In a word, no. There he was, sitting alone getting peppered with uncomfortable often cringe-making questions by George Stephanopoulos, the gist of which was, because you whiffed in your debate with Trump, everybody thinks you’re out of it. But it’s not just about that debate. Hell, it’s not just on Joe Biden.
George Stephenopolis, no friend of mine, is a tainted fishmonger. Throwing Bill Clinton under a speeding bus, for the sake of hyping his own career. What an opportunist!
I wouldn’t trust him with a hedgehog, let alone our dear Biden
I also have never respected George for what he did after working for Clinton. In my public service career I have been a trusted assistant to many. Trust is its own reward.
The sanctimonious Snuffleupagus made a huge stink about Clinton’s adultery but guess who had no problem hanging with Jeffrey Epstein even after his Florida conviction —good ol’ boy Snuffy:
“ On the evening of December 2nd, 2010, a handful of America's media and entertainment elite—including TV anchors Katie Couric and George Stephanopoulos, comedienne Chelsea Handler, and director Woody Allen—convened around the dinner table of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.…. No, back then Epstein was mid-makeover. He had monarchy in-house and famous faces at his table. ”
I get enraged that the mainstream media repeatedly brings up the fact that Bill Clinton traveled on Epstein’s plane but buries the fact that Couric and Snuffy not only regularly socialized with Epstein but volunteered to help him remake his image after he was convicted for having sex with underage girls. Read the article to see how they rationalized their immoral behavior
Because those closest to him have bad judgment. He didn't even *have* to debate. He could have just said, "I choose not to debate with a congenital liar and a criminal."
My 80 year old dad keeps repeating that Biden never should have debated him, along with the Proverb, "Answer not a fool according to his folly, Lest thou also be like unto him."
I’m thinking that would be a good idea if Biden would say he won’t debate… exactly for the reason you stated. Another debate is not necessary, in my opinion.
Margo - I agree. Canceling the second debate now would be terrible optics. But... Joe Biden needs to follow his own instincts and ignore the advisors who basically set him up for a terrible first debate by over-preparing him and scripting him with excessive facts vs. letting him answer freely. Biden would have better spent the preparation time resting and thinking about what he needs to convey, perhaps some discussions with advisors but not parroting what the advisors think he should be talking about. He also should ditch the teleprompter except, perhaps, for some key words and phrases that he himself chooses.
It is now conclusive (to me, based some doctors who've gone public, plus a NYMag reporter, Olivia Nuzzi, who's seen all these signs, up close and personal) that he has Parkinson's and early dementia. It's all there. The frozen look, the gait, the Botox (not in the places to look younger) the looking beyond people. Nuzzi said he looked "otherworldly and white" when she got close to him. (Mr. T.: I would have noted the MDs who commented, but I didn't know I would post something quoting them.)
Ummmmm, he runs a country. He is the president, this kind of circus with a man known for his inteviewing style that is all about him just takes Biden away from his real job.......running the country.
I agree. And I DO fault whoever was prepping him for that "debate" which was not a debate. Anyone with a grain of sand for a brain should have known about the Gish Gallup and given Biden at least an opportunity to practice against such an onslaught of lies and crazed comments. They set him up. AND, CNN set him up also, putting him on stage with a convicted felon maniac who continued to shout his garbage even off mic while Biden was trying to figure out which lie he should address. Could anyone have blocked out the loud shouts coming from the other podium while formulating a truthful and accurate response to a "moderator's" question? I know I could not. And there was absolutely NO "moderating." They could have just put a clock on stage and run the questions on a monitor.
I agree Margo, I thought his interview of President Biden was respectful, thoughtful, probing and appropriately challenging. I really appreciated the opportunities he gave to Biden to talk to us. I felt Biden did OK, not great. Overall it was helpful to see him feeling a little better and with some make-up on (he didn't look as corpse like as he did in the debate).
Right. Full throated Attack on Trump. Next. Attack the Court and each “major issues rulings.” Next. Attack Trump. Next. Expose and Attack 2025 Plan in detail. Attack Trump. Next. Attack Trump’s deadly failures in office. Next. Attack Trump’s attempted Coup. Next. Attack the Court’s complicity in the next Coup. Next. Attack Trump. Next. Attack Trump until the lights go out.
You'd make a great campaign manager. May we recommend you? Whoever is in charge of this campaign could take lessons. I am serious. I think a few heads should roll soon. I know Biden doesn't think that way, but he's getting some really bad advice, in my opinion.
Thank you. I think the two young people in charge of the campaign have to exit, immediately. Terrible, field-blind, advice on a debate and they clearly don’t have the depth necessary to recognize and defeat a multi-headed threat to this Country.
No, actually the exact opposite. When rational(not psychotic) people are clearly shown a world-breaking danger, they will stop and step back to preserve themselves and their loved ones. Repeating the danger mantra and assailing the “snake on the trail” can help raise a critical level of awareness which we need to do to preserve our struggling Democracy and others.
The Brits just cleaned house, we need to do the same, starting with Trump!
Yes, of course,Donald Trump is the issue and fighting him mightily at the ballot box is the task at hand .It is sickening that our Democrats are not lining up readily behind our president.He has done a remarkable job with little help from his stingy Congress people.Getting old evidently trumps lying , traitor insurrectionist,grifting and kissing Putin’s backside.I am truly disappointed in my Dem party’s hurtling our country into Naziism by failing to support Biden full strength.Say what you will about Republicans, evil or not they stand by their man no matter what.They are united to a fault to one of their own. We Dems need to look hard and fast and recognize that we have our candidate.He is up to the job and has surrounded himself with competently people.I am flabbergasted at the perceived abandonment of a successful sitting president by members of his own party.
FDR guided America while coping with polio, WWII, Hitler, and Stalin. By today's thinking, FDR shouldn't have been president. Neither should Truman, but Truman handled the presidency well. I am so spitting mad about all this handwringing over Biden's age! Go on the attackE ERY SINGLE DAY about Trump's multiple failures, crimes, and lies. Send out passionate surrogates to make the case for Democrats.
Mark Warner, if asked, say you are supporting your party's nominee. Your pathetic public angst is not helpful.
I'm not for loyalty for loyalty's sake, it's too fascist. But I'll ride with Biden if that's how this cookie crumbles. Although I am afraid that he can't win, all paths are fraught with great danger. In the meantime, please, can I ask that we train ourselves to stop using the word 'trump' in its meaning as having overriding power. I feel it's a negative speech act that embeds in our unconscious nd conditions us to succumb.
In other words you’re not for loyalty unless there is a good reason to be loyal, is that right? There is a good reason now to get 100% behind Joe Biden. I think he’s the only one that can and will beat Trump.
The word “old” and all its connotations has become MAGA’s new replacement for the word socialist they used on Bernie. They know that poisoning the dems with doubt is their best weapon.
We must not fall for it.
If we’re looking for a sure thing we have it —as long as we don’t allow them to divide us.
When I was a kid, the neighbor next door kept a coop of chickens, which he raised for food. He'd go out, reach in and grab one, take it in the shed and chop its head off (I've always had trouble eating chicken as a result). Every once in awhile, the chicken would come flying out of the shed and run around bumping into things. Because it didn't have a head, But enough brainstem had been left to allow that to happen.
Too often, the Democratic Party comes off as one of those chickens.
My party, the Democratic Party, acts like a bunch of whiny-ass babies, crying that the sky is falling at the first drop of rain. Meanwhile, the Devil's party is organized and busy making the damn rain.
The campaign leaders better learn how to street fight fast Trump knows how and is not afraid to use a knife ..he has no sense of a fair fight and Joes people better fucken learn that yesterday !
Doesn’t the news media know they are aiding and abetting Trump when they try to make Biden look feeble??
Have they not considered that if Trump should get into office with the immunity the Supreme Court has given him that he’s going to go after all of these TV news people and companies and take them off the air?
Are they so shortsighted they only care about causing controversy in order to increase ratings today and screw the consequences?
Of course they do! It's the same thing they did to Hillary - "but her emails." Look, the Bezos Post is now firmly in the Murdoch camp, British edition; the NYTimes is double dog p*ssed that Biden wouldn't give them an exclusive and has been pulling the same kind of sh*t they pulled with Hillary (Here's looking at you, Maureen) they also now use Murdoch's Wall Street Journal as the farm team for future editors and columnists.
It's all about hubris and money. Come Project 2025? They lose, along with the rest of us and they will be shocked and amazed.
Let's hope it doesn't come to that. In the mean time? Switch to the Philadelphia Inquirer and cancel the Bezos Post and the NY Times.
Also The Guardian, but you have to be willing to put up with some important issue(s) or other about which they are going to annoy the hell out of you - no matter who you are - along with their brand of more or less fearless journalism.
But they won't openly enable a neofascist nitwit like Trump, etc.
I once worked for a man between my years at divinity school. I always experience a little involuntary shudder when I say those two words together, but it’s germane.
This man was, out of character, not an unpleasant person. The problem was of course that he was rarely out of character.
He was a second generation entrepreneur who went to business school and sort of learned that profit was more important than happiness.
A few of the times he stepped out of character was to call me into his office to examine me, in a kind of academic way, as to how a smart young guy with my background and opportunities could waste my time and the VA’s money thinking about God.
He looked me dead in the eye and said, without a smidgen of irony or humor, “Gary, money is My God”.
The media (and "reporters") are owned by American oligarchs( think Murdoch, Sinclair) who dictate what "news" will be released to the public. That is why we see so little about their Comrade DT in the "news". And now they own SCOTUS.
I don't care who the democratic presidential candidate is. I'm voting for them. President Biden won by 7 million votes in 2020. Well those same 7 million will be voting again. Plus all the people that were too young to vote in 2020. All trump has is his base and his christo-fascist billionaire enablers. That won't be enough to beat Biden. This time. So we have to fight like hell in 2025 to destroy them. If President Biden were to step down I like a Kamala Harris/ Hakeem Jefferies ticket. There are no undecided voters. That's bullshit. Peace and love.
There's always a fringe element in a country with over 330 million people and who knows how many eligible and likely voters. Even an "undecided because clueless" as well as "undecided because the rent's too damned high and we've been too busy dealing with quotidian crises to follow just how rotten and corrupt Trump is" fringe, and by the time you add to that list it could make a difference in the six or seven key swing states.
My only disagreement is on the public knowing Biden's accomplishments. I live in CA, in a politically active city, and I'm horrified by how few people have a good sense of what Biden has managed to do.
Just as they've forgotten just how bad things were under Trump (the fire hose of disinformation is very powerful).
We have a lot of work to do, but I have no doubt we can win. As I've said before, I think the most overlooked factor in the coming election is the anger of women. And we women know which side we need to support.
I like you a lot Lucien and I am so so grateful to President Biden for everything he's done but I am ready for him to humble himself and do what's right and best for this country which is to defeat Fascism once and for all. We are losing and we are losing badly.
I got reprimanded on Facebook today for trying to educate the #NastyWomen Voters of Madison County, Indiana about Project2025. Someone got to Zuck already. We are not allowed to post about that anymore. Not even in private or in Messenger. If that's not fascism I don't know what is. Time for Joe to do the right thing. I'll fight my butt off for the Nominee no matter who it is as I have all along but I'm praying we have a shot at WINNING this Election with someone other than Joe Biden. 💔🇺🇸💙🙏🏻
There is no possible candidate beside our current V.P. who can raise the money needed to make themselves known as a new candidate for Pres. And what accomplishments does this mystery candidate have that can come within range of Biden's many years in the Senate and as V.P. and now as Pres? There isn't anyone. Running the state of California or the state of Wherever is not running the country. There are so many areas they'd have little to no experience with; foreign affairs comes to my mind first. Biden has brought the world out of the COVID era and created ties and capabilities to protect one another that didn't exist before.
Where is the loyalty? If Biden can get re-elected and something happens to take him off the field he has a very worthy V.P. who has travelled the world on a variety of issues of importance, and most importantly has worked among the current cabinet secretaries, legislators and others who have systemic knowledge. All of this dithering and WANTING a replacement only supports a Rump win. And if he wins, we all kiss our future rights goodbye. Sheesh, get on the wagon of defending our current president, party, and democracy!!
Frankly I don't give a good goddamn what you want. Do you care what I want? Women's rights restored, better lives for minorities, better health care... and people who vote for sanity, progress and DEMOCRACY. We won't get this by throwing Biden out now.
Iʼm sorry, but once you say running the state of California is not the same as running the country we donʼt have anything in common. California is the fifth largest economy in the world, and running is about the same as running the US, if youʼre referring to Newsom, except we donʼt have military. But now is not the time for Newsom, because it would leave us with Eleni whatʼs her name as governor, and she is about the same as Charles Schumer. I donʼt think Kamala is the right choice either. Iʼm older than she is, but we both grew up in Berkeley. When I see Kamala I miss what Barbara Lee sees in her. I see someone who was San Franciscoʼs DA and who has no interest in reforming the criminal justice system. I gained the strong impression that she likes to put everyone in jail. Yesterday, at the Fourth of July party we went to, I floated Al Franken. I donʼt want to say everyone started chanting, Franken, Franken, but it was close. However, I think we should push Biden as strongly as possible and not have to entertain the idea of anyone else. Until Bernie says no to Biden, I say yes Biden. CNN and the mainstream media is bought and paid for by Putin and his allies in the Republican Party. Donʼt pay any attention to them.
I also like and respect Lucian very much. I usually agree 100% with his thoughts and opinion. But my take on the interview doesn't align with Lucian's or with most of the comments I've read. Joe Biden's interview with George S. did not help Biden very much, imo. And it had nothing to do with George's questions. President Biden has given various reasons in the days after the debate about why he had a poor performance. He had a cold, had jetlag, hadn't had enough sleep, wasn't properly prepped for the debate, trump talked after his mic was turned off and distracted him, trump lied, Biden just had a bad night. Which of those reasons or excuses are we to believe? Trump always lies and talks out of turn. That shouldn't have been unexpected as part of the debate. Biden said he didn't believe his approval rate was 36% or that the polls were correct. When asked if he'd step aside if Democratic members of Congress came to him with legitimate concerns they don't believe he can win. He said "that won't happen." There is certainly no doubt that Joe Biden is a better man and a better candidate for President. Yet, Biden came across in the interview as if believes about himself the old ridiculous lie Trump once said about himself - "I alone can fix it." Biden actually seems convinced that he is the only man that can beat Trump. He may be deceiving himself. Polls show a generic Democrat running against Trump has a better showing than Biden against Trump. Joe Biden appeared in the interview to be arrogant, overconfident, selfish, and pompous. Why does he refuse to be tested by a neurologist If he is so certain he has no cognitive decline? Could any President honestly say that 3+ years in office has had no negative impact at all on his health? The context here is about Joe Biden's mental and physical health and whether he is fit and able to serve as POTUS four more years. Trump is an awful, evil man with zero character. Our Democracy is on the line. It is unwise to ignore Biden's vulnerabilities. Exploring options to give ourselves the best chance to defeat Trump in November is worth the effort.
So Biden delegates authority to his staff and appointed department heads. It's much too late to "find another Democratic candidate for Potus" who will ipso facto do better than Biden.
No they just said the usual: "It goes against our Community Standards." No explanation. Even in Messenger I couldn't send the Link to our Steering Committee.
But who, exactly? This needed to be sorted out months ago. Now it's forward damn the torpedoes full speed ahead on THIS ship, not some other allegedly more robust-versus-Trump's-Navy ship.
Wow! Still okay here in Va, but an acquaintance had HCR’s shared letter censored. Meanwhile my hacked account is nonreportable to FB. The process doesn’t work.
I've just posted two stories on my FB page about Project 2025. I've posted many in the past few months. While I've recently received a few recent notices that some posts have been removed, in most cases I'm not informed of what was removed. In one case, I was informed that a .gov website about EV charging station locations around the country was removed due to violation of community standards! I'll wait to see if there's any FB action against my Project 2025 posts of today.
Did you consider the possibility that there are Democrats who respond to these polls and have ulterior motives for lying when they say they will vote for Trump?
I don’t usually waste a lot of words thanking you. I see plenty of breathless encomia from your readers. Some readers say nothing else. But I now thank you. I agree with every word you wrote. Not for the first time I got a glimpse of how Republicans possibly view Democrats: as effete, idealistic snots who refuse to fight dirty and who, in this case, are running in tight circles screaming that the sky is falling. What a bunch of fickle, faint hearted, thin skinned whores we are… or should I say, the Democrats who want to dump Biden at this late stage of the game. Here we have a dignified, liberal, progressive, widely respected and EFFECTIVE man who has already been doing the grueling 24/7 job to wide acclaim for three and a half years, and he flubs one debate and we dump him? This is fucking IDIOCY, people! There’s not TIME for a new candidate to gain national traction. Harris may be good— the VP job is always tough: be in the shadows, come out only when the boss asks you, cut ribbons at state fairs, and NEVER outshine your boss— but even as VP she likely wouldn’t win in November. It takes time, and a grueling schedule of speeches and lots of exposure, for a critical mass of voters to feel, “Yes, this person is someone I want as president.” The quick, grab-your-ass run for the exits by some Democrats says so much about our shallow, media -fixated electorate. The GOP back room boys are having a field day with our wavering and in-fighting. FDR, gaunt and clearly ill when he ran for a fourth term in 1944, would face the same hysterical calls for him to drop out if he were running today.
We’ve got four months, and counting. Let us end the bullshit and second-guessing.
Biden has been around long enough to trust WE THE PEOPLE, WE the VOTERS, over those hand wringing, pearl grabbing, presidential hopefuls and media hogs who feed off their own in the beltway. WE the voters have already chosen him as our candidate and he knows it. They know it too, but they are too hungry for power and attention for themselves and if there's hubris flying around in DC these days, it's coming from those "effete, idealistic snots" who are "running around in tight circles screaming that the sky is falling."
I hope you’re right about how a majority of WE THE PEOPLE will vote.
The media types, of course, have to generate money for their blogs/stations/papers, and to do this they need to keep stirring up what ifs and sowing doubt and quoting polls. God forbid they should have a quiet day devoid of “news.” They’ll create it if it doesn’t fall in their laps.
I think it’s worth pointing out that a government is composed of many people working together for the common good. Consider Biden and Trump as the quarterbacks and look closely at the other members of their squads. Do you want decent dedicated hard working public servants or the likes of Steven Miller, Steve Bannon, Roger Stone, MGT, Gatez, Jorden, Cruz and the host of self serving syncophants attached to Trumps coat tails to run this country for the next four years? Democrats must not falter, they must hold the line.
Watching Steph-man badger Biden again and again with questions that he already answered firmly, ever more ridiculous hypotheticals, anonymous beltway rumors, and poll results turned my stomach, but I was pleased and impressed with Biden’s steady demeanor and patience. I particularly liked how Biden said he passes a cognitive test every day he is president, judge by the results. This media feeding frenzy is disgusting, especially since the alternative is a descent into a fascist hell. Today, I also watched Biden’s rally, and his on the tarmac jousting with unseen media “remoras,” looking for scraps left over from the frenzy. We need to see Dark Brandon in action - that will quell many of the doubters on “our” side. Also, the trolls were out in force in the various media outlets like WAPO and of course ABC. What a f’ed up way to elect a president with the future of democracy, and a livable planet Earth on the line.
From the interview I saw Biden kept evading the questions and Steph kept re-asking the same question and never got an answer. He sounded like Trump, pivoting everything to talk about good things that happened during his administration, but not answering anything about the toll this has taken on him to this point, and if he can do it for another four years.
“Cross Examination of A Witness ...” detail from Library of Congress, P&P Online, LC-USZC4-2900
Complex Question;
Many Questions, Loaded Question, or Compound Question Fallacy
Abstract: The fallacy of Complex Question (traditionally known as fallacia plurimum interrogationum) is discussed and explained with illustrative examples and self-grading quizzes. The “fallacy” is said to occur when an answer is demanded in response to a question composed of several questions.
In logic textbooks the fallacy is also cited as the Many Questions, Loaded Question, False Question, Double Question, Assumption of the Previous Question, Trick Question, or, in law, the Compound Question Fallacy).
Contents
Description of the Complex Question Fallacy
Some Common Types of Complex Questions
Historical Frequency of Use for Different Names Employed for the Complex Question Fallacy
How to Resolve Complex Questions
Lexical Narrowing and Varieties of the Complex Question Fallacy
Some Functional Uses of Complex Question
Related Complex Question Techniques in Law, Surveys, and Interviews
Fallacy of Many Questions as Deceit
In What Sense is Complex Question a Fallacy?
Non-fallacious Uses of the Phrase “Complex Question”
He got answers, he just didn't like answers that evaded his tendentious bullshit questions, too bad. The fact is the questions were constantly framed as if it's already a given that one bad debate performance is disqualifying, and framed as if some unnamed substitute candidate who must get through an open convention is going to have a better shot versus Trump. LOL.
When Biden stated answers which denied either thing is true, George just restated the same questions.
It was a mistake to rush into an interview with George Stephanopolous in the first place, as he's part of what has emerged as a much wider mass media problem: willingness to `normalize' Trump and enable open fascism.
Those questions were fully loaded, and many were unanswerable. Most were repetitious. Most were already framed to establish GS's narrative that Biden is old, feeble, frail, incompetent, and has dementia.
Well, you can always answer a question based on tendentious assumptions by pivoting to something else. And that will be the answer, maybe the best, fairest kind of answer, since Biden wasn't really in a position to borrow from Trump's playboook and start mocking Stephanopoulos!
Complete with cruel insults about his height and who knows what else!
I agree that the big problem is that Trump keeps getting normalized, perhaps just out of habit and a fear the confront the horror that he is. Biden though has suffered from terrible timing and now he's just Too Old. Time to face reality here.
LOL, so you have direct access to a kind of Platonic Form labelled "Too Old," really?
Talk about dwelling in unreality, a hall of mirrors: WHO is the "Not Too Old" substitute in this fantasy? You see, context is all, it's a "totality of the circumstances" test, and without a clearly designated and widely acclaimed substitute, all we get is a slapdash attempt to defeat Trump organized too late to succeed - in fact , candidates who might well do worse than Joe Biden, however glib and however much younger they are.
George Stephenopolis, no friend of mine, is a tainted fishmonger. Throwing Bill Clinton under a speeding bus, for the sake of hyping his own career. What an opportunist!
I wouldn’t trust him with a hedgehog, let alone our dear Biden
I also have never respected George for what he did after working for Clinton. In my public service career I have been a trusted assistant to many. Trust is its own reward.
The sanctimonious Snuffleupagus made a huge stink about Clinton’s adultery but guess who had no problem hanging with Jeffrey Epstein even after his Florida conviction —good ol’ boy Snuffy:
“ On the evening of December 2nd, 2010, a handful of America's media and entertainment elite—including TV anchors Katie Couric and George Stephanopoulos, comedienne Chelsea Handler, and director Woody Allen—convened around the dinner table of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.…. No, back then Epstein was mid-makeover. He had monarchy in-house and famous faces at his table. ”
https://www.thedailybeast.com/katie-couric-woody-allen-jeffrey-epsteins-society-friends-close-ranks
I get enraged that the mainstream media repeatedly brings up the fact that Bill Clinton traveled on Epstein’s plane but buries the fact that Couric and Snuffy not only regularly socialized with Epstein but volunteered to help him remake his image after he was convicted for having sex with underage girls. Read the article to see how they rationalized their immoral behavior
Yes why did they let Biden be interviewed by him
Because those closest to him have bad judgment. He didn't even *have* to debate. He could have just said, "I choose not to debate with a congenital liar and a criminal."
My 80 year old dad keeps repeating that Biden never should have debated him, along with the Proverb, "Answer not a fool according to his folly, Lest thou also be like unto him."
Biden's campaign team is failing all of us.
His team's problems are problems for us all.
If Trump was right about one thing last week, it was that perhaps it's time Joe fired someone.
Jill?? 😉
Your Dad should run , he said it all!
Wasn't it here that I read that they should all be fired.
I don't know where you read it, but besides family, he listens to two men: Donilan and someone else who's been compared to Rasputin.
Links please.
Lost to the ages It was yesterday ...
I’m thinking that would be a good idea if Biden would say he won’t debate… exactly for the reason you stated. Another debate is not necessary, in my opinion.
He's stuck now, because he's said he would do the second debate, with the hope, I guess, of doing better.
Maybe. I still think he should cancel the debate saying he won’t debate a serial liar. That’s it and it’s true.
DEFINITELY cancel - if he's still not letting go...
he won't have to because Trump will.
oh no!!!!
Margo - I agree. Canceling the second debate now would be terrible optics. But... Joe Biden needs to follow his own instincts and ignore the advisors who basically set him up for a terrible first debate by over-preparing him and scripting him with excessive facts vs. letting him answer freely. Biden would have better spent the preparation time resting and thinking about what he needs to convey, perhaps some discussions with advisors but not parroting what the advisors think he should be talking about. He also should ditch the teleprompter except, perhaps, for some key words and phrases that he himself chooses.
I just hunted up one of the sources: Though not an MD., Steven N. Austad is a researcher in this area. If I can find the docs, I will let you know.
It is now conclusive (to me, based some doctors who've gone public, plus a NYMag reporter, Olivia Nuzzi, who's seen all these signs, up close and personal) that he has Parkinson's and early dementia. It's all there. The frozen look, the gait, the Botox (not in the places to look younger) the looking beyond people. Nuzzi said he looked "otherworldly and white" when she got close to him. (Mr. T.: I would have noted the MDs who commented, but I didn't know I would post something quoting them.)
Probably because it's time to stop shielding Biden from difficult situations if you really want him to beat trump.
Yes. He needs to out there constantly, and on the attack.
Ummmmm, he runs a country. He is the president, this kind of circus with a man known for his inteviewing style that is all about him just takes Biden away from his real job.......running the country.
I agree. And I DO fault whoever was prepping him for that "debate" which was not a debate. Anyone with a grain of sand for a brain should have known about the Gish Gallup and given Biden at least an opportunity to practice against such an onslaught of lies and crazed comments. They set him up. AND, CNN set him up also, putting him on stage with a convicted felon maniac who continued to shout his garbage even off mic while Biden was trying to figure out which lie he should address. Could anyone have blocked out the loud shouts coming from the other podium while formulating a truthful and accurate response to a "moderator's" question? I know I could not. And there was absolutely NO "moderating." They could have just put a clock on stage and run the questions on a monitor.
I looked at this again, and I was not replying to your question. Obviously I was referring to the debate with Trump.
I actually think George did a masterful job. It matters not to me that he started in the Clinton White House.
I think of Stephenopolis as a hatchet man.
When I read his memoir I was mortified.
He's shameless self-promoter.
As someone who was in the business of interviewing people, I find no fault with his
questions. And I hope you noted his paying homage to what he *has* done.
I agree Margo, I thought his interview of President Biden was respectful, thoughtful, probing and appropriately challenging. I really appreciated the opportunities he gave to Biden to talk to us. I felt Biden did OK, not great. Overall it was helpful to see him feeling a little better and with some make-up on (he didn't look as corpse like as he did in the debate).
I’m keeping it clean today, so I’ll just say: with you Lucien on this, with Biden, but above all, with our country. Here’s to democracy surviving.
Right. Full throated Attack on Trump. Next. Attack the Court and each “major issues rulings.” Next. Attack Trump. Next. Expose and Attack 2025 Plan in detail. Attack Trump. Next. Attack Trump’s deadly failures in office. Next. Attack Trump’s attempted Coup. Next. Attack the Court’s complicity in the next Coup. Next. Attack Trump. Next. Attack Trump until the lights go out.
Amen, bro. EXACTLY RIGHT!
You'd make a great campaign manager. May we recommend you? Whoever is in charge of this campaign could take lessons. I am serious. I think a few heads should roll soon. I know Biden doesn't think that way, but he's getting some really bad advice, in my opinion.
Thank you. I think the two young people in charge of the campaign have to exit, immediately. Terrible, field-blind, advice on a debate and they clearly don’t have the depth necessary to recognize and defeat a multi-headed threat to this Country.
Available to travel.
DSR, are you saying attacking Trump and the Court’s rulings and complicity isn’t a good enough strategy because everybody already knows that?
No, actually the exact opposite. When rational(not psychotic) people are clearly shown a world-breaking danger, they will stop and step back to preserve themselves and their loved ones. Repeating the danger mantra and assailing the “snake on the trail” can help raise a critical level of awareness which we need to do to preserve our struggling Democracy and others.
The Brits just cleaned house, we need to do the same, starting with Trump!
Thank you.
I’m Ridin’ with Biden. Eff George. I’ll take experience and knowledge.
Yes, of course,Donald Trump is the issue and fighting him mightily at the ballot box is the task at hand .It is sickening that our Democrats are not lining up readily behind our president.He has done a remarkable job with little help from his stingy Congress people.Getting old evidently trumps lying , traitor insurrectionist,grifting and kissing Putin’s backside.I am truly disappointed in my Dem party’s hurtling our country into Naziism by failing to support Biden full strength.Say what you will about Republicans, evil or not they stand by their man no matter what.They are united to a fault to one of their own. We Dems need to look hard and fast and recognize that we have our candidate.He is up to the job and has surrounded himself with competently people.I am flabbergasted at the perceived abandonment of a successful sitting president by members of his own party.
FDR guided America while coping with polio, WWII, Hitler, and Stalin. By today's thinking, FDR shouldn't have been president. Neither should Truman, but Truman handled the presidency well. I am so spitting mad about all this handwringing over Biden's age! Go on the attackE ERY SINGLE DAY about Trump's multiple failures, crimes, and lies. Send out passionate surrogates to make the case for Democrats.
Mark Warner, if asked, say you are supporting your party's nominee. Your pathetic public angst is not helpful.
I totally agree.
I'm not for loyalty for loyalty's sake, it's too fascist. But I'll ride with Biden if that's how this cookie crumbles. Although I am afraid that he can't win, all paths are fraught with great danger. In the meantime, please, can I ask that we train ourselves to stop using the word 'trump' in its meaning as having overriding power. I feel it's a negative speech act that embeds in our unconscious nd conditions us to succumb.
In other words you’re not for loyalty unless there is a good reason to be loyal, is that right? There is a good reason now to get 100% behind Joe Biden. I think he’s the only one that can and will beat Trump.
The word “old” and all its connotations has become MAGA’s new replacement for the word socialist they used on Bernie. They know that poisoning the dems with doubt is their best weapon.
We must not fall for it.
If we’re looking for a sure thing we have it —as long as we don’t allow them to divide us.
When I was a kid, the neighbor next door kept a coop of chickens, which he raised for food. He'd go out, reach in and grab one, take it in the shed and chop its head off (I've always had trouble eating chicken as a result). Every once in awhile, the chicken would come flying out of the shed and run around bumping into things. Because it didn't have a head, But enough brainstem had been left to allow that to happen.
Too often, the Democratic Party comes off as one of those chickens.
This is one of those times.
My party, the Democratic Party, acts like a bunch of whiny-ass babies, crying that the sky is falling at the first drop of rain. Meanwhile, the Devil's party is organized and busy making the damn rain.
Don’t throw the whiney ass babies out with the bath water. They’ll come around if the rest of us stand firm for Biden.
It's why I keep referring to a wing of the party as the chicken little brigade.....and they keep yelling, "The sky is falling! The sky is falling."
And tripping over each other as well. Getting nowhere fast.
The campaign leaders better learn how to street fight fast Trump knows how and is not afraid to use a knife ..he has no sense of a fair fight and Joes people better fucken learn that yesterday !
Amen!
Doesn’t the news media know they are aiding and abetting Trump when they try to make Biden look feeble??
Have they not considered that if Trump should get into office with the immunity the Supreme Court has given him that he’s going to go after all of these TV news people and companies and take them off the air?
Are they so shortsighted they only care about causing controversy in order to increase ratings today and screw the consequences?
Disgusting and dangerous!!!
Of course they do! It's the same thing they did to Hillary - "but her emails." Look, the Bezos Post is now firmly in the Murdoch camp, British edition; the NYTimes is double dog p*ssed that Biden wouldn't give them an exclusive and has been pulling the same kind of sh*t they pulled with Hillary (Here's looking at you, Maureen) they also now use Murdoch's Wall Street Journal as the farm team for future editors and columnists.
It's all about hubris and money. Come Project 2025? They lose, along with the rest of us and they will be shocked and amazed.
Let's hope it doesn't come to that. In the mean time? Switch to the Philadelphia Inquirer and cancel the Bezos Post and the NY Times.
Also The Guardian, but you have to be willing to put up with some important issue(s) or other about which they are going to annoy the hell out of you - no matter who you are - along with their brand of more or less fearless journalism.
But they won't openly enable a neofascist nitwit like Trump, etc.
Alas!! “Free Press” has become an oxymoron!
money is the root of all evil
“For the LOVE of money is A root of all kinds of evil.”
I once worked for a man between my years at divinity school. I always experience a little involuntary shudder when I say those two words together, but it’s germane.
This man was, out of character, not an unpleasant person. The problem was of course that he was rarely out of character.
He was a second generation entrepreneur who went to business school and sort of learned that profit was more important than happiness.
A few of the times he stepped out of character was to call me into his office to examine me, in a kind of academic way, as to how a smart young guy with my background and opportunities could waste my time and the VA’s money thinking about God.
He looked me dead in the eye and said, without a smidgen of irony or humor, “Gary, money is My God”.
Yes, they are that shortsighted. They are publicly traded companies and owe a fiduciary responsibility to shareholders.
Which works just fine under fascism, until it doesn't.
The media (and "reporters") are owned by American oligarchs( think Murdoch, Sinclair) who dictate what "news" will be released to the public. That is why we see so little about their Comrade DT in the "news". And now they own SCOTUS.
I don't care who the democratic presidential candidate is. I'm voting for them. President Biden won by 7 million votes in 2020. Well those same 7 million will be voting again. Plus all the people that were too young to vote in 2020. All trump has is his base and his christo-fascist billionaire enablers. That won't be enough to beat Biden. This time. So we have to fight like hell in 2025 to destroy them. If President Biden were to step down I like a Kamala Harris/ Hakeem Jefferies ticket. There are no undecided voters. That's bullshit. Peace and love.
There's always a fringe element in a country with over 330 million people and who knows how many eligible and likely voters. Even an "undecided because clueless" as well as "undecided because the rent's too damned high and we've been too busy dealing with quotidian crises to follow just how rotten and corrupt Trump is" fringe, and by the time you add to that list it could make a difference in the six or seven key swing states.
SNAFU
TARFU
Yes get out of the way and get behind Biden..this is beyond ridiculous …they are shooting themselves and all of us in the foot!
Once again, I am in debt to you for your calm collected & insightful assessment of where we r.
My only disagreement is on the public knowing Biden's accomplishments. I live in CA, in a politically active city, and I'm horrified by how few people have a good sense of what Biden has managed to do.
Just as they've forgotten just how bad things were under Trump (the fire hose of disinformation is very powerful).
We have a lot of work to do, but I have no doubt we can win. As I've said before, I think the most overlooked factor in the coming election is the anger of women. And we women know which side we need to support.
Biden's lost support among men AND women under 35.
I like you a lot Lucien and I am so so grateful to President Biden for everything he's done but I am ready for him to humble himself and do what's right and best for this country which is to defeat Fascism once and for all. We are losing and we are losing badly.
I got reprimanded on Facebook today for trying to educate the #NastyWomen Voters of Madison County, Indiana about Project2025. Someone got to Zuck already. We are not allowed to post about that anymore. Not even in private or in Messenger. If that's not fascism I don't know what is. Time for Joe to do the right thing. I'll fight my butt off for the Nominee no matter who it is as I have all along but I'm praying we have a shot at WINNING this Election with someone other than Joe Biden. 💔🇺🇸💙🙏🏻
There is no possible candidate beside our current V.P. who can raise the money needed to make themselves known as a new candidate for Pres. And what accomplishments does this mystery candidate have that can come within range of Biden's many years in the Senate and as V.P. and now as Pres? There isn't anyone. Running the state of California or the state of Wherever is not running the country. There are so many areas they'd have little to no experience with; foreign affairs comes to my mind first. Biden has brought the world out of the COVID era and created ties and capabilities to protect one another that didn't exist before.
Where is the loyalty? If Biden can get re-elected and something happens to take him off the field he has a very worthy V.P. who has travelled the world on a variety of issues of importance, and most importantly has worked among the current cabinet secretaries, legislators and others who have systemic knowledge. All of this dithering and WANTING a replacement only supports a Rump win. And if he wins, we all kiss our future rights goodbye. Sheesh, get on the wagon of defending our current president, party, and democracy!!
Frankly I don't give a good goddamn what you want. Do you care what I want? Women's rights restored, better lives for minorities, better health care... and people who vote for sanity, progress and DEMOCRACY. We won't get this by throwing Biden out now.
Iʼm sorry, but once you say running the state of California is not the same as running the country we donʼt have anything in common. California is the fifth largest economy in the world, and running is about the same as running the US, if youʼre referring to Newsom, except we donʼt have military. But now is not the time for Newsom, because it would leave us with Eleni whatʼs her name as governor, and she is about the same as Charles Schumer. I donʼt think Kamala is the right choice either. Iʼm older than she is, but we both grew up in Berkeley. When I see Kamala I miss what Barbara Lee sees in her. I see someone who was San Franciscoʼs DA and who has no interest in reforming the criminal justice system. I gained the strong impression that she likes to put everyone in jail. Yesterday, at the Fourth of July party we went to, I floated Al Franken. I donʼt want to say everyone started chanting, Franken, Franken, but it was close. However, I think we should push Biden as strongly as possible and not have to entertain the idea of anyone else. Until Bernie says no to Biden, I say yes Biden. CNN and the mainstream media is bought and paid for by Putin and his allies in the Republican Party. Donʼt pay any attention to them.
What RW Americans refer to as liberal media, has ties to the CIA, not Putin.
They're dupes and fall for Russian disinformation, so that's a tie. Project Mockingbird is no longer necessary, I take your point on that, though.
Thank you! Well said!
Same
We'll agree to disagree. Strongly.
And that's your right. It's still a free country. Thank God for that. I pray we all can keep it that way. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
So do I.
I also like and respect Lucian very much. I usually agree 100% with his thoughts and opinion. But my take on the interview doesn't align with Lucian's or with most of the comments I've read. Joe Biden's interview with George S. did not help Biden very much, imo. And it had nothing to do with George's questions. President Biden has given various reasons in the days after the debate about why he had a poor performance. He had a cold, had jetlag, hadn't had enough sleep, wasn't properly prepped for the debate, trump talked after his mic was turned off and distracted him, trump lied, Biden just had a bad night. Which of those reasons or excuses are we to believe? Trump always lies and talks out of turn. That shouldn't have been unexpected as part of the debate. Biden said he didn't believe his approval rate was 36% or that the polls were correct. When asked if he'd step aside if Democratic members of Congress came to him with legitimate concerns they don't believe he can win. He said "that won't happen." There is certainly no doubt that Joe Biden is a better man and a better candidate for President. Yet, Biden came across in the interview as if believes about himself the old ridiculous lie Trump once said about himself - "I alone can fix it." Biden actually seems convinced that he is the only man that can beat Trump. He may be deceiving himself. Polls show a generic Democrat running against Trump has a better showing than Biden against Trump. Joe Biden appeared in the interview to be arrogant, overconfident, selfish, and pompous. Why does he refuse to be tested by a neurologist If he is so certain he has no cognitive decline? Could any President honestly say that 3+ years in office has had no negative impact at all on his health? The context here is about Joe Biden's mental and physical health and whether he is fit and able to serve as POTUS four more years. Trump is an awful, evil man with zero character. Our Democracy is on the line. It is unwise to ignore Biden's vulnerabilities. Exploring options to give ourselves the best chance to defeat Trump in November is worth the effort.
So Biden delegates authority to his staff and appointed department heads. It's much too late to "find another Democratic candidate for Potus" who will ipso facto do better than Biden.
Thank you Alex. Well said. 9
Shocking about FB disallowing talk of 2025 Project. I have no experience of FB. Did they say that’s the reason for blocking your post?
No they just said the usual: "It goes against our Community Standards." No explanation. Even in Messenger I couldn't send the Link to our Steering Committee.
But who, exactly? This needed to be sorted out months ago. Now it's forward damn the torpedoes full speed ahead on THIS ship, not some other allegedly more robust-versus-Trump's-Navy ship.
Wow! Still okay here in Va, but an acquaintance had HCR’s shared letter censored. Meanwhile my hacked account is nonreportable to FB. The process doesn’t work.
Theyve flagged other of my substack posts before but never flat out deleted posts until today. Sorry about your hacked account. That stinks.
It's ironic too, that that happened on the very same day DJT came out and said he knew absolutely nothing about Project2025. What BS. As usual.
Between FB and Google I’m sick of AI. Promoting its’ inclusion is dropping the the ball elsewhere I think.
AI is a big contributor to global warming. Uses masses of energy and water.
My husband’s tribe is negotiating a water usage issue.
Hoorah for freedom of speech as long as Zuckerberg approves.
I've just posted two stories on my FB page about Project 2025. I've posted many in the past few months. While I've recently received a few recent notices that some posts have been removed, in most cases I'm not informed of what was removed. In one case, I was informed that a .gov website about EV charging station locations around the country was removed due to violation of community standards! I'll wait to see if there's any FB action against my Project 2025 posts of today.
Did you consider the possibility that there are Democrats who respond to these polls and have ulterior motives for lying when they say they will vote for Trump?
I don’t usually waste a lot of words thanking you. I see plenty of breathless encomia from your readers. Some readers say nothing else. But I now thank you. I agree with every word you wrote. Not for the first time I got a glimpse of how Republicans possibly view Democrats: as effete, idealistic snots who refuse to fight dirty and who, in this case, are running in tight circles screaming that the sky is falling. What a bunch of fickle, faint hearted, thin skinned whores we are… or should I say, the Democrats who want to dump Biden at this late stage of the game. Here we have a dignified, liberal, progressive, widely respected and EFFECTIVE man who has already been doing the grueling 24/7 job to wide acclaim for three and a half years, and he flubs one debate and we dump him? This is fucking IDIOCY, people! There’s not TIME for a new candidate to gain national traction. Harris may be good— the VP job is always tough: be in the shadows, come out only when the boss asks you, cut ribbons at state fairs, and NEVER outshine your boss— but even as VP she likely wouldn’t win in November. It takes time, and a grueling schedule of speeches and lots of exposure, for a critical mass of voters to feel, “Yes, this person is someone I want as president.” The quick, grab-your-ass run for the exits by some Democrats says so much about our shallow, media -fixated electorate. The GOP back room boys are having a field day with our wavering and in-fighting. FDR, gaunt and clearly ill when he ran for a fourth term in 1944, would face the same hysterical calls for him to drop out if he were running today.
We’ve got four months, and counting. Let us end the bullshit and second-guessing.
Biden has been around long enough to trust WE THE PEOPLE, WE the VOTERS, over those hand wringing, pearl grabbing, presidential hopefuls and media hogs who feed off their own in the beltway. WE the voters have already chosen him as our candidate and he knows it. They know it too, but they are too hungry for power and attention for themselves and if there's hubris flying around in DC these days, it's coming from those "effete, idealistic snots" who are "running around in tight circles screaming that the sky is falling."
I hope you’re right about how a majority of WE THE PEOPLE will vote.
The media types, of course, have to generate money for their blogs/stations/papers, and to do this they need to keep stirring up what ifs and sowing doubt and quoting polls. God forbid they should have a quiet day devoid of “news.” They’ll create it if it doesn’t fall in their laps.
“Into the valley of death, rode the six hundred…”
I think it’s worth pointing out that a government is composed of many people working together for the common good. Consider Biden and Trump as the quarterbacks and look closely at the other members of their squads. Do you want decent dedicated hard working public servants or the likes of Steven Miller, Steve Bannon, Roger Stone, MGT, Gatez, Jorden, Cruz and the host of self serving syncophants attached to Trumps coat tails to run this country for the next four years? Democrats must not falter, they must hold the line.
Watching Steph-man badger Biden again and again with questions that he already answered firmly, ever more ridiculous hypotheticals, anonymous beltway rumors, and poll results turned my stomach, but I was pleased and impressed with Biden’s steady demeanor and patience. I particularly liked how Biden said he passes a cognitive test every day he is president, judge by the results. This media feeding frenzy is disgusting, especially since the alternative is a descent into a fascist hell. Today, I also watched Biden’s rally, and his on the tarmac jousting with unseen media “remoras,” looking for scraps left over from the frenzy. We need to see Dark Brandon in action - that will quell many of the doubters on “our” side. Also, the trolls were out in force in the various media outlets like WAPO and of course ABC. What a f’ed up way to elect a president with the future of democracy, and a livable planet Earth on the line.
From the interview I saw Biden kept evading the questions and Steph kept re-asking the same question and never got an answer. He sounded like Trump, pivoting everything to talk about good things that happened during his administration, but not answering anything about the toll this has taken on him to this point, and if he can do it for another four years.
That's one way to deal with question-framing fallacies. George S. just didn't like the answers he got to his tendentious questions.
https://philosophy.lander.edu/logic/complex.html
“Cross Examination of A Witness ...” detail from Library of Congress, P&P Online, LC-USZC4-2900
Complex Question;
Many Questions, Loaded Question, or Compound Question Fallacy
Abstract: The fallacy of Complex Question (traditionally known as fallacia plurimum interrogationum) is discussed and explained with illustrative examples and self-grading quizzes. The “fallacy” is said to occur when an answer is demanded in response to a question composed of several questions.
In logic textbooks the fallacy is also cited as the Many Questions, Loaded Question, False Question, Double Question, Assumption of the Previous Question, Trick Question, or, in law, the Compound Question Fallacy).
Contents
Description of the Complex Question Fallacy
Some Common Types of Complex Questions
Historical Frequency of Use for Different Names Employed for the Complex Question Fallacy
How to Resolve Complex Questions
Lexical Narrowing and Varieties of the Complex Question Fallacy
Some Functional Uses of Complex Question
Related Complex Question Techniques in Law, Surveys, and Interviews
Fallacy of Many Questions as Deceit
In What Sense is Complex Question a Fallacy?
Non-fallacious Uses of the Phrase “Complex Question”
Practice Examples of Complex Question
Links to Online Quizzes with Complex Question
Notes
Readings
*****
But George S. wasn't getting answers and these weren't "trick" questions. I thought George did a good job and tried to be empathetic.
He got answers, he just didn't like answers that evaded his tendentious bullshit questions, too bad. The fact is the questions were constantly framed as if it's already a given that one bad debate performance is disqualifying, and framed as if some unnamed substitute candidate who must get through an open convention is going to have a better shot versus Trump. LOL.
When Biden stated answers which denied either thing is true, George just restated the same questions.
It was a mistake to rush into an interview with George Stephanopolous in the first place, as he's part of what has emerged as a much wider mass media problem: willingness to `normalize' Trump and enable open fascism.
Those questions were fully loaded, and many were unanswerable. Most were repetitious. Most were already framed to establish GS's narrative that Biden is old, feeble, frail, incompetent, and has dementia.
Well, you can always answer a question based on tendentious assumptions by pivoting to something else. And that will be the answer, maybe the best, fairest kind of answer, since Biden wasn't really in a position to borrow from Trump's playboook and start mocking Stephanopoulos!
Complete with cruel insults about his height and who knows what else!
I agree that the big problem is that Trump keeps getting normalized, perhaps just out of habit and a fear the confront the horror that he is. Biden though has suffered from terrible timing and now he's just Too Old. Time to face reality here.
LOL, so you have direct access to a kind of Platonic Form labelled "Too Old," really?
Talk about dwelling in unreality, a hall of mirrors: WHO is the "Not Too Old" substitute in this fantasy? You see, context is all, it's a "totality of the circumstances" test, and without a clearly designated and widely acclaimed substitute, all we get is a slapdash attempt to defeat Trump organized too late to succeed - in fact , candidates who might well do worse than Joe Biden, however glib and however much younger they are.
Tom - I saw no empathy whatsoever from Stephanopoulos. I saw badgering.
And two mentions of “pathological liar” made my heart flutter, a glimpse of Dark Brandon - give me more!