So far we've only seen the trailer. The one that showed us individual moments how American President Joe Biden loses concentration, becomes disoriented in the situation and even becomes physically unstable. Tonight's debate in Georgia between him and Donald Trump, however, showed us the entire movie, the plot of which revolved around the general cognitive malfunctions of the current head of the White House. In fact, Joe Biden didn't need an opponent to lose this debate because he defeated himself.
Joe Biden the man cannot be blamed for the natural defects that appear in everyone as they age. But politician Joe Biden bears responsibility. Because when he won the last presidential election almost 4 years ago, he made the request that he would only serve one term, during which he would transition to the next generation of Democratic Party politicians. However, he later went back on his word. And if the assessment of whether he was a good or bad president can be radically different, especially given the polarization of American society, there is a relatively broad consensus that Joe Biden is a weak candidate.
Every single politician has his deficits. They can concern either his personality or his politics. Take the example of how Americans view Donald Trump. With him, sociologists in the United States register the following ambivalence: a rather negative assessment of his personal qualities, concerning things such as character and moral compass, and a rather positive one in relation to the policies for which he advocates. That is, Americans support not the person, but the politician Trump, and he can count on the fact that his personal deficits are compensated by his policies, which are accepted as useful.
However, this compensatory mechanism under Joe Biden seems impossible after yesterday's debate. Even before it took place, a majority of Americans disapproved of the administration of the current head of the White House (virtually no polling agency said otherwise). Given Biden's demonstrated poor physical and cognitive condition at yesterday's debate, his personality was also questioned. That is, if with Donald Trump we have a weak personality that is compensated by strong policies, then with Biden, personality and politics do not mitigate the deficits between each other, but complement them. That was the main plot line of the movie we watched that night.
However, there is no way that a screenplay is a box office success if the main character does not do a good role. This is why politician Joe Biden should be criticized: because he is running again, even though physical laws are stronger than political ones. Did anyone really like another "Indiana Jones" played by 80-year-old Harrison Ford? How would the audience react if, almost 30 years later, Leonardo DiCaprio stuck his head above the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, spat out some water and requested a sequel to "Titanic"?
For the first time since the 1990s, alongside the Republicans and Democrats, a significant third political group is emerging in the US, which would vote for Biden or Trump only if they were guided to the polls with a gun in their backs. Apparently, the political elites of the two largest American parties have not seen the adaptation of the Coen brothers "No Place for Old Dogs". Apparently they didn't even hear Alain Delon when the actor said years ago that "I will never stand before my audience as a weak and infirm old man!".
From now on, there is no right move for the Democrats. If they withdraw Joe Biden's candidacy, it will mean they are acknowledging the president's problems, which they have long and systematically denied in public. That will give Republicans a good reason to step in helpfully, saying that Democrats are riding a horse that even they don't want to ride. However, if Joe Biden remains in the race, there is a serious risk that the movie we watched last night will be released as a sequel within the campaign.
And the current US president was in a difficult situation long before last night's debate took place. Under his tenure, the price of the average American's consumer basket has risen, and the belated and palliative measures along the Mexican border have created the impression that there is no sheriff in town. The Middle East war policy, in which Joe Biden tried to balance between supporting and deterring Israel at the same time, actually made him alienate both American Jewish citizens and the pro-Palestinian circles of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. party.
The list of failures in the Democrat's administration could be extended, so a number of circumstances combined led to Joe Biden falling behind his Republican opponent in the polls both nationally (by a margin of between 1% and 6%). , as well as in the most important swing states (Donald Trump has a lead in each of the seven most contested states, which lead was either within the polling margin or larger than it). National polls have consistently shown that the Republican is the preferred choice of Americans when it comes to the two most important issues in the country - the economy and illegal immigration. Hence, holding a debate with the opponent was more important for the Democrat, as he needed it to reverse the electoral trends. Instead, after yesterday's presentation of Joe Biden, the conversation about his support did not go to the American suburbs, which traditionally decide the outcome of the election race, but returned to the offices of the Democratic Party like a boomerang.
Ever since Donald Trump emerged on the US political scene as a relevant factor, Democrats have relied on the fact that his personality is too controversial for universal electoral consumption, and that he himself - by his actions - has compromised himself. These are the same stones, however, that are now flying at the heads of the Democrats. And if Donald Trump wins the presidential election this year, which he has emerged as the favorite to do after tonight's debate in Atlanta, don't believe the wet glint in the Democrats' eyes, because it will be the tears of accomplices, not victims.