The Grand Illusion
Throughout history, and in literature as well, we’ve tended to see two kinds of “age” tragedies – those of great individuals whose stars shone too brightly too early – from Alexander the Great to Orson Welles – and especially those who could have relinquished power at the peak of their greatness and who chose not to, only to see their reputation tarnished or destroyed in their efforts to hang on to power they struggled over a lifetime to obtain.
It doesn’t always happen this way, but it occurs often enough, largely because power tends to blind those who hold it, or to make them think that the inevitable won’t happen to them. Age is cruel. As the coach in Any Given Sunday says, as we get older, things get taken from us, often our judgement of what we can accomplish.
Joe Biden is no exception, both in losing capabilities he once had, and in failing to see that he’s lost some of his abilities. And, as in all tragedies, too many of those around him have a vested interest in not being truthful, while he is rightfully leery of trusting the truth spoken by his enemies because they want the power he is losing.
Then add Biden’s concerns about his opponent — a lying, conniving, power-mad narcissist who effectively wants to undermine if not overthrow the basis of democracy – and Biden’s belief (based more on the past than the present) that only he can stop Trump, and the United States faces a potential disaster well beyond Biden’s personal tragedy.
The entire scenario would make an incredible movie, but, in this instance, I’d definitely rather see the movie than be a bit player in the coming real-life reality show that combines the worst of King Lear and The Apprentice.
Please, Joe, open your eyes and exit gracefully, preferably stage left.
LEM,
Well said. I’d like to see the Dems advance Gavin New some as a candidate for president. Unfortunately, the US is STILL not ready to choose a woman for President – as much as I respect Kamala Harris.
One thing about ourselves is that we cannot notice how we’ve changed when we look in the lirror every day. BUT….looking at photos or film of ourselves today and compare that to ones a decade ago, or so, can be startling. I was surprised the first time I was shown a picture of myself in a group photo from behind to see just how gray my hair had become. That was quite a few years ago. 🙂 But nobody says anything.
I agree.
I honestly would like him to go a step further and resign the presidency. Let Harris run as the incumbent. Get the whole “first woman president” discussion out of the way. At least it would put her in a good position to rip Trump at every opportunity – something every good American should do…
Kevin,
Now that’s an interesting jujitsu move I’d not even thought of. I like it.
I agree. If Biden drops out the race, he needs to resign. That is the best chance to keep boy orange out of the presidency.
He is caught in the catch 22 of being called insufficiently competent. If he was competent to realize that he should resign, he shouldn’t. If he can’t see that he should resign, he should.
It will likely depend on how Biden does leading up to the convention. The problem, though, is that none of us outsiders see him frequently enough to really have a sense of whether there is a decline or just a bad day or two.
Age was discussed last year: that was the time to switch horses.
Gavin Newsome, or Kamala Harris, or? Seems to me that the Dems do not realize that there is no-one to replace Biden at this time: all they have available are too timid or way-out “progressives”. The real cost of Trump and benefits of “anyone but Trump” are lost in the ‘Celebrity’ advertisements and the weakness of a federation compared to a nation.
Outside chance maybe Joseph Manchin III, but he is now an “independent”?
Having reached my 75th birthday, I was required to consult my GP and have my driver’s licence endorsed after an assessment of mental and physical capability. From now on this will be an annual requirement. Does not the USA have any such requirements for the President?
No, we don’t, and the Supreme Court has effectively ruled that, under the Constitution, such requirements cannot be imposed without a Constitutional amendment, which is why the Congress passed the 25th amendment in 1965 (and the states finished approving in 1967), which includes provisions for declaring the President unable to carry out his duties.
From a distance it seems pretty apparent to me that Joe Biden is unfit for the job.
However the discussion over his mental fitness has lead me to ponder whether or not there is a grey area with this subject.
Would he still be considered fit for the role if his cognitive faculties were only partially impaired? If say his faculties were 80% of what they were at their peak?
Do we – as in voters and/or legislators- assign a minimum standard of cognitive faculties to suitability for the role of President? Or do we measure everyone’s faculties and only let the best apply for the job?
If one person can continue to function reasonably well on 4 hours of sleep while another needs at least 6 hours do we consider the latter person unfit?
Even human beings in the best physical and mental condition have limits. They need to sleep and eat and cannot function properly without doing so.
Joe Biden has passed the point of what most people consider acceptable limits. The question I have is what are acceptable limits?
Would people vote for someone in a wheelchair to be President? Assuming that person had no other significant health or mental issues?
Sam,
I suppose some physical frailty (Roosevelt, Greg Abbot, etc.) should not be disqualifying if the mental acuity is there. I’ve not heard, ever, that Biden needs executive time in the morning as Trump did for 4 years. Just saying.
Both present candidates would be largely dependent on their advisors and the people they’d appoint; though all presidents are to some extent these are more than usually so.
Trump has gathered all the Project 2025 people around him so you all know (or can know) that they are aiming to end democracy by and for the people, and install an evangelical-inspired white nationalist autocracy instead. Trump will occasionally do random stuff that could hinder the implementation of that, but they have learned how to handle him so don’t expect to be saved by his limited attention span and volatility again.
Biden’s team is competent to keep things running the way they are, which is not ideal but a lot better than the alternative, even if he becomes a figurehead rubber-stamping their advice rather than an active president.
‘Vote blue no matter who’ seems to be the best slogan for the moment; which one can only hope is enough to get out the unenthousiastic voters who realise that staying home means enabling Trump.
Kamala has not been promoted during this presidency as a worthy successor, even though Biden started his previous campaign saying he’d be a one-term president. I fear, and apparently so does the DNC, that enough USA voters are still racist and sexist enough not to want to vote for a brown woman as president; so in a secondary role she’s fine as a specific kind of vote-puller but she’s kept (been made to keep?) a low profile to not outshine her elderly leader.
Meanwhile the younger, browner and/or women voters would see Biden stepping down and promoting another white man for the post instead of his faithful vice president as a big slight for women and people of color – together with the unwavering support for Israel this could create enough abstentions to lose the presidency.
I think KevinJ is right, resigning and giving Kamala the chance to show her chops before the nomination would have been the best choice. She could have campaigned as the incumbent, and be expected to get Joe’s delegates.
If the backlash was severe enough, as it was after Obama, to risk the future of democracy in the USA, the DNC could have gone for another white man at the nomination, with enough polls to prove it necessary so tge women will still come out to vote against the RNCs plans for taking away women’s rights.
But the president, as many old people do, has become more stubborn both in clinging to the advice of a few trusted people, and in keeping the status quo as is – not exactly a positive sign for the next 4 years.
But if he thinks he can win easier than she could, and then resign and leave the weight of the job to her (or just retreat into being a figurehead), he may not be entirely off course.