President Kennedy once said, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” But the tide isn’t lifting Joe Biden’s boat; if anything, Joe seems to be washing out to political sea. Last night, Washington insider, Clinton hatchetman, and Democrat strategist George Stephanopoulos calmly but pointedly interviewed Joe Biden, hoping to shore up the old narrative’s sea wall. It didn’t work. NBC ran its post-interview story under the headline, “
Biden refuses to take a cognitive or neurological test in his first post-debate TV interview.” In its story, NBC reported an unidentified but very depressed House Democrat saying, “We’re doomed.”
CLIP: George S. interviews Joe Biden to find out if his brain works. (22:00).
Joe needed to have a
great interview to keep the S.S. Biden afloat. Instead, he performed just well enough to provide an excuse to keep on. But if the headlines are any indication, he didn’t perform well enough to plug the political leaks. Be warned that if you start watching the 22-minute interview, it’s hard to stop. It’s like watching one of those clips of a marina of boats crashing into each other in a tsunami, in slow motion, with circus music playing in the background. Ouch!
If you prefer to skip the video, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version (slightly edited for clarity and brevity):
GEORGE: When during the debate did you realize things were off the rails?
BIDEN: Trump lied 28 times!
GEORGE: But it seemed like you were having trouble from the first question in, even before he spoke?
BIDEN: I just had a bad night.
GEORGE: You told people, “just watch me.” The debate seemed to confirm their fears?
BIDEN: Afterwards I did 10 major events in a row. No slipping. And so. I just had a bad night. I don’t know why.
GEORGE: This seems to fit into a pattern of decline. (Cites NY Times.) Are you the same man today as when you took office?
BIDEN: In terms of successes, yes. I created NATO. Today I just announced 200,000 new jobs. I took on big pharma and beat them. All these were my ideas.
GEORGE: But what has all that work cost you, mentally, physically, emotionally?
BIDEN: I just had a bad night. I’m optimistic. We’re not a country of losers. I’m gonna (gives short campaign speech).
GEORGE: I, I, I understand all that. I’m asking about your personal situation. Are you more frail?
BIDEN: No. Look at my schedule. I have medical doctors travel with me everywhere I go. So, you know.
GEORGE: Have you had a full neurological evaluation? Would you?
BIDEN: I get a full neurological every day.
GEORGE: Have you had specific cognitive tests, and had a specialist evaluate you?
BIDEN: No one said I had to.
GEORGE: Would you be willing to undergo a test and release the results to the American people?
BIDEN: I have a full neurological exam every single day. I’m campaigning and running the world. Every single day. For example, today, I’m on the phone with Prime Minister … anyway, I shouldn’t get into detail … Netanyahu! And I’m takin’ on Putin. Every single day.
GEORGE: You have been doing that, but Americans are growing concerned. So the answer on the test is ‘no?’
BIDEN: No, I’ve already done that.
GEORGE: Are you sure you’re being honest with yourself? Did you watch the debate?
BIDEN: I don’t think so, no.
GEORGE: How will you feel next January if you ultimately lose the race?
BIDEN: As long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest job as I know I can do, that’s what this is about.
If Team Biden’s goal was to prove his brain cells are not ebbing out to sea, it didn’t work. The media has suddenly rediscovered
journalism while scraping barnacles off the bottom of the public opinion barrel. And the media, recently emerged from its four-year coma, remains unconvinced. In this morning’s first example, the AP said
it couldn’t tell whether Biden limboed under the low bar of establishing he’s not beached on a mental sand bar:
The Economist (which just ran a cover story featuring a walker with the Presidential logo on it), reported, “Joe Biden expressed confidence, bordering on arrogance,” and opined that the Resident’s ship of state is high and dry, stuck on the spiny reef of dementia:
The Economist found Joe’s pugilistic arrogance and his repeated denials of current polling realities offputting. “More coherent bluster,” the Economist primly concluded, “is still bluster.” Headlines in Democrat staples like
the far-left Daily Kos and Axios were even more blunt:
The AP’s article made perhaps the most significant point. I might be over-simplifying, but the AP agrees with C&C that the Debate Disaster transformed the Democrat world into clear “before” and “after” periods. In other words, it agreed that everything Biden does
now will be microscoped through the new-and-improved focal narrative of Sudden Biden Decline:
Digging through enervated liberal commenters, I found they seem to lean toward replacing Joe with a Kamala-Gavin ticket, which I think would be hilarious to watch and I give it my complete endorsement.
Please.
Finally, long-time Democratic strategist and deep-state bellwether David Axelrod described Biden’s interview as “sad,” and said that if Biden’s cognitive test was in fact his
daily job performance, then Americans think he failed:
CLIP: David Axelrod says Biden’s interview was sad (1:45).
In other words, the interview was the worst possible outcome for Democrats. It wasn’t bad enough to seal the deal for Biden’s removal, and it wasn’t good enough to fix Biden’s Debate Debacle. As Chaucer famously said, “Time and Tide wait for no Biden.” Or words to that effect.
Media is calling Stephanopoulos’s interview style “hard hitting but respectful.” But George missed the boat by failing to ask Joe a single thing about Hunter’s advice or the First Son’s invasion of the White House. That would have been fun.
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