should drop out”
87% of Democratic Primary voters DID NOT feel this way
I can’t change that some people “feel” things but I can question the data that brought them to their beliefs
Your "87% of Democratic voters DID NOT feel this way" statement is a big Non Sequitur based on your feelings not data. You're not convincing anyone with this logic.
My mother had a cousin who passed the driving test "with flying colors," according to the driving instructor at age 96. (She died at 104.) My cousin Tom Hornbein was still mountain climbing in his 80s (google him). A high school friend's uncle rode his bicycle 20-30 miles a day throughout his 90s, until the day at age 99 when he dropped dead.
Would it be OK if I send this absolutely terrific comment of yours to my email list of 76 people--under your name, of course! It will probably buck them up.
Eric, I made a doc/meme with President Biden's accomplishments from the Biden-Harris accomplishments page. I was troubled by the stilted language that didn't really sound like benefits. Your list is brilliant! I wish they would use your language instead. I'm redoing my doc/meme - may I use and credit your list? Thank you!
Our world is in historic disarray. I ask, who out there as a viable candidate has Joe Biden’s knowledge of world politics? Who is as well versed in our alliances and how to proceed with the threats to so many nations? This man is a statesman. I back him over any other choice of candidate. Age is wisdom, and he has steered this country in difficult times. We need to come together to fend off the threat of the radical ( and rich but small) elements who have purchased our courts and our media. We are reaping the rewards of Biden’s administration. So now we abandon our best hope? I think not.
I believe country comes before an elected president. It is, after all his job to preserve the Constitution and 72% would like him to move aside with thanks and appreciation. .
Kamala Harris is the one to carry his work forward and build on his record. He has been showing signs of aging as reported by many in the media so let’s say “America and DC thank you, Mr President, but please step aside”. And then let us support the amazing Ms Harris with all our hearts and souls.
My rebuttal: Who is mentally worse off? Biden or Trump ? I think Trump but not because of anything in your statement. Most of the support for Biden on here takes some form of wishful thinking.
3. Find your podcast app and rate Ezra Klein's podcast one star and leave a bad review telling him to stop undermining the voters. Or whatever you please.
4. If you can bear it, drop your subscriptions to those, tell the papers why and that you are spending your media money elsewhere.
You get the picture. I did all of those yesterday. We suspended our print subscription to the NYT (a compromise with my husband). It also stops our payment.
I've also been trying to do damage control in all my activist groups and to people who aren't activists but who think of the NYT and WaPo as the mouthpieces of a news deity. Make sure your friends and relatives read Robert's newsletter!
Also, as Josh Marshall wrote in his newsletter the other day, "I’m not going to name them. But I’ve seen a lot of really respected columnists, not just “respected” but people who are really good, saying Biden should step down. Every one I’ve read reads with a level of grandiosity that I found weak, reactive and vain. My two cents."
I had to turn off NPR in the car yesterday. Even if they're not slamming President Biden, their sentences are filled with negative adjectives in pieces about the "debate," etc. I've told them I'm withdrawing my continuing donation and why. (They won't miss the money🙄, but if enough of us do it, they might.) Whatever happened to straight news pieces vs. opinion pieces clearly marked as such??
I feel that same way about NPR -- used to be something I quoted every day. The journalism by and large is now 'piffle' - NO challenge of republicans being seriously challenged (like BBC journalists do) Just like Jake Tapper et al --- let them get away with murder, and then - and then THANK them for being (lying) on their show.
I finally pulled the plug last week on NYT,after a decades-long subscription,with a”farewell” note. I’d just paid for the month so still have sub for a couple weeks but haven’t looked back.
Robert provided the link for ProPublica’s 21 -min unedited interview with President Biden. It was interesting to hear his comments about SCOTUS and his conversations with respected journalists.
ProPublica is a non-profit that relies heavily on donations and is transparent about their finances, unlike InJustices Alito and Thomas!
I also cancelled my NYT subscription yesterday and told them why. They need to be diminished and that is the "vote" I have available to do that. I'm waiting on the WaPo but definitely looking at that. They are only marginally better.
NYT has sent me 5 subscribe offers in 3 days. I took the opportunity to tell them to f- off but spell check changed it to funky. Oh the mortification. 🥴
Thank you, Ellie. This project makes so much sense right now and I wish every person who believes in a fair and free press would check it out. So important!
I sent scathing letters to NYT and WAPO yesterday - and to the Guardian for jumping on the dump Biden bandwagon. I cancelled NYT in 2022 after their red wave crap but retained Wapo. Now I wonder if I want to keep them. Rock, meet hard place.
I want to support good media but no national paper seems to get how critical this juncture is for the future of democracy. Even my former boss, one of the most politically astute people I know, has called for Biden to step aside but then side stepped his decision to not go with Kamala Harris as the candidate. No, he’s neither racist nor sexist. The man is singularly responsible for having guided the process for passing some of the best climate legislation in the country here in MN including provisions about environmental justice and understands how critical Biden has been on climate. But he doesn’t see that no one else has the campaign infrastructure in place to be able to campaign effectively. So replacing Biden leads to autocracy under the Criminal. God forbid.
I appreciate your suggestion to rate Klein’s podcast too. Will get on that today. As Joyce Vance says, “We are in this together.”
Yeah - I write daily in the comments sections for the Times and WaPo --- frankly, I think it is like 'pissing against the wind' - if you'll excuse the vulgarity. They are inured to any challenge. I wont cancel my subscriptions - I DO want to see what they are saying. That said, it is Robert to whom I turn FIRST each day
Start listening to The Meidas Touch podcast or watch on Utube. They always uplifting, enthusiastic for Biden/Harris and highlight every stupid move #45 and RepubliCants make. Energizing and I lol! (Simon Rosenberg recommends them.)
Whether you wish Biden to stay or step down, we all need to get loud about the dangerousness of Trump - his mental state and commitment to retribution. Many experts also point to signs of dementia. For any Biden blunder, Trump has more than we can count. He is in clear cognitive decline.
None of us can make this decision, but we can push back on the media with Letters to the Editor or contacting them through their website to ask for comparable scrutiny of Trump. We can also have conversations with others to focus on Trump’s dangerousness.
And of course, GOTV! Dedicate time and resources to getting voters registered. We need them to vote for the Democratic ticket-period. This is at least productive and gives us some control when everything seems out of control.
Did the media insist that Trump withdraw from the presidential race when a jury found him guilty on 34 counts? President Biden has one bad night and the media and "talking heads" want him to withdraw? Let's not keep giving Trump/MAGA's a free pass. There is NO comparison to the lies spewed by Trump and Biden's record of accomplishments. "90 mins on a debate stage do not negate 31/2 years of positive results!
My physician colleagues and I will continue our strategy from previous elections: we write opinion pieces on healthcare issues for media in swing counties in Pennsylvania that explain what is at stake. We are greatly encouraged by Robert’s perspectives and invite people in any aspect of healthcare to join us. Create the America you want to live in. Some of you may recall that Robert once hosted us in his podcast. That’s called action, not handwringing. Want to pitch in? www.asknursesdoctors.com.
Thank you!!!! It is a sorry state of affairs when former Republicans like Stuart Stevens and Rick Wilson defend our president (and see the stakes) more than the Democrats. As I mentioned in the Zoom yesterday, Stuart and Rick run Resolute Square https://resolutesquare.com/ which is a pro-democracy organization started to combat the biased media. They have great writers including Stuart and Rick plus others such as Ruth Ben-Ghiat. Please, everyone, stop fantasizing about some dream ticket that doesn't exist and get behind the most successful president in many lifetimes over.
Robert, thank you for your always on-point, brilliant writing. I quote and paraphrase you widely as I respond to commenters in other forums who spread misinformation and seem to have bought into the negative press about Biden. Thank you also for the many resources you provide, and for the daily pep talks. I'm honored to be in this fight alongside you and the many warriors I see in the substack community and beyond.
Also, that was a helpful Zoom session today with you and Jill. Thank you for that.
Have a wonderful time with your family at the cabin in Sequoia National Park!
President Biden and his re-election campaign should stop being defensive about 1 bad debate night. Biden should be speaking out very aggressively, hollering from the White House roof tops that SCOTUS is a corrupt, incompetent, right wing advocacy group dangerously undermining our constitutional government and the rule of law. America is NOT a monarchy!
Biden must promise to add 4 liberal judges to the court as soon as he has a congressional majority so he can reverse the opinion on presidential immunity, restore abortion rights and national access to women's reproductive health care, voting rights, fair taxes and so forth. Coming out ANGRY and swinging and asking his fellow Democratic leaders will put the debate behind him and quell the nervous nellies among Democrats.
He should call out Chief Justice Roberts as a failed, partisan, misguided Chief Justice leading a highly unpopular court.
If he can’t do that… Then? It’s no shame. I blame the so-called debate entirely on his staff who scheduled him to be on stage being bullied at 8 o’clock at night. Unfortunately, this self-inflicted error cannot be unseen for low information or disinclined voters.
I simply can't BELIEVE that pundits and even legislators are handing the GOP the campaign slogan "even his own party doesn't like him." If you want to work for an alternate candidate, do it quietly, FFS. If you have nothing substantive or practical to suggest, shut the f up.
We already know that we live in a world where "optics" is way more important than substance. Why give the opposition such an easy target?
I am saddened that the evidence of 3 years of excellent Presidential performance are not the focus of ALL Dems, rather than one bad debate. My reaction has been to send more money to the Biden campaign. Trump and the Supreme court should be all the rallying cry we need to stay firmly with Biden&Harris.
I'm in favor of zapping the Neville Chamberlain/Marshal Petain Caucus - the Vichy Dimocrats who are the political equivalent of the Coward in "Saving Private Ryan" whose spinelessness got his buddies killed at the end of the movie. These people would have gone crying to Churchill that he should surrender after Dunkirk in 1940 and petitioned General Washington to negotiate a surrender with Lord Howe after losing the Battle of Brooklyn in 1776. They're the whiners with backbones made of a single strand of overcooked angle hair pasta, who peed their Pampers when Clinton "lost" the debate with Perot in 1992 and when Obama "lost" the debate with Rmoney in 2012. Unfortunately, they embarrass actual Democrats by claiming they're "progressives."
So far, I have canceled the NYT, the Washington Post, The New Republic, TAP, and ten surrender monkeys on Substack. I don't need to waste my time and money on idiots, fools, and morons. And as far as "gaslighting" is concerned, you droolers are the ones with the book of matches in your pockets.The Bulwark canceled me when I said Bill Kristol was still the same moron who danced us into invading Poland, er, I mean Iraq, back in 2003 (no loss). So far, too many of the Never Trumpers are turning out to be the same idiots I thought they were in 2015, including Charlie Sykes.
Thank you Robert, for providing leadership in staying the course.
My question is, who is it that is giving you such grief in maintaining that after 3 1/2 years of an extremely successful presidency, that Joe Biden should step down? I glanced through yesterday's comments and I do not see any of those folks making their own comment to make their case to all of us here. It seems to me, that if they can't say it to a "room" full of readers, then they really know they don't have a valid point. They are simply allowing themselves to be caught up in this media-driven frenzy, the goals of which you have outlined. ($$$$$)
Last week, you titled Today's Edition, "Joe Biden is going to win. Buck up". For crying out loud, those folks need to get on with it. Quit crying and start fighting. Fight like an American, fight for our freedoms, fight for Joe, just like he's done for us.
There is so much they can do. It's past time for them to turn their negativity into positive action.
HCR: "We are in the problem now." Jack Swigert, Apollo 13 astronaut: "Houston, we've had a problem here." Erwin Chermerinsky, Berkeley Law Dean at today's UCI 14th Annual Supreme Court Term in Review program about US v. Trump: "the worst opinion ever written by SCOTUS." Go figure: CJ Roberts had a Biden moment when he wrote it. There is only one way to fix what's gone wrong: elect Joe Biden. Kudos to Rob: let's not be fooled [or ruled] by the media.
Two basic questions I'm not seeing asked enough:
(1) Has Biden been doing his job?
(2) If, in the future, he can't do his job, what's wrong with President Kamala Harris?
The answers are Yes and, for me: Hurray!!
[The following is based on Rob Flaherty to Simon Rosenberg, whose Hopium Chronicles on Substack are to me the #1 source for the data and reasoning on why Trump is not winning this election: How people vote, actual election results, not polls, not "approval ratings," tell us most reliably how people will vote.]
As to Biden doing his job: 90 minutes on a debate stage do not negate 3½ years of results.
Joe Biden is extremely good at being president. Let's not forget that the guy up on stage:
Expanded health care to millions of families
Lowered the price of insulin to $35 for seniors
Created more jobs than any president in history
Vaccinated the country and reopened our schools
Took the largest climate action in the history of the world
Canceled student loans for nearly 5 million people
Rallied the world in support of Ukraine, and expanded NATO while doing it
Passed the largest national funding for passenger rail since the founding of Amtrak
Banned chokeholds and no-knock entries by federal law enforcement, and restricted the transfer of military equipment to police departments
Passed the largest investment in bridges and roads in our history
Pardoned thousands of Americans federally convicted of marijuana possession
Expanded benefits to veterans who have been exposed to toxic chemicals
Officially protected same-sex marriage federally
Passed the first gun violence prevention bill in 30 years
Saved the pensions of more than 1 million union workers
Averted a banking crisis (remember that?)
Expanded paid overtime to working families
Made birth control pills available over the counter
Made renewable energy the #2 source of electricity in America
Moved to reschedule marijuana
Shifted the microchip supply chain back to the United States
Put the first Black woman on the Supreme Court
Thank you Eric. It's also completely ridiculous that Joe Biden, a man of such great success, it being attacked by Dems as a person who does not know when he should retire? How ageist and condescending of people who make such a patronizing assumption. Who do these people think they are? People need to spend a bit more time thinking and not just reacting.
Ageism is the one accepted bigotry these days. The economist recently published and article with this headline:
“Baby-boomers are loaded. Why are they so stingy?
The mystery matters for global economic growth”
If you read down into the article you get to the explanation — those stingy boomers want to save so they can pass their wealth on to their kids, they want to save to meet the very real prospect of needing long term care (so they don’t bankrupt their kids)
I am hating the dystopian moment we are living in because we allow ageism. I know a lot of 90-year-olds because my mom is 90, I also have a 91 year old woman in my art class. She is dynamic, creative, exceptionally incisive and very fit. I feel like the USA is filled with whiny children crying, "why didn't daddy live up to our expectations of being immortal?" They feel they are entitled to Biden campaigning well. NO! They are entitled to him governing well. The fact that except for that debate he has been campaigning well is icing on the cake. Write your politicians like I did today, and insist that they be behind Biden fully in word and deed. Just because Nancy Pelosi stepped aside when she has a lot of people who are rising up to replace her is not the same as Biden's role. He is a victim of fascist propaganda techniques and if the press and stupid people get Biden to step down, they will have destroyed the USA just as Putin and Trump want him to. It won't be the fault of the MAGAs this time, but the fault of the Democrats to not be well informed enough to understand what is going on. People, if you are doubting Biden, you need to start reading and listening to fascism experts because you are falling victim to them.
Hooray American health care system!
Yes, it’s just ageism at work. I’m with Joe as long as he wants to continue as an our President. And if he can’t make it through the next 4 years, Kamala will do just fine!
Adding to your very apt comments, the President just spent a lot of time representing us proudly at the D-Day ceremonies and back to Europe again for the G6 conference.
And lots of environmental actions such as expanding or creating national monuments, killing really environmentally bad actions, involving Native Americans more in public land management, etc.
To include also, his pardoning of LGBTQ+ vets. Yeah!
For all those reasons and more, wearing my Dems Make Life Better T-shirt feels better than ever — The compliments I get fill me with hope. So much hope.
The back of the T-shirt lists Biden’s top priorities.
DemsMakeLifeBetter.org
Listing Biden’s wins on my back takes a weight off my chest.
Jill and I wore our Dems Make Life Better shirts all day yesterday in our errands about town.
I just bought one.
I just got my "Women for Biden/Harris" T. Now I wish I had gotten yours. Oh, well, can't afford 'em all! And I wear it proudly
I think that shirt is great and you have a lot of solidarity coming your way.
That solidarity will make your whole world feel more secure all the way to 11/5.
. . . and we may add: "Is neither a traitor nor a psychopath" --unlike some others who shall remain nameless.
Well, except naming him is always good. Especially when referring to "convicted felon trump"
Nobody is saying Biden hasn’t been a great President, but he is unable to continue. I am friends with a neurologist and she suggests that Biden is suffering from vascular disease and has noticed a difference in him since February. She says it will only get worse. Dems have a great bench. It is time to call on the Bench to defeat Trump. If Biden loses the election to Trump, Biden’s legacy will be ruined. We can’t stick our heads in the sand. My friends and family will vote for Biden regardless but voters who are not that interested in politics will have a hard time voting for Biden. It’s time to go Joe
Hi, Alan. I think your comment raises some of the issues I discussed in today's newsletter.
No one is asking your stick your head in the sand, and it is an unfair to suggest those who support Joe Biden are asking you to do so. If you want a replacement, then work your tail off to advance another candidate from the "great bench" you refer to. Electing a candidate takes hard work. You want someone other than Joe? Go do the hard work of getting someone to emerge from the pack and create a path to victory, but don't cast aspersions at those of us doing the hard work to elect Joe Biden. We disagree with you. You disagree with us. That's okay. We are on the same side. Let's treat each other accordingly.
I am so tired of Doctor’s, Psychiatrist’s and Psychologist’s who have never treated Biden diagnosing him. To me that is just unethical. Biden has been a great President, he has done wonderful things for our country. He has advisors and a cabinet that is top notch and will be able to continue. IF, and I mean IF, because NONE of us know, he cannot serve when he is into his second term, we have a capable and prepared Vice President who will be able to step in and take over.
The doctor is ethically prohibited from diagnosing a person she hasn't examined. She is entitled to her opinion as a citizen. So it is okay to say, "I have a friend" who believes X, but saying that "I have a neurologist friend" imputes to the doctor an opinion that doctor cannot ethically endorse as a licensed physician.
It's the "appeal to authority" logical fallacy.
Exactly!!!!
I want that doctor to explain how that supposed vascular disease had disappeared by the day after the debate when Biden gave that great speech at that rally in NC. I have had relatives with cognitive decline from vascular disease and they didn’t change greatly from day to day.
Biden has arthritis in the foot he broke which makes walking painful. Apparently walking gait is now another indicator of ability to be president.
I didn't know that about President Biden's foot. I'm 78 and what I admire most about President Biden is that he could easily retire and enjoy life with his family and friends. But he still wants to serve because he knows he can. For that alone, besides all of his accomplishments, I'm with him until he himself tells us hes done. Blessings,
It's not like convicted-felon trump moves well .... it's probable that he couldn't ride a bike either! (IMO)
A flipping men!
What is your friend’s long distance diagnosis of Trump?
As for having a great bench, we do. Kamala Harris. Sadly, if she were to be the candidate the likelihood of Trump winning would be improved significantly. As for any other Democrat, the legal and practical obstacles to starting a successful presidential candidacy 4 months before Election Day make riding a bicycle nonstop to the top of Everest look easy. Barring Joe gets hit by a truck, he is our candidate. End. Of. Story.
Absolutely. Thanks.
Exactly!
Has your friend examined him? No. Biden is the victim of agism and ableism. He has a life long speech disability. Stand in the shoes of a person with a speech disability for once. It is a sobering experience in compassion and understanding. The focus should be on the other guy.
No. And a presumed "vascular disease"? Really?
Yes Alan, “she suggests” without an examination, and states “vascular disease” which is broad term. That’s irresponsible. Citizens are free to be thoughtless as such, but as a physician she should not be so careless.
As someone mentioned, has she given a diagnosis to the king of word salads, the Convicted Felon? Hannibal Lecter, sharks versus electrocution, “Congress is doing numbers that are unbelievable “, his washing machine rant. He does it all time, but if Joe talked like that, he’d be crucified.
I am so tired of the asymmetry with the attacks on our President.
With all due respect to your friend, isn't it malpractice to diagnose somewhat without a review of medical records, patient history and medical exam? I seem to remember that from days as a plaintiff's attorney. And I agree that the Dems have a truly great bench. The 2028 primary is going to be great!
Amen
No ethicaPl medical professional or mental health provider would give a diagnosis opinion on a person who is not a patient and if the person is a patient to do so would be a HIPPA violation., I dispose of your friends assessment. Support Joe. but more important focus on voting for democracy. Who the candidate coiuld be is only a distraction from the REAL issue.
I disagree.
Sorry. This far down the "string," I can't tell with whom you are disagreeing.
Thank you for this list! I missed a few of those things when they happened. We could add in the vets who were pardoned, after being dishonorably discharged, for being gay.
But, but, but he single-handedly caused world-wide inflation with his big spending ways but has had nothing to do with our economy which is so strong that the World Bank revised its estimates of global economic growth because and this was the reason:
“World Bank: ‘Impressive’ US economy is powering the world”
https://thehill.com/business/4715951-world-bank-impressive-us-economy-is-powering-the-world/#:~:text=The%20World%20Bank%20upgraded%20its,growth%20predicted%20for%20the%20year.
I have asked several of my Democratic friends who stay reasonably well informed if they had heard about this action of the World Bank but not one of them had.
I hadn't heard either. That's great!
Yeah that's because the MSM is so obsessed with dogging on Biden that they aren't willing to broadcast anything positive. It's not a money maker for them, because reporting on his accomplishments might just lead to a boring election where Biden wins by 10 points. I imagine they're salivating at the prospect of the conservative court messing with the election - sooooo many clicks to harvest...
You’re missing an important point. People imagine at the end of his term Biden will be 86 and think either he will be delusional and need a walker or not functional. The image of an 86 year old is not pretty for many.
Not everyone ages the same way. President Biden takes care of his health and is likely to be as sharp at 86 as most 66 year olds. Most of us can think of many examples of vibrant, active 90 year olds. My dad was actively farming at 90, Betty White was making movies at 90 and beyond. The list of healthy, active 90+ year olds is long. Are these people the exception?Maybe, but Joe Biden is also an exceptional man and I trust him to know what he can no longer do the job.
Hey I’m 80 and live in a retirement community with the an average age is 84. In the health club many 80 plus folks are exercising all the time. We unfortunately live in a world where youth and vitality is promoted and expected. I agree with you that Biden is physically strong but for a few folks he looks old. The sad part is this election is not about age or health but about the future of democracy. Everything else is a distraction
But the things he's done for us are amazing!
and I saw Thelma last night. The lead is 94yo!
Joe Biden is NOT as physically/mentally fit as most 66 year olds. Most people in their 70's and 80's would think he is not. I do and I'm 78. Just wishful thinking like buying a quick pick lottery ticket.
There is no way I could have kept up with Biden’s recent foreign travel, speeches, rallies, etc. when I was in my forties. Biden got up the day after the debate, flew to NC and gave a great, very energetic speech.
Yeah, I think Biden's performance was much more affected by fatigue and jet lag than any dementia issues. But it planted that seed in a much wider field than it was before. This was more a case of bad judgement and over estimating what he can/could do than anything mental. Trump on the other hand would have had this explanation out there immediately after his poor performance.
In the last year he also made a trip to Asia where he conferred with leaders in eight or nine countries, in different time zones, over a day or two. That is amazing!
I don’t know how Joe Biden will be at 86. But I know that Trump at 78 is a clear and present danger, and that no other Democrat is as likely to win this year as Joe Biden.
Also Harris is more than ready to step in if needed. She has been a very involved VP, meeting regularly with Biden. She has also made successful foreign trips to Africa, Southeast Asia, South America and Europe that our shallow, lazy media couldn’t bother covering. I only learned about this when I heard longtime foreign policy/national security expert David Rothkopf say how impressed he had been after a meeting with Harris because the media can’t be bothered covering her. Some of them did, however, make time to cover her giggling and not in a positive way.
(Rothkopf made these remarks in an episode of his podcast Deep State Radio a few months ago. )
I think Biden has been very deliberately training Harris, ensuring that she could take over if need be. And I feel like she's done a great job of learning what she needs to know. I was very disappointed when Biden chose her, but I've come to have a lot of confidence in her, and I wear my Biden-Harris shirt proudly.
I wouldn't say Biden has been “training” Harris. He just treats her as a partner and gives her a lot of responsibilities just like Clinton did with Gore and Obama did with Biden. That is how all VPs should be treated to prepare them for the possibility of taking over as well as taking some of the load off the president. FDR was a great president but keeping Truman out of the loop on so many things was reckless. I always wonder what Truman was thinking when he was told about the Manhattan Project and that we had developed — or were very close to developing an atomic bomb. He must have been gobsmacked!
The media is wrong to ignore what VPs do. Instead of treating Dan Quayle as a joke they should have been telling us about the damage he was doing as head of Bush’s powerful White House Council on Competitiveness:
“The new game in town:
Regulation, secrecy, and the Quayle Council on Competitiveness”
“Since its founding in June 1990, the Quayle Council has meddled in numerous complex regulatory issues—including Clean Air Act regulations, wetlands protection, and nutrition labeling standards—inserting weakening changes designed to benefit business and industry. In addition, the Quayle Council recklessly pursues its deregulatory agenda in complete secrecy by refusing to comply with even the most basic standards of open government, such as the Freedom of Information Act.”
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0740624X9290045N
This is information we citizens deserved to have, not all the hype about Quayle misspelling the plural of potato.
Good points all around. Thanks! This kind of information is one of the things that makes comments sections so valuable.
She can if needed beat Trump.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/06/23/harris-voice-abortion/
so be it. But unlike Trump, he surrounds himself with smart and capable people!
The same can be said about trump—who currently (though three years younger) is in far worse physical and mental shape than President Biden.
Trump has a much lighter schedule.. He doesn't push himself like Biden does.
Which is exactly how 45 would handle the country. He doesn't give a damn.
Attempting to change the Democratic nominee at this point is playing into 45's and the far right think tanks hands. It cannot be done without permanent harm to the Democratic party.
Not sure of your point?
Stephen, imo, thats not an important point, its speculative, emotionally driven projection
If you look at all Biden has done since 2020 - all clearly documented; despite having magas block him at every turn, his wisdom and knowledge of the political ins and outs have greatly benefited us all. Yes, he is old and I take comfort in that he knows what he is doing. He had a bad debate. So f'in what! He knew he looked bad and he come out fighting the next day. I would much prefer a senior full of competent wisdom that walks slow to a truly deranged psychopath that WILL destroy our country. That is our choice in November. Who will you choose?
Yes it is but we can’t ignore that that is how some people feel.
“How they feel”? Of course. There is difference between recognizing how people “feel” vs promoting the notion that “because some feel that way, Biden should drop out”
87% of Democratic Primary voters DID NOT feel this way
I can’t change that some people “feel” things but I can question the data that brought them to their beliefs
Your "87% of Democratic voters DID NOT feel this way" statement is a big Non Sequitur based on your feelings not data. You're not convincing anyone with this logic.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Results_of_the_2024_Democratic_Party_presidential_primaries
Data is king in this instance
I’m pretty sure it convinces people that my comment was not about “feelings”
My mother had a cousin who passed the driving test "with flying colors," according to the driving instructor at age 96. (She died at 104.) My cousin Tom Hornbein was still mountain climbing in his 80s (google him). A high school friend's uncle rode his bicycle 20-30 miles a day throughout his 90s, until the day at age 99 when he dropped dead.
There is age discrimination in this country.
That is an unfortunate truth.
Eric, I'm sending your comment to my stepson. And to anyone else whose faith is shaken right now! Thank you!
Eric,
Would it be OK if I send this absolutely terrific comment of yours to my email list of 76 people--under your name, of course! It will probably buck them up.
Thanks,
David
Facts! Great post Eric and you hit the nail on the head.
Eric, I made a doc/meme with President Biden's accomplishments from the Biden-Harris accomplishments page. I was troubled by the stilted language that didn't really sound like benefits. Your list is brilliant! I wish they would use your language instead. I'm redoing my doc/meme - may I use and credit your list? Thank you!
Flaherty's email was really great!
Our world is in historic disarray. I ask, who out there as a viable candidate has Joe Biden’s knowledge of world politics? Who is as well versed in our alliances and how to proceed with the threats to so many nations? This man is a statesman. I back him over any other choice of candidate. Age is wisdom, and he has steered this country in difficult times. We need to come together to fend off the threat of the radical ( and rich but small) elements who have purchased our courts and our media. We are reaping the rewards of Biden’s administration. So now we abandon our best hope? I think not.
Karen, this is such a well-written comment. I hope you will share it far and wide 👍! I hope you don't mind if I borrow it?
AMEN!
I believe country comes before an elected president. It is, after all his job to preserve the Constitution and 72% would like him to move aside with thanks and appreciation. .
Kamala Harris is the one to carry his work forward and build on his record. He has been showing signs of aging as reported by many in the media so let’s say “America and DC thank you, Mr President, but please step aside”. And then let us support the amazing Ms Harris with all our hearts and souls.
Where are you getting this 72% from?
And of course she'll be there to pardon Biden when he sics Seal Team 6 on Trump and the 6 Supremes.
Not any of the governors of key states that Anne Applebaum thinks we should pick from for the next president.
Absolutely!!!
My rebuttal: Who is mentally worse off? Biden or Trump ? I think Trump but not because of anything in your statement. Most of the support for Biden on here takes some form of wishful thinking.
Easy actions to take: The press needs to hear from us. Take 5 minutes!
1. Unsubscribe from any daily newsletters cluttering up your email boxes from NYT and WaPo. Tell them why.
2. Write letters saying how disgusted and horrified you are to:
a. letters@nytimes.com
b. letters@washpost.com
3. Find your podcast app and rate Ezra Klein's podcast one star and leave a bad review telling him to stop undermining the voters. Or whatever you please.
4. If you can bear it, drop your subscriptions to those, tell the papers why and that you are spending your media money elsewhere.
You get the picture. I did all of those yesterday. We suspended our print subscription to the NYT (a compromise with my husband). It also stops our payment.
I've also been trying to do damage control in all my activist groups and to people who aren't activists but who think of the NYT and WaPo as the mouthpieces of a news deity. Make sure your friends and relatives read Robert's newsletter!
Also, as Josh Marshall wrote in his newsletter the other day, "I’m not going to name them. But I’ve seen a lot of really respected columnists, not just “respected” but people who are really good, saying Biden should step down. Every one I’ve read reads with a level of grandiosity that I found weak, reactive and vain. My two cents."
Add any other ideas in the comments!!
I had to turn off NPR in the car yesterday. Even if they're not slamming President Biden, their sentences are filled with negative adjectives in pieces about the "debate," etc. I've told them I'm withdrawing my continuing donation and why. (They won't miss the money🙄, but if enough of us do it, they might.) Whatever happened to straight news pieces vs. opinion pieces clearly marked as such??
I feel that same way about NPR -- used to be something I quoted every day. The journalism by and large is now 'piffle' - NO challenge of republicans being seriously challenged (like BBC journalists do) Just like Jake Tapper et al --- let them get away with murder, and then - and then THANK them for being (lying) on their show.
I finally pulled the plug last week on NYT,after a decades-long subscription,with a”farewell” note. I’d just paid for the month so still have sub for a couple weeks but haven’t looked back.
And for you Wordle addicts, did you know you can do Quordle for free ? https://www.merriam-webster.com/games/quordle/
Robert provided the link for ProPublica’s 21 -min unedited interview with President Biden. It was interesting to hear his comments about SCOTUS and his conversations with respected journalists.
ProPublica is a non-profit that relies heavily on donations and is transparent about their finances, unlike InJustices Alito and Thomas!
https://www.propublica.org/article/biden-interview-unedited-september-2023
I also cancelled my NYT subscription yesterday and told them why. They need to be diminished and that is the "vote" I have available to do that. I'm waiting on the WaPo but definitely looking at that. They are only marginally better.
NYT has sent me 5 subscribe offers in 3 days. I took the opportunity to tell them to f- off but spell check changed it to funky. Oh the mortification. 🥴
If you don't already know The Media and Democracy (MAD) Project, you'd appreciate them, especially their zoom meetings and Slack posts.
https://www.mediaanddemocracyproject.org/
Thank you, Ellie. This project makes so much sense right now and I wish every person who believes in a fair and free press would check it out. So important!
Didn’t know about this group
Will take a look.
Sandycreek, Agree with your suggestions to unsubscribe and tell them why. I did so this week. Enough.
I sent scathing letters to NYT and WAPO yesterday - and to the Guardian for jumping on the dump Biden bandwagon. I cancelled NYT in 2022 after their red wave crap but retained Wapo. Now I wonder if I want to keep them. Rock, meet hard place.
I want to support good media but no national paper seems to get how critical this juncture is for the future of democracy. Even my former boss, one of the most politically astute people I know, has called for Biden to step aside but then side stepped his decision to not go with Kamala Harris as the candidate. No, he’s neither racist nor sexist. The man is singularly responsible for having guided the process for passing some of the best climate legislation in the country here in MN including provisions about environmental justice and understands how critical Biden has been on climate. But he doesn’t see that no one else has the campaign infrastructure in place to be able to campaign effectively. So replacing Biden leads to autocracy under the Criminal. God forbid.
I appreciate your suggestion to rate Klein’s podcast too. Will get on that today. As Joyce Vance says, “We are in this together.”
Yeah - I write daily in the comments sections for the Times and WaPo --- frankly, I think it is like 'pissing against the wind' - if you'll excuse the vulgarity. They are inured to any challenge. I wont cancel my subscriptions - I DO want to see what they are saying. That said, it is Robert to whom I turn FIRST each day
Start listening to The Meidas Touch podcast or watch on Utube. They always uplifting, enthusiastic for Biden/Harris and highlight every stupid move #45 and RepubliCants make. Energizing and I lol! (Simon Rosenberg recommends them.)
Great ideas. We ditched NYT and Wapo is going now.
Whether you wish Biden to stay or step down, we all need to get loud about the dangerousness of Trump - his mental state and commitment to retribution. Many experts also point to signs of dementia. For any Biden blunder, Trump has more than we can count. He is in clear cognitive decline.
None of us can make this decision, but we can push back on the media with Letters to the Editor or contacting them through their website to ask for comparable scrutiny of Trump. We can also have conversations with others to focus on Trump’s dangerousness.
And of course, GOTV! Dedicate time and resources to getting voters registered. We need them to vote for the Democratic ticket-period. This is at least productive and gives us some control when everything seems out of control.
We are all needed now.
Whatever negatives folks hurl at Biden, Trump is infinitely worse in spades!
Did the media insist that Trump withdraw from the presidential race when a jury found him guilty on 34 counts? President Biden has one bad night and the media and "talking heads" want him to withdraw? Let's not keep giving Trump/MAGA's a free pass. There is NO comparison to the lies spewed by Trump and Biden's record of accomplishments. "90 mins on a debate stage do not negate 31/2 years of positive results!
YES! This 👆- calls to have the former guy step down from the race- when he does we can talk about Joe and not one moment sooner!
My physician colleagues and I will continue our strategy from previous elections: we write opinion pieces on healthcare issues for media in swing counties in Pennsylvania that explain what is at stake. We are greatly encouraged by Robert’s perspectives and invite people in any aspect of healthcare to join us. Create the America you want to live in. Some of you may recall that Robert once hosted us in his podcast. That’s called action, not handwringing. Want to pitch in? www.asknursesdoctors.com.
This sounds very interesting, Jeffrey. I am not a healthcare professional but I'm quite interested and will follow up. Thanks for the tip!
My colleagues and I appreciate it
Thank you!!!! It is a sorry state of affairs when former Republicans like Stuart Stevens and Rick Wilson defend our president (and see the stakes) more than the Democrats. As I mentioned in the Zoom yesterday, Stuart and Rick run Resolute Square https://resolutesquare.com/ which is a pro-democracy organization started to combat the biased media. They have great writers including Stuart and Rick plus others such as Ruth Ben-Ghiat. Please, everyone, stop fantasizing about some dream ticket that doesn't exist and get behind the most successful president in many lifetimes over.
TOTALLY!!!!
Robert, thank you for your always on-point, brilliant writing. I quote and paraphrase you widely as I respond to commenters in other forums who spread misinformation and seem to have bought into the negative press about Biden. Thank you also for the many resources you provide, and for the daily pep talks. I'm honored to be in this fight alongside you and the many warriors I see in the substack community and beyond.
Also, that was a helpful Zoom session today with you and Jill. Thank you for that.
Have a wonderful time with your family at the cabin in Sequoia National Park!
You said it! Robert keeps me informed and sane. I'm so grateful 🙏💫.
DITTO!!!
President Biden and his re-election campaign should stop being defensive about 1 bad debate night. Biden should be speaking out very aggressively, hollering from the White House roof tops that SCOTUS is a corrupt, incompetent, right wing advocacy group dangerously undermining our constitutional government and the rule of law. America is NOT a monarchy!
Biden must promise to add 4 liberal judges to the court as soon as he has a congressional majority so he can reverse the opinion on presidential immunity, restore abortion rights and national access to women's reproductive health care, voting rights, fair taxes and so forth. Coming out ANGRY and swinging and asking his fellow Democratic leaders will put the debate behind him and quell the nervous nellies among Democrats.
He should call out Chief Justice Roberts as a failed, partisan, misguided Chief Justice leading a highly unpopular court.
If he can’t do that… Then? It’s no shame. I blame the so-called debate entirely on his staff who scheduled him to be on stage being bullied at 8 o’clock at night. Unfortunately, this self-inflicted error cannot be unseen for low information or disinclined voters.
I simply can't BELIEVE that pundits and even legislators are handing the GOP the campaign slogan "even his own party doesn't like him." If you want to work for an alternate candidate, do it quietly, FFS. If you have nothing substantive or practical to suggest, shut the f up.
We already know that we live in a world where "optics" is way more important than substance. Why give the opposition such an easy target?
I am saddened that the evidence of 3 years of excellent Presidential performance are not the focus of ALL Dems, rather than one bad debate. My reaction has been to send more money to the Biden campaign. Trump and the Supreme court should be all the rallying cry we need to stay firmly with Biden&Harris.
I'm in favor of zapping the Neville Chamberlain/Marshal Petain Caucus - the Vichy Dimocrats who are the political equivalent of the Coward in "Saving Private Ryan" whose spinelessness got his buddies killed at the end of the movie. These people would have gone crying to Churchill that he should surrender after Dunkirk in 1940 and petitioned General Washington to negotiate a surrender with Lord Howe after losing the Battle of Brooklyn in 1776. They're the whiners with backbones made of a single strand of overcooked angle hair pasta, who peed their Pampers when Clinton "lost" the debate with Perot in 1992 and when Obama "lost" the debate with Rmoney in 2012. Unfortunately, they embarrass actual Democrats by claiming they're "progressives."
So far, I have canceled the NYT, the Washington Post, The New Republic, TAP, and ten surrender monkeys on Substack. I don't need to waste my time and money on idiots, fools, and morons. And as far as "gaslighting" is concerned, you droolers are the ones with the book of matches in your pockets.The Bulwark canceled me when I said Bill Kristol was still the same moron who danced us into invading Poland, er, I mean Iraq, back in 2003 (no loss). So far, too many of the Never Trumpers are turning out to be the same idiots I thought they were in 2015, including Charlie Sykes.
Something that strikes me as an overlooked, telling thing is the title of the case that brought the Supreme Court to this moment:
TRUMP v. UNITED STATES
Exactly descriptive of the inflection point we are at.
Thank you Robert, for providing leadership in staying the course.
My question is, who is it that is giving you such grief in maintaining that after 3 1/2 years of an extremely successful presidency, that Joe Biden should step down? I glanced through yesterday's comments and I do not see any of those folks making their own comment to make their case to all of us here. It seems to me, that if they can't say it to a "room" full of readers, then they really know they don't have a valid point. They are simply allowing themselves to be caught up in this media-driven frenzy, the goals of which you have outlined. ($$$$$)
Last week, you titled Today's Edition, "Joe Biden is going to win. Buck up". For crying out loud, those folks need to get on with it. Quit crying and start fighting. Fight like an American, fight for our freedoms, fight for Joe, just like he's done for us.
There is so much they can do. It's past time for them to turn their negativity into positive action.
I have been a free subscriber for a while.. Today's newsletter really bucked me up!. I was so grateful i became a paid subsctiber today.
Me too! :)
HCR: "We are in the problem now." Jack Swigert, Apollo 13 astronaut: "Houston, we've had a problem here." Erwin Chermerinsky, Berkeley Law Dean at today's UCI 14th Annual Supreme Court Term in Review program about US v. Trump: "the worst opinion ever written by SCOTUS." Go figure: CJ Roberts had a Biden moment when he wrote it. There is only one way to fix what's gone wrong: elect Joe Biden. Kudos to Rob: let's not be fooled [or ruled] by the media.
If Roberts had had a "Biden moment" he wouldn't have written that opinion. He revealed himself as the worst Chief Justice since Taney.
Were you on the zoom yesterday? I looked for you, but there were a lot of people!