LIOS ANGELES.–Democrats breathed a big sigh of relief when 81-year-old President Joe Biden ended his 2024 bid yesterday with Democrats calling him a true patriot for deciding to pass the torch to 58-year-old Vice President Kamala Harris. Euphoria swept over the party after an agonizing three weeks of party bickering over Biden’s abysmal performance at the June 27 CNN presidential debate in Atlanta. Joe showed for all to see his age-related cognitive decline, barely able to complete a sentence and sounding coherent on practically everything. But whatever happened on June 27, Biden’s White House team had him in damage control mode, giving interviews to ABC’s George Stephanopoulos or anyone else willing to make him look cognitively intact. White House officials couldn’t stop the avalanche started by the June 27 debate that exposed the public to Joe’s age-related cognitive decline.
Joe’s 73-year-old wife Jill and 78-year-old sister Valerie Owens did everything to keep Joe out of harm’s way over the last three-and-a-half-years since, keeping his press conferences to a bare minimum, controlling the journalists and questions Joe received. Why Jill and Valerie let Joe debate when they watched his week-long press at Camp David is one of the enduring mysteries. Jill said repeatedly after the debate Joe was fine and was prepared to lead the country for the next four years. Her arguments rang hollow, the more she would vouch for her cognitively impaired husband. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) sad Democrats needed to stop bickering and line up behind Joe, admonishing the party to stop playing games since Joe would be the party’s nominee. No one apparently listened to Bernie, showing he has minimal clout inside the Democrat Party.
Biden’s defiance since the June 27 debate to step down led to the party revolt that watched Pelosi and Obama team up to pressure Biden to step down. Today’s Democrat narrative is that Biden withdrew from the 2024 because of commitment to the party and country. Everyone knows he was pushed out of the race because no one—other than Biden himself– thought he was fit for a second term. Yet Biden wanted to spare his legacy, claim he went out on his own terms, when the party knows he resisted all efforts to oust him since the June 27 debate. Biden had everyone in the party vouch for him, including Kamala, who said emphatically how sharp and fit Joe was for a second term. Kamala said she’s met with Joe personally and can attest to his mental acuity and readiness to take on all the challenges faced domestically and in foreign policy.
Kamala’s statements were as disingenuous as they come, knowing that Pelosi, Obama, Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) walked a tightrope but urged Biden to resign for the good of the country. Once past supports like Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) joined Obama and Pelosi to oust Biden, Jill and Valerie knew Joe’s future was only retirement. All of the party bosses have jumped on the Kamala bandwagon wanting to appear that the part has been unified after three weeks of wrangling to oust Biden. Democrat Party officials haven’t considered the Kamala’s low approval ratings, even lower than Joe’s, presenting a problem selling her to independent voters, especially on the border and Ukraine War. Kamala has done nothing other than rubber stamp all of Joe’s disastrous policies.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) endorsed Kamala as nominee of the Democrat Party, all but sealing her status at the top of the ticket. Democrat National Committee [DNC] Chairman Jaime Harrison, 48, called for party unity, looking to cement Kamala’s position as the party’s nominee. Democrat strategist James Carville, 80, who was the first to seek Biden’s ouster on June 28, wanted an open the RNC convention with candidates competing openly for the nomination. Party bosses and the DNC don’t want any delay in the party lining up behind Harris, without any competitive process. Biden’s only concern now is that party bosses recognize his magnanimous gesture of ending his campaign for the good of the party and the country. Everyone knows that Biden was pushed out because he was deemed unfit by his closest colleagues to run for a second term.
Democrats think because Kamala is 20 years younger than Trump, they can pull the age card in the 2024 campaign, arguing that the country needs a new generation of leadership. Kamala knows that the country need more than just demonizing Trump on the same issues like the Heritage Foundation’s 2025 Project or on bogus claims he’s trying to destroy American democracy and the Constitution. Harris has a real problem running on the old anti-Trump paradigm, only denigrating the former president, not talking about what she’d do differently. Trump laid out a real plan how to fix the border and inflation, reengage with U.S. adversaries, especially Russia and China. Democrats are euphoric today but not accepting the sinking feeling that Kamala cannot get out of her own way. Following Biden’s policies would guarantee that Trump wins the White House in November.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
