SATURDAY, JULY 6, 2024
How did we get to this place? For starters, a frank admission:
We don't know which of these plans is more likely to produce a win in November:
Plan A: President Biden is nominated as the candidate again
Plan B: President Biden steps aside. Someone else becomes the candidate through a makeshift nomination process
Our guess would be that we denizens of Blue America have already earned our way out—that sacred Troy is destined to die this fall.
That said, anything can happen! With that in mind, we sat and watched President Biden's twenty-two minutes last night.
For the full transcript, just click here. We'll offer three reactions.
For starters, we'll go with this. This is what was said at one point—but did this actually happen?
PRESIDENT BIDEN (7/5/24): Well, look. After that debate, I did ten major events in a row, including until 2 in the morning after the debate. I did events in North Carolina. I did events in—in in Georgia, did events like this today, large crowds, overwhelming response, no— no— no slipping.
And so, I just had a bad night. I don't know why.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And how— How quickly did it, did it come to you that you were having that "bad night?"
PRESIDENT BIDEN: Well, it came to me I was having a bad night when I realized that even when I was answering a question, even though they turned his mic off, he was still shouting. And I—
I let it distract me. I— I'm not blaming it on that, but I realized that I just wasn't in control.
Even though they turned his mic off, Candidate Trump was still shouting? Did that actually happen?
Frequently, CNN aired a split screen during the debate. At such times, Candidate Trump was visible when President Biden was speaking.
We never saw or heard any sign that Candidate Biden "was still shouting" as the president spoke. Nor had we seen anyone make any such claim until last night.
We'd never seen anyone say that! Eight days later, this became the latest explanation for the president's "bad night."
Did that actually happen? We don't know, and Stephanopoulos didn't ask. Meanwhile, President Biden said he still doesn't know why he had that historic bad night.
We were puzzled by the claim that Candidate Trump was shouting. We came close to being actively offended by this:
STEPHANOPOULOS: The number of Americans who think you're too old to serve has doubled since 2020. Wouldn't a clear-eyed political calculus tell you that it's gonna be much tougher to win in 2024?
PRESIDENT BIDEN: Not when you're running against a pathological liar. Not when he hadn't been challenged in a way that he's about to be challenged.
Candidate Trump is "about to be challenged?" When exactly was President Biden actually planning to start?
To all appearances, President Biden was running behind Candidate Trump as he walked on the stage that night. He was going to have two major opportunities to challenge his vastly disordered opponent.
One of those two opportunities lay before him that night. But after a disastrous performance, we're now told that Candidate Trump is "about to be challenged!"
Here is the fuller exchange to which we refer:
STEPHANOPOULOS: The number of Americans who think you're too old to serve has doubled since 2020. Wouldn't a clear-eyed political calculus tell you that it's gonna be much tougher to win in 2024?.
PRESIDENT BIDEN: Not when you're running against a pathological liar. Not when he hadn't been challenged in a way that he's about to be challenged. Not when people—
STEPHANOPOULOS: You've had months to challenge him.
PRESIDENT BIDEN: Oh, sure, I had months, but I was also doin' a hell of a lot of other things, like wars around the world, like keeping NATO together, like working—
Anyway. But look—
"You've had months to challenge [Candidate Trump]," his interlocutor accurately said.
It's true that President Biden, like any incumbent president, had many other things on his plate. That said, we'd be inclined to add this to what Stephanopoulos said:
President Biden has also had months—indeed, he's had more than three years—to perform the fundamental presidential function of speaking to us the people.
Over the course of the past year, the president has been massacred with respect to what is happening at the southern border. He's been massacred with respect to various aspects of the cost of living (as distinct from the narrow technical meaning of "the inflation rate").
The president has had months and years to conduct a fireside chat, or an Oval Office address, in which he could have explained what he was doing in those two important arenas—in which he could have made it clear that he understands why so many people are concerned.
Like the silence of the absent God in Bergman's blubbering film, The Seventh Seal, the president has taken a pass on that obligation of office. He too has performed a vast silence with respect to those major concerns.
We would assume he hasn't explained himself because, for reasons which may lie beyond his control, he hasn't been capable of doing so.
Tragically, his ability to explain himself may lie beyond his control. But in the process on performing that silence, he has slid behind the most disordered presidential candidate in modern American history.
In our view, he's taken a pass on a major obligation of office. That said, we denizens of Blue America have been happy to stand in line to repeat unconvincing scripts about how amazingly great he has been.
We'll skip the early part of the interview in which the president said he "doesn't think" he "ever watched the debate afterwards."
Eight days later, he doesn't know if he has ever watched the tape of the debate? We found that answer weirdly hard to believe. Stephanopoulos let it go.
Completing the rule of three, we'll let you ponder this exchange as the discussion continued:
STEPHANOPOULOS: You've had months to challenge him.
PRESIDENT BIDEN: Oh, sure, I had months, but I was also doin' a hell of a lot of other things, like wars around the world, like keeping NATO together, like working—
Anyway. But look—
STEPHANOPOULOS: Do you really believe you're not behind right now?
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I think it's in— All the pollsters I talk to tell me it's a tossup. It's a tossup. And when I'm behind, there's only one poll I'm really far behind, CBS Poll and NBC, I mean, excuse me. And— uh—
STEPHANOPOULOS: New York—New York Times and NBC both have, have you about six points behind in the popular vote.
PRESIDENT BIDEN: That's exactly right.
In fairness, it's conventional for a candidate who's running behind to say that he doesn't believe the polls are right.
That said, President Biden may be the only person in the country who believes the race is a tossup at this point. Beyond that, recent history suggests that the Democratic candidate has to win the popular vote by at least several points to squeak out a narrow win in the electoral college.
If that recent history holds, that means a tie goes to Candidate Trump! With that possible outcome in mind, might we talk Tom Turkey?
President Biden was never a major political talent on the national level. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were. Joe Biden never was.
That isn't a moral assessment. Almost no one qualifies as a major political talent on that scale. Almost no senators qualify. Also, almost no governors.
That isn't a moral assessment. But even when he was at his best, President Biden didn't possess those rare abilities. Almost no one does.
Today, we would assume that President Biden's abilities have been diminished to some degree by some undiagnosed medical problem. Obviously, that isn't a moral failure either—but the reaction of his inner circle to this unfortunate state of affairs pretty surely is.
Under Plan A, he stays in the race. Under Plan B, he doesn't.
Anything can still happen, of course. But it seems to us that sacred Troy is likely destined to die under either of those approaches. Also, it seems to us we denizens of Blue America have relentlessly earned our way out.
In the coming week, we'll start to explain that assessment. On Monday, we'll start with the ridiculous performance by Candidate Trump at last Thursday's debate.
Long ago and far away, "Candidate Dukakis" made this exasperated statement as part of a famous sketch on Saturday Night Live:
"I can't believe I'm losing to this guy!"
Sacred Troy now seems to be losing to Trump. The question we need to ponder is this:
How did we get to this place?
"Even though they turned his mic off, Candidate Trump was still shouting? Did that actually happen? "
ReplyDeleteYes, it happened at least twice that I counted, because I didn't believe Trump would have the self-control to abide by the time limits. And he didn't. The mic didn't pick it up but you could still hear Trump talking. Biden effectively had to begin talking over him. Trump was admonished by the moderator that his time was up.
Why would Somerby question this?
Trump also paused mid-sentence and audibly farted during the debate, and possibly pooped his pants (open to interpretation), yet Bob ignores this too.
DeleteA president that responds to pressure by farting/pooping his pants won't be successful, and will endanger the safety and health of our country.
3:02 best comment of the week, thank you.
DeleteRob Stone and Martti Wallén have died.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting take on the campaign:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D3A-XT-VsI
Thoughts from Josh:
ReplyDeletehttps://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/couple-thoughts-on-whats-next
"Eight days later, this became the latest explanation for the president's "bad night."
ReplyDeleteSomerby has been making a deal out of the offering of several explanations for Biden's poor performance. Biden's staff said he had a cold, which accounted for his voice. Biden said he was tired, but then the opposition pointed out he had been back for 11-12 days and working at Camp David. Biden explained that the combination of his being ill and doing debate prep made him tired. Biden says he realized he was getting distracted when Trump was still talking with his mic shut off. That was in response to the question "when did you realize?"
Why can't all of these things be true? Why is Somerby insisting that it must be this or that but not both? Why can't there be a combination of factors all influencing Biden in various ways?
It is reaching to conclude that if someone offers more than one possible explanation that everyone must be lying and covering up for cognitive deficits? None of these other explanations has been discredited in my opinion, although Somerby is working hard today to suggest that Trump really did follow the rules (for possibly the first time in his life).
This makes Somerby look way too motivated to knock Biden and then I wonder why. What is Somerby's interest in taking Biden off the ticket? What actual Democratic voter works so hard to destroy his own ticket ahead of an election?
It is as if
I'd like to shoot the current ticket into outer space.
DeleteThat sentiment may be mutual.
Delete
ReplyDelete"Candidate Trump is "about to be challenged?" When exactly was President Biden actually planning to start?"
I guess they are planning an "October surprise" psyop, or some sort of a massive ratfucking operation, right before the election.
And this psyop is supposed to be so glorious and mighty that even a vegetable will win against its target, Mr. Trump.
We'll see.
No, I think the most likely challenge is that the war in Gaza is about to achieve a permanent ceasefire ending the fighting. This happened during the last conversation Biden had with Netanyahu Thursday (this week, not the day of the debate). That will give Biden a boost but it also shows that he is competent at his job and fulfilling his duties as president.
DeleteIf Democrats worked like Republicans, your speculations might be accurate, but we win in more legitimate ways without thinking of ratfucking as a legitimate campaign op.
A pause in Zionist genocide after they murdered tens of thousands of civilians? That's your "he hadn't been challenged in a way that he's about to be challenged"?
DeleteIt that's their plan, it'll be a failure. No, I don't think so. My guess: it has to be another smear.
No, helping to negotiate peace in the Middle East is not part of Biden's campaign planning, but it is something that will increase Biden's popularity and strength in the polls. Also, it was bound to happen and it is something that Biden knew was in the works when he spoke to Stephanopolis on Friday (after his Thursday call with Netanyahu).
DeleteYou can't blame Biden for saying he is going to campaign hard to win reelection, but Somerby finds a way to make that sound wrong. That's because Somerby's nitpicks are intended to tear down Biden, not to examine his interview. So, if Biden said he would campaign closer to the election he would be knocked as insufficiently energetic, but if he says he's going to campaign hard going forward, that too is wrong.
I don't know why @10:30 thinks a ceasefire won't work. Previous ones have lasted a decade or so, and you would think anyone would be happy to see shooting stopped. Another "perfect is the enemy of the good" response perhaps. If Palestinians don't get everything they want, immediately, then it isn't worth shit. Or maybe it is just that anything Biden does can't be any good, because...Trump.
"Candidate Trump is "about to be challenged?" When exactly was President Biden actually planning to start?"
ReplyDeleteBiden has been campaigning already, including with ads and billboards. Yes, this debate was part of the campaign, but so was the rally held the next day, and the 10 events since then.
Somerby asks why Biden is using the future tense to talk about his efforts -- well, the past has already happened and so there is only the future to talk about. Future tense does not imply nothing has happened up until now in Biden's campaign.
But we haven't even held the nominating convention yet, and the campaign doesn't start until then, most years. Trump started campaigning the moment he lost the last election. Yes, that was to set up his financial fundraising grifts, as much as anything, but Trump's never-ending campaign doesn't mean Biden had to do the same, with a country to run and a life that doesn't include always soliciting funds from supporters. This campaign IS Trump's life. For Biden, being president has taken priority.
This is an unfair and stupid knock on Biden by Somerby, but it reveals his motive to use any stick to beat this dead horse of Biden being somehow responsible for the coordinated attack on himself, because he hasn't been campaigning ENOUGH for Somerby's tastes.
Biden's political career is kaput. It's over. Now, it's just sorting out the long term political and historical damage and planning for a post-Trump world starting in 2028.
DeleteIf Trump is elected there is no guarantee there will be an election in 2028. Trump said so himself.
DeleteIt’s time for a new constitution anyway.
DeleteAs a lifelong Republican, I can say, if Trump is elected, that will be the end of the Republican Party.
DeleteI and many of my compatriots, fellow Republicans, are either not voting or switching our votes to Biden.
"we would assume that President Biden's abilities have been diminished to some degree by some undiagnosed medical problem. Obviously, that isn't a moral failure either—but the reaction of his inner circle to this unfortunate state of affairs pretty surely is"
ReplyDeleteAMEN!
All spoken without a shred of evidence.
DeleteAnyone can make up any story they want, if there is no need for corroboration. Look what Homer built out of nothing except the name of a long dead city, Troy. Somerby may be taking the wrong message from the Iliad.
DeleteSomerby's imagined narrative:
Delete"And then Jill turned to Joe and said tenderly, you may be demented to the point of not knowing your own dog's name, but together we can see this through, honey. I'll be president and you can wear the crown, oops, the badge of office. And then we'll hold a show in the barn and raise the money we need to pay the mortgage..." oops, wrong plot.
"All spoken without a shred of evidence."
DeleteDoes 90 minutes on national TV count as a shred?
No
Delete"That said, President Biden may be the only person in the country who believes the race is a tossup at this point. "
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately for Somerby, the polls have moved again and now Biden is back leading in some polls and ahead in several of the swing states. The debate never did move the polls as much as Biden's enemies had hoped it would, but his recent activities have moved the polls back to the upward trend they were on prior to the debate. Polls are not an excuse for dumping Biden.
Somerby asks how Biden could not know about his own polls. Somerby forgets that in addition to the public poll results, campaigns have their own pollsters and are also monitoring their efforts, more frequently than these public polls. Biden has inside knowledge about the impact of the debate on his campaign that Somerby doesn't.
Somerby asks why Biden didn't know whether he had watched the debate, as if that is a yes or no question with an answer everyone would know about themselves. Yes, that is probably true for Somerby, but what does Somerby think Biden does all day long? He is immersed in government work. For all Somerby knows, the question may have been difficult because someone showed Biden highlights or snippets -- does that count has having watched it? Or perhaps Biden read the transcript and wasn't sure whether that was the same as watching it. Or perhaps Biden asked a staff member to watch it and give him a detailed report, and he was wondering whether that meant he had watched it? Hesitations can mean a variety of things, not necessarily that one has a cognitive deficit.
If Biden's only job were campaigning, he would automatically have rewatched the debate, much as a team would watch its own game tapes. But Biden is president and his day is full of other activities, ALL of which are more important than rewatching a debate after someone has already told him it went badly. Somerby's accusation amounts to demanding that Biden must have neglected other tasks that are arguably more important. The debate was likely water under the bridge for Biden, and if he hesitated in his response, it was more likely due to thinking about what to say about the debate rather than remembering whether he watched it or not.
"But Biden is president and his day is full of other activities, ALL of which are more important than rewatching a debate after someone has already told him it went badly."
DeleteAt this moment, with this choice before the voters, one of Biden's most important duties is determining whether he should continue as a candidate. A big part of that decision would be to objectively assess how bad his debate performance was.
So yes, he should have watched the debate.
He has made that decision and he is not dropping out. A debate is not a big part of the job. Watching his own performance (after being there) is not important unless you are preoccupied by optics, like pundits and narcissists. A winner doesn’t obsess over failures. Trump doesn’t even admit his failures. Why are pundits and defectors wanting to grind Biden’s nose in a debate where Trump refused to answer questions?
DeleteTo clarify for 10:30, Biden actually got a poll bump from the debate (Americans are misunderstood, especially by ignoramuses like Somerby), but then lost that bump when corporate media came out as being in agreement with Republicans that Biden should drop out.
DeleteNow that Biden has fought back, the polls are moving in his favor.
Fighting right wingers, not acquiescing to them, is the way to win.
It is unsurprising that corporate media toes the Republican line, this is what they have always done.
Notably, Republicans are desperate for Biden to drop out, if they really thought Biden was washed up, they would not fear him, as they obviously do.
Great! Biden is leading in some polls and ahead in several of the swing states. Thanks for sharing these important facts.
DeleteAs Biden said in the interview. The race is tied.
DeleteTrump got a "poll bump" from one of his "whores" if you know what I mean.
Delete"A debate is not a big part of the job."
DeleteIt's not a big part of being President. It is a big part of running for President.
No, it is a trivial part given that both candidates have already been president.
DeleteI expected a friendly interview. Instead Stephanopoulos relentlessly attacked Biden. Question after question asking Biden prove he wasn’t incompetent. Repeating the question implied to th audience that Biden’s responses were inadequate.
ReplyDeleteI expected a friendly interview.
DeleteThat's because you're a dumb fuck whining right wing jackass. The idea that this was going to be a softball interview, with the entire cackling beltway politcal heathers tuning in to watch one of their own flay the President is so preposterous only an idiot like DiC would have expected it.
No, Trump is the one who only does interviews when he is guaranteed a sponge bath from the interviewer.
"But it seems to us that sacred Troy is likely destined to die under either of those approaches."
ReplyDeleteHere Somerby says it explicitly, damned if we do and damned if we don't, which has been an ongoing message of his.
What does he mean when he says we blue tribers have "earned our way out"? That makes no sense to me.
There is no point in debating whether Biden or Kamala will run, or any other plan. Biden said unequivocally that he is not dropping out of the race. He has earned the delegates and those are the will of the voters in the primaries and cannot be discarded just because pundits are in a panic or the media is calling Biden names. There is no alternate path at this point, with or without Harris. Biden ran and he has won the nomination with 90+% of the votes.
Speculation undermines the candidate, but this is exactly what Somerby did in 2016 and 2020.
We are dealing with a deteriorating physical condition, not a one-time political event that can be overcome through spin. This condition will never not be on the mind of anyone watching him and it will only get worse. It's probably Parkinson's related. And now that the press is being called out for missing the story, they're going to go overboard in the other direction, scrutinizing every move with extreme prejudice.
DeleteIt is best that Biden sees his "nomination" through and runs this time. The alternative may fracture and damage the party in too great a way. Donors will be encouraged to send their money to States and down ballot candidates. (This is what happened with the Bob Dole candidacy, they knew he was going to lose and spread the donor money elsewhere and regrouped.)
So the calculus would be: accept reality, let him run even though he has no chance of winning, plan and execute a long-term strategy and moderate platform for the recovery.
That condition is called aging. If you think more is going on, you need a medical evaluation, not your opinion based on looking at him in a video. No one wants Trump to win so we Dems will be supporting Biden, not just downticket races. Why do you think so many of us sent Biden money AFTER the debate.
DeleteSend him all the money you want but he has no chance of winning. That's why his donors are pulling out.
DeleteOne visible donor pulled out. There are more fish in the sea.
DeleteThe press has been focusing on Biden's age and an age-related decline since 2020. This is the one of the main thrusts behind Trump's campaign.
DeleteBiden is correct, the race as it stands now, is a toss up, but with Trump's ugliness and Dems outperforming since Trump came on the scene, Biden may have a slight edge to win; however, this edge needs to also overcome dirty tricks like voter suppression.
Americans support progressive policies in theory but are also captured by strong emotional pulls towards oppressions like racism and sexism, manifestations of an obsession with dominance.
"President Biden was never a major political talent on the national level. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were. Joe Biden never was."
ReplyDeleteBiden was Obama's VP, a long time senator (1979-2003) and was successful at uniting the Democrats to beat Trump. That makes him a major political talent. Somerby perhaps means to say that Biden is not charismatic. Hillary was blamed for that too, but like Biden, worked hard and earned her way by being intelligent and competent. There is a lot to be said for having such people in office. Trump may be said to be all charisma and no substance and look what that gets us.
Al Gore was VP also, and he was so lacking in charisma that he couldn't get elected after Clinton's successful presidency, largely because Bush WAS charismatic and Gore couldn't figure out how to run against that. Biden solved that problem against Trump in 2020, which is why he should remain our candidate. No one has called Harris charismatic -- she is, like Biden, highly intelligent and hard working.
So, Somerby is grasping at straws with this one.
"Today, we would assume that President Biden's abilities have been diminished to some degree by some undiagnosed medical problem."
ReplyDeleteHere is a fatuous statement. What does diminished mean? It can mean he is not as sharp as when he was 20, or 40. Somerby may intend it to mean he has dementia or cognitive issues. Is aging a medical problem? Most doctors don't think so, because they distinguish between healthy aging and medical problems arising in old age (which doctors know are not inevitable). Major medical problems occur in 25% of the elderly, which leaves the large majority unimpaired in the way Somerby hints at.
Given that Biden has a yearly comprehensive physical (and releases the results, as he did this year too), how likely are any medical problems to be "undiagnosed"? Not likely. So the alternative claim must be that Biden is hiding something. But not very well, if everyone claims they can tell he is demented. Everyone except his doctors and those who interact with him daily, including Congressional Republicans and world leaders.
Somerby thinks these fake videos showing Biden wandering aimlessly are real. He thinks he himself is competent to diagnose dementia from such videos (and the debate) when doctors insist not just on a screening test (like the one given to Trump after his emergency visit to the hospital, which he claims he "aced") but on MRI and a whole battery of exams to diagnose someone showing troubling behavior symptoms (forgetting close relatives, getting lost in a familiar place) none of which Biden has shown. But Somerby doesn't think a professional exam is needed to diagnose Trump as crazy either (not a medical term).
This is unfair to Biden and to Democrats and to the American people, who really really don't want to see Trump reelected. So, why is Somerby doing this? Maybe to feel important himself, maybe for money, or maybe because he is an asshole. It is clear that he is not helping Biden get elected and that is odd when Somerby said he would vote for Biden. Has he changed his mind about that? It would seem so.
Taking Somerby at face value is pure folly.
DeleteReading this blog at all is pure folly, unless you’re a paid troll like me.
DeleteYou're crazy.
DeleteI read The Daily Howler, so yes, I am crazy.
DeleteHow can Somerby say that Biden is not a major political talent when he managed to get elected President while in the throes of late-stage dementia?
ReplyDeleteEarly-stage.
DeleteEarly stage wouldn’t be noticeable.
DeleteWhen he got elected, his cognitive decline wasn't noticeable.
DeleteWe all decline from a peak in the early 20s. Decline isn’t the point. It is his current ability to function that matters. Those work closely with Biden, those who have meetings with him, and his doctor (who examines him yearly, all say he is competent to continue serving as president. People age differently and Biden is unusually healthy for his age. That needs to be considered because he is doing too good a job to cast aside based on stereotypes of aging, or talking slower or walking stiffly. His mind is sharp according to those who have evaluated him.
DeleteThe media will talk about anything to keep from discussing the Trump problem. This "Biden steps down"
ReplyDeletething is just the latest distraction.
What makes Troy sacred? It isn’t a holy city in any religion.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteWell, for starters, the Trojans weren’t living on a beach, instead of attending to their own estates. They weren’t hundreds of miles from their wives and the children who grew up without them.
DeleteDon’t tell me the Achaean men weren’t more than happy to be sitting around bonfires at night and ankle deep in blood by day from the results of their cool strategy sessions. They LOVED every minute.
If I were Penelope, I would have had a new husband AND a boyfriend by the time Odysseus got his butt home.
And if you were Clytemnestra?
DeleteThey weren’t fighting every day during the 10 year siege. If they were, the war would have ended much sooner.
DeleteAnonymouse 1:20pm, the Achaeans were practice fighting, telling tall tales, and fooling around with concubines.
DeleteAnonymouse 12:34pm, I like her.
DeleteShe killed Agamemnon.
DeleteAnonymouse 1:46pm, I know. He needed it.
DeleteThat’s ridiculous.
DeleteCecelia pretending to be a woman is so bizarre.
DeleteShe is also pretending to be American.
DeleteHe is also pretending English is their first language.
DeleteNow she’s pretending to be Achaean.
DeleteShe is a he.
DeleteThere is no way to verify that on the internet and s/he has told other lies.
DeleteI am any gender you wish me to be.
DeleteI am decidedly NOT an anonymouse.
No one would mistake you for anyone rational, or empathetic, or educated, or informed, or fluent in English or funny. Why they gave you this assignment I don’t know, unless supporting Somerby’s crap is low priority because he lacks influence.
DeleteSupporting Somerby’s crap is Putin's highest priority and he will spare no effort. His eastern-European forces are intimately and aggressively involved, funded via Iran and Qatar though Truth Social. Our democracy is at stake.
DeleteWhat an ass Somerby is. My finger smell funny.
I am Corby.
Anonymouse 3:40pm, surely we know that Bob isn’t lacking in influence because you anonymouse geniuses are assigned to rough him up.
DeleteThen again, even if you weren’t for hire, the intensity of your interest here bespeaks to his importance. Get back to me as to the personal dynamics when you can make an argument that doesn’t invariably leak like a sieve.
Now you are sounding goony. No one here owes you anything. You specialize in stupid one-liners and wouldn’t recognize an argument if it slapped you in the face. You are the MTG or Boebert of commenters.
DeleteYour MAGA tears are duly noted.
DeleteAnonymouse 4:36pm, yet another example of your mental clarity. You took my last comment as a serious, if presumptuous, request that you “get back with me”.
DeleteIf you are on the internet, you are not as anonymous as you might think.
DeleteCecelia is a man.
Anonymouse 4:50pm, it’s very reassuring of you to let me know the level of accuracy as to your internet information.
DeleteIf Mr. Soros says that Cecelia is a man, a man she is. Case closed.
DeleteAnonymouse 5:15pm, as though nobody didn’t know that you’d be hacking your breasts off and mainlining testosterone at the lift of his pinkie finger.
DeleteYes, my commitment is unwavering. And my obedience is absolute. Because our democracy is at stake.
DeleteAnonymouse 5:36pm, the last thing Soros is doing is reading your ode to your willingness to cut off your breasts at his command. Get some help.
DeleteMy breasts are sacred.
DeleteWhat sex am I?
DeleteBad sex.
DeleteGratuitous insult.
Delete“Frenchy LaRue”. Gratuitous? HA!
DeleteI love Cecelia. I accept her with all her flaws. I would not try to change her in any way. I love that lady.
DeleteThen teach her what gratuitous means.
DeleteWhat is the sex of someone who goes by the name of “anonymouse” you ask.
DeleteWanking.
You can’t say anything intelligent so you come here to insult others over stupid shit like nyms.
DeleteAnonymouse 11:16pm, calm down.
DeleteAnonymouse 11:41pm, we don’t have political associations and donors to candidates in order to just throw everything to the wind and see if the voters back a candidate who seems incapable of fulfilling his job right now and certainly in the years to come.
ReplyDeleteParties can decide to do that anyway, but it’s not a default decision based upon some assumption that it’s only fair to the voters.
Biden has shown himself capable of being president, not debates against someone like Trump. Which is more important? Presidenting or debating?
ReplyDeleteAfter the Supreme Court immunity decision, the president must be someone of good character. Biden’s strength is his character. Trump is a crook. Biden has an abundance of the qualities needed to be president and that has nothing to do with debating well.
ReplyDeleteCope.
DeleteYou need to deveop more than a one-word vocabulary.
DeleteMAGA tears.
DeleteFrom Raw Story:
ReplyDelete“ No, President Joe Biden didn't suffer a medical emergency while aboard Air Force One on Friday. But that didn't stop allies of former President Donald Trump from falling for — and spreading — a phony medical crisis on social media.”
They are calling this a hoax that the right fell for, but why is it not just another false story spread by Republicans to portray Biden as too old?
In my opinion, the entire claim that Biden has cognitive problems (without medical evidence, based on stutters) is itself a hoax designed to harm Biden among voters. Another false story denied by everyone in contact with the president.
Raw Story needs to learn to cope.
DeleteMAGA tears.
DeleteAnonymouse 1:16pm, “preside ting” will be the course they take if and when they are convinced that Biden’s debate problem is a tempest in a teapot.
ReplyDeleteThey will take that course because it’s pragmatic, rather than merely being something they feel they owe to his voters.
"The question we need to ponder is this:
ReplyDelete"How did we get to this place?"
I'm inclined to disagree with Our Host, at least for now. The storm rages and its time to act and save the ship. How we got into the storm in the first place isn't a top priority.
Cope.
DeleteMAGA tears.
Delete** Biden’s “Presidenting” history will matter if and when…
ReplyDeleteA former president and current Republican candidate for a second term in office stood before the American people last week and told whopping big lies for an hour and a half.
ReplyDeleteOur Host averts his gaze.
"On Monday, we'll start with the ridiculous performance by Candidate Trump at last Thursday's debate."
DeleteOr his commenters are too dumb to read.
Learn to cope, QiB. Learn to cope.
DeleteThe debate was more than a week ago and Somerby is just noticing there were two participants but we commenters are the dumb ones? No.
DeleteIn this case 'QiB' made another really dumb comment.
DeleteI agree with QiB that Somerby is averting his gaze when he should be focused on Trump’s debate.
DeleteQiB is making better comments than they did in the past, and you can tell by how much they trigger the right wing trolls.
DeleteAnonymouse 2:41pm, you’re saying what you always say and that is that Bob should reliably march to the utterly partisan drumbeat of a political operative rather than that of a honest political observer and analyst. Otherwise Bob is a Putin stooge.
DeleteThat’s your job because you ARE a political operative. Bob’s job is to ignore your torches and pitchforks and regale his readers with the best that he has to offer as an aligned, but intellectually objective thinker.
You practice your craft and Bob employs his gifts despite you. It’s the circle of life…
Samsara.
Delete3:09 quite a rant, but fails to persuade. Keep trying, though, it is mildly amusing, at any rate.
DeleteHow is it honest to ignore Trump’s horrible debate while targeting Biden?
DeleteAnonymouse 3:14pm, and it pays your light bill.
DeleteYou oughtta know.
DeleteAnonymouse 3:17pm, Bob didn’t ignore Trump’s performance, he repeatedly called him a liar.
DeleteIn case you haven’t noticed It was Biden’s performance that was controversial in the minds of the media .. who were all suddenly shocked! shocked!
The interesting dynamic here at TDH is that anonymices would still be bitching Bob out even if he had made it ALL about a bad performance by Trump.
Who knows how long you’d go on with that before you finally got word from your overlords as to pulling back.
Somerby himself said he didn’t see Trump continue talking with his mic cut off. That shows Somerby was not paying attention to Trump’s mistakes, just Biden’s flubs.
Delete3:30 this is false.
DeleteBob earned a reader base by exposing the media for being stenographers for Republicans. Now that Bob has turned his back on that, and does little more than think up various ways to trash Dems, Bob has earned the criticism.
Anonymouse 4:35pm, and none of that would mean diddly if you thought for one minute that Bob wasn’t persuasive and still a player among a cohort who don’t make public comments on blogboards.
DeleteYour intensity and presence bespeaks his importance.
My intensity is about the wrongs to Biden.
DeleteYour anonymouse intensity as to Bob started long before June 27.
DeleteCan you prove that?
DeleteAnonymouse 6:18pm, yes, it’s called Bob’s incomparable TDH archives.
DeleteMy very own Nonny Mouse?
DeleteMr. Soros is going to be so pleased with me.
Bob has no influence.
Delete"Bob earned a reader base by exposing the media for being stenographers for Republicans."
DeleteThis is not exactly correct. He always mostly wrote about liberal journalists inventing derogatory scripts about liberal politics and politicians, doing Republicans work for them and liberal audiences idly sitting by and letting them do it. Maureen Dowd, Tim Russert, Chris Mathews, Michael Kelly, Katharine 'Kit' Seelye, Arriana Huffington, David Browder, Frank Rich etc. Implied and often explicit, it was an admonishment towards liberals like ourselves for not standing up to this conduct by so-called liberal journalists. It's always been about liberals like ourselves not looking at our own behavior and (docility? arrogance? stupidity?) while the media underperforms and misrepresents against out own interests sometimes with disastrous results.
You remember the 'ole days in a rosy way that gives contrast to your accusations and must feel good but is pretty much totally wrong.
One wonders if you are intentionally or unwittingly misrepresenting. (Both are exceedingly pathetic.)
He is 3 years into a presidency full of solid achievements. You are referring to some “they” but the people will decide at the polls. There is no “they” capable of removing Biden without medical cause. The people who could do that are saying he is fine.
ReplyDeleteAnonymouse 2:07pm, how does “the people who could do that are saying he is fine” differ from what I have said is the process?
ReplyDeleteIt would take applying Article 25. You were vague, supporting the idea that there are some mysterious kingmakers who decide whether Biden goes or stays out of expediency. Biden decides or there is a specific procedure but no “they” to snap their fingers and make anything happen.
ReplyDeleteWhat "the people who could do that" do, apparently, is just buying time till they announce the replacement. And, perhaps, they still aren't certain who the replacement is; still calculating and wheeling-dealing. Plus placating The Family.
ReplyDeleteThis is nonsense. Fiction.
ReplyDelete“ Ratified in 1967, the 25th Amendment requires the vice president and the principal officers of the executive departments to notify the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House through a written declaration that the President of the United States is unfit to serve.”
ReplyDeleteVP Kamala Harris has made a public statement that Biden is fit.
Anonymouse 2:32pm, I never said that party sachems make snap decisions. I stated the opposite. They don’t need to invoke Article 25 to stop Biden from running. It takes little things…such as big donors not donating.
ReplyDeleteI said the party leaders try to make thoughtful decisions based upon pragmatism and a view as to how things will play out in the weeks to come. Obviously, if they piss off a lot of Democrats, they will stay home and not vote on any candidate, but such a decision is not merely predicated on voter opinion.
Katie Johnson was raped by Trump. She was 13.
ReplyDeleteThat should be disqualifying for rational voters. Why is Trump still in the race. He needs to be replaced.
DeleteCope with it.
DeleteSo many MAGA tears, one needs an umbrella.
DeleteCope.
DeleteNope dope.
DeleteDope.
DeleteAt least Trump gave her money for an abortion.
DeleteShe got better treatment in that sense than all of the other women Trump has sexually assaulted, likely because she resembled and was the same age as Trump's daughter, who Trump has a strong sexual interest in.
Party sachem is a conspiracy theory word implying behind-the-scenes puppetmasters. Biden decided to stay in and Harris is backing him. There is no invisible hand that can remove him.
ReplyDeleteYou are trying to sound authoritative but you are a clownish right wing troll with no idea what you are talking about. At least you used the word sachem correctly but you seem to have no idea how our govt works.
ReplyDeleteU.S. Mainstream Media Await New Orders Now Their Big Lie About Biden is Rumbled
https://dailysceptic.org/2024/07/06/u-s-mainstream-media-await-new-orders-now-their-big-lie-about-biden-is-rumbled/
Right wing disinformation.
DeleteFrom Wikipedia: “ The Daily Sceptic is a blog created by British commentator Toby Young. It has published misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines[9] and climate change denial.”
DeleteFrom The Daily Sceptic: "Wikipedia is a pile of Democrat bullshit."
DeleteReality does skew Democratic.
DeleteIf you say so, Mr. Soros.
DeleteThis is what passes for a snappy comeback among MAGAs.
DeleteAntisemitism.
DeleteYes Sir, Mr. Soros. Whatever you say.
DeleteFuck off
DeleteI will gladly fuck off, for only $200, Mr. Soros. It's a bargain.
DeleteMAGA tears.
DeleteA Black actress spoke out about Project 2025 and now Trump is trying to backpedal.
ReplyDeleteFucking hilarious.
Unfamiliar with Taraji's work but she is hot af and has gained a new fan.
Anonymouse 3:01pm, it doesn’t take an iota of insider info or acumen to know that the question to which I originally responded contained a naive assumption.
ReplyDeleteYOU are not naive, you are merely here to yell “Up!” when the wrong people say “ Down”.
You are definitely one of the wrong people!
ReplyDeleteFrom Rawstory, describing a filing by Trump’s attorneys to Judge Cannon, in which a derogatory remark about Biden’s debate performance was made:
ReplyDelete“ Katie[Phang], I was a federal prosecutor for 30 years and I have never seen language like that in a court filing from a defense attorney or prosecutor," he exclaimed. "Any self-respecting judge would consider ordering it stricken from the motion and then issuing a show-cause order, directing the attorney who authored it to show cause why they shouldn't be sanctioned for turning a court filing into a campaign ad."
This is what happens when Somerby and the media normalize Trump’s behavior. Biden deserves the respect accorded a president.
Here are the actual words that the prosecutor was offended by, according to the Raw Story article. These words don't look so horrible to me. YMMV
Delete"Here is what they say at the opening paragraphs of yesterday's court filing. Quote, 'President Biden's exceedingly weak debate performance on June 27th.' Quote, 'President Biden's failing attempt to communicate with the voters."
The point is that this is a legal document not campaign materials. Dissing the president is not relevant, it is disrespectful and not factual. This is inappropriate in a court filing.
DeleteYou're probably right @6:17. But, do you know what the pleading was about? I couldn't tell from the snippet at Raw Story. If we knew the purpose of this particular pleading, we might thing the words could be relevant.
DeleteFor all we know, the defense might have a reason why these words are relevant, although I do not know of any such reason.
What kind of pleading the classified documents case would justify that?
DeleteI don't know @7:58. In fact, I don't know why the debate was mentioned at all, let alone Biden's performance.
DeleteGrasping for conceivable relevance, maybe Trump's likelihood of being elected President had some possible effect on the pleading. But, I doubt it.
The filing for dismissal was rejected.
DeleteAnonymouse 3:19pm, that’s very reassuring. Thank you.
ReplyDelete@ OP
ReplyDeleteThose shouting about this comment from Biden apparently want a candidate who will promise to do more than he or she possibly can and will guarantee that none of their wishes will ever be denied.
Basically, children.
Trump was behind in the polls in 2020 and then lost, yet Republican donors threw lots of big money at him, and continue to do so.
ReplyDeleteTrump has also convinced Republican donors to throw big money at lots of other candidates, and that endeavor has a very bad track record, losing most of the time.
Biden has more individual contributions than Trump, and the amount of those contributions outpace Trump's by about 70 to 1.
So what. Don't get so triggered.
Chill out and listen to some good music:
https://youtu.be/S9nGrC8R8a4?si=kIlv4Qn51J8-mJTg
Anonymouse 4:36pm, why would I be triggered by your argument that party bigwigs and their moneyed friends went with Trump despite his low polling numbers with VOTERS. The actions of these party bosses were not the automatic result of voter opinion.
ReplyDeleteThat voters were or should be the biggest and most immediate impetus as to party decisions was the argument that I contested.
I think you meant to say Biden not Trump. Calm down.
ReplyDeleteNo, I meant to say Trump in reply to 4:36pm.
ReplyDeleteWouldn’t it be smarter for you to actually read the conversation rather than telling me (subconsciously -telling yourself) to calm down?
Insert the word Republican before party bigwigs and your meaning will be clear.
ReplyDeleteTrump’s most outrageous statements are passed off as jokes but that isn’t how his followers experience them. Via Daily Kos:
ReplyDelete“ As most of us realize by now, this was nothing unusual for Trump. He consistently exploits the use of crass humor to convey cruel, autocratic, and often violent aspirations that might otherwise be deemed offensive and unacceptable. Trump’s followers not only expect this use of humor, they actually crave it because it solidifies their allegiance to him. Through such statements Trump conjures up a common enemy for his crowds and supporters to focus their resentments and grievances on: liberals, Democrats, women, immigrants, in fact anyone who might object to being singled out for ridicule and debasement. These are his perennial targets, the ones who by definition are not in on the joke.”
This same dynamic is used by Gutfeld.
urged Dana White, the head of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, to create a team of (presumably undocumented) immigrants who would be trained to fight the UFC’s regular league. Of course, Trump never elaborated on how such a league would be created or what methods would be used to enforce its compliance, leaving that to his listeners’ imaginations.
DeleteAs reported by Politico’s Natalie Allison and Jared Mitovich, Trump’s supporters in the crowd later minimized the remarks as jokes, noting that this was Trump’s way of “expressing how some of these illegal immigrants coming [into] this country are hardened criminals.” As Allison and Mitovich observe, the crowd reacted to Trump’s statements with laughter and approval.
Whoever wrote this comes across as humor-impaired. Of course, it was a witty way of making a point. The use of clever tropes like this illustrates Trumps persuasive skills. He effectively drove home his point (which may or may not be valid) that there are many hardened criminals among the illegal immigrants. This comment is on a level of Snopes sometimes fact-checking jokes.
Of course, it was appropriate for the audience to laugh and clap at this clever joke.
We already know that there is a wide humor divide between left and right.
DeleteNothing clever about Trump’s obvious ignorance about Lucha Libre.
DeleteDavid in Cal,
DeleteDoes Trump's ability to persuade a large group of bigots to believe there is a national epidemic of post-birth abortions say more about his persuasion skills or more about his audience of bigots?
Once again my reply to DiC has been deleted. It appears TDH has a soft spot for the racist fuckface.
Delete@7:01 I read that the number of abortions is up despite the restrictions in some states. This is fine with me since I am pro choice
DeleteI read that some women are with pregnancy complications are bleeding out in hospital parking lots because doctors won't risk being arrested for treating them. This is fine with DiC because he has no moral core and is a fucking fascist prick.
DeleteIs Biden suffering from Parkinson's Disease? I had seen one or two doctors quoted as saying that Biden's symptoms looked like Parkinson's. Now we have this
ReplyDeleteDr. Kevin R. Cannard, a Parkinson’s disease specialist, has visited the White House at least nine times in the last year, official White House visitor logs show. https://alexberenson.substack.com/p/very-urgent-a-parkinsons-disease
Of course, none of this is conclusive.
No, Biden’s yearly health report does not say he has Parkinson’s. He did break his foot months back.
DeleteIt is better when people stick to facts instead of speculating from video, even doctors.
He exhibits a few of the common symptoms. Slow walking, hoarse voice, falling, masked face, less blinking etc. He's going through something difficult, plain to see.
DeleteHe may be a donor or someone working on a govt program or soliciting funding for Parkinson’s research. Or he could be a family friend or related to a Hamas hostage or lobbying to be appointed an ambassador. This is really stupid speculation.
DeleteWas surprised to learn Biden's personal physician responsible for his annual physical exams isn't an M.D.
Delete9:52 PM Good points.
DeleteHis face wasn’t masked in the interview or at other public appearances. He hasn’t fallen, he tripped. He walks normally for an 80 year old. Next week someone will suggest some other disease then look for symptoms of it. That is confirmation bias.
DeleteWhy don’t you apply this energy to telling us what is wrong with Trump? He is way less normal than Biden.
D.O. is a recognized medical degree equivalent to M.D. but Biden would be referred to a specialist if he had a serious problem. Doctor of Osteopathy.
Delete"Is Biden suffering from Parkinson's Disease?"
DeleteNo.
Read his publicly released health report from just four months ago for the answer to your question.
He exhibits many of the symptoms but we have to take his doctor's word for it. He just has to make it through next January when he transfers power back to Trump and retires.
DeleteDoctors know more than random internet trolls.
DeleteCertain Democrats were convinced Hillary couldn’t win in 2016, then they did everything they could to defeat her. That’s happening now to Biden.
ReplyDeleteOperation 42:
ReplyDeleteRelease agent Fanny Windpuff
ReplyDeleteWeekend at Bernie's was a good movie.
Prophetic, even.
The calls for Bob Somerby and the media to step down, due to their incompetence and senility, will only get louder as they deny they are a problem.
ReplyDeleteI am Soros' trained monkey, Christo Nation.
ReplyDeleteI confess black people's votes counted a rapist snowflake Katie. My uncle was eaten by cannibals.
No one is claiming white people are better than illegal immigrants.
DeleteTake that strawman elsewhere.