As RedState reported, Joe Biden gave a presser for the ages in Vietnam on Sunday. This time, it wasn't just his senility and references to "dog-faced poney soldiers" that raised eyebrows, though.
Instead, the big shocker was hearing Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, cut Biden's mic mid-sentence, even as he was trying to answer more questions. To make things even more awkward, the president then remained on the stage, rambling away. No one could hear him, though, because of the aforementioned muting of his mic.
WATCH: Joe Biden's staff cuts off a rambling Joe Biden mid-sentence and abruptly ends his news conference.
— Andrew @ Don’t Walk, RUN! (@DontWalkRUN) September 10, 2023
I have never seen this occur with any other president. pic.twitter.com/LqvW2VsESH
It was bad. It was really, really bad. It was so bad that even CNN couldn't ignore what happened, and some of the framing in the liberal network's report is very telling.
However, the president lingered on stage, responding to additional questions about what he said to Chinese Premier Li Qiang before he was interrupted by the press secretary.
Throughout the presser, Biden acknowledged the demands of the whirlwind trip, joking at one point, “These five-day trips around the world are no problem.”
Minutes before Jean-Pierre ended the press conference, Biden had delivered a lengthy answer that involved a rambling explanation of why he uses the phrase “lying dog-faced pony soldier” in an attempt to explain his feelings about politicians who deny the existence of climate change.
Yes, that is CNN describing Biden as "rambling" while noting that the trip appeared to have taken a mental and physical toll on Biden. Keep in mind he's only been on the road for three days, and he travels in the world's most luxurious airplane. When even the left-wing press can't spin the president's obvious senility, that says something big.
They can't let this guy be the 2024 nominee. They just can't. I know Democrats have no good options, with Kamala Harris, one of the most unpopular politicians in modern history, waiting in the wings. But what do they do when Biden has multiple episodes on the campaign trail next year? How do they explain that away when whoever the Republican nominee is appears to be far more capable in comparison?
I understand the goal of Democrats is to make the election a referendum on Donald Trump and January 6th, but even that strategy has its limits. Letting Biden be the nominee is playing with fire, and it's just asking to get burned. Ironically, while Republicans are going hard after the president, the best scenario is probably that he remains at the top of the ticket. If he's going to keep deteriorating at this rapid rate, it's going to be very hard for Democrats to make the case that he can handle another term. Never mind that the economy is likely to be even more in the toilet by election day.
As I've said before, they should have just let Gavin Newsom take the spot. I can't stand the guy and I think he's been absolutely horrific for California. But from a purely political standpoint, he would have much better appeal in 2024 than Biden. That ship appears to have sailed, though. It's Biden or Harris, and both are nowhere near a sure thing to win.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This piece was edited post-publication for clarity.)
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