Joe Biden survived his joust with the press, at least according to the clearing-a-bar-that’s-resting-on-the-floor standard of Biden ’24.
No, there was no single answer or flub or gaffe that was a catastrophic disaster, the killing blow, to Joe Biden’s campaign. He survived his joust with the press, at least according to the clearing-a-bar-that’s-resting-on-the-floor standard of Joe Biden ’24. At no other time in the modern era of the American presidency could any candidate survive the depression-inducing visual and auditory performance that Joe Biden delivered Thursday evening at his “Big Boy press conference” at the NATO summit in Washington.
It will, however, be enough.
Is there a single Democratic politician or campaign operative or voter who believes that Joe Biden looked good in that press conference? No. Only blood relatives or Biden’s personal staff who owe him their livelihoods will argue that, actually, Biden showed strength in his 50 minutes in front of the press.
But it will be enough for any Democrat who wants to avert his eyes and hide in a hole rather than confront the fact that Biden’s campaign has already been mortally wounded for 14 days.
Yes, Biden mumbled incoherently about taking a neurological exam. Yes, Biden implied that his economic and spending programs caused inflation. Yes, Biden said the quiet part out loud by revealing at the start, “I’ve been given a list of people to call on here.” Yes, Biden let slip that Dr. Jill was trashing his staff for letting him debate Trump. Yes, Biden decided to off-handedly bring up that other Democratic alternatives could defeat Trump in a general election. Yes, Biden chose to weirdly whisper his way through half a dozen punch lines. And yes, Biden referred to his general-election opponent as—**checks notes**—“Vice President Trump.”
But it will be enough. Joe Biden loves being president. He’s not going anywhere. He has yearned for the presidency for four decades, and he would have to be dragged out of the Oval Office. What’s more, the Democratic heavy hitters (or “the Lord Almighty”) who would need to confront him about his incapacity are unwilling to do so in public.
If Biden is going to be pushed out, the Democratic knives will have to come out in a way they haven’t before: It will need to be very public, very personal, very soon, and very ugly. Barack Obama would need to lend his credibility to the effort.
It’s not going to happen. And, no, an op-ed by George Clooney in the New York Times won’t be enough.
Democrats are still stuck with Biden, which means that Joe Biden is still on track to lose decisively to Donald Trump, the luckiest man to ever run for president of the United States.