Screengrab from https://youtu.be/DN6J8a6hd1w

I think the general consensus is Joe Biden basically self-immolated last night. Instead of his experience bringing gravitas to the stage, he came off as a whiny, bitter, me-too-er; as a guy who has already had all the good ideas he’s ever going to have and has to continually remind the audience of how smart and on-the-ball he used to be and if he had to make up stuff to be relevant, well, that’s the just the cost of doing business. This exchange with Elizabeth Warren will probably go down as one of the most cringeworthy moments in any debate that didn’t involved Candy Crowley and Mitt Romney.

The set up is Anderson Cooper asking, “…And so the question is, who is best prepared? We all have good ideas. The question is, who is going to be able to get it done? How can you get it done? And I’m not suggesting they can’t, but I’m suggesting that that’s what we should look at. And part of that requires you not being vague. Tell people what it’s going to cost, how you’re going to do it, and why you’re going to do it. That’s the way to get it done. Presidents are supposed to be able to persuade.”

I’m giving you the full transcript below, the parts with the strike-through have been cut from the video clip. I wanted to include them to show the full exchange.

WARREN: So you started this question with how you got something done. You know, following the financial crash of 2008, I had an idea for a consumer agency that would keep giant banks from cheating people. And all of the Washington insiders and strategic geniuses said, don’t even try, because you will never get it passed.

And sure enough, the big banks fought us. The Republicans fought us. Some of the Democrats fought us. But we got that agency passed into law. It has now forced big banks to return more than $12 billion directly to people they cheated.

I served in the Obama administration. I know what we can do by executive authority, and I will use it. In Congress, on the first day, I will pass my anti-corruption bill, which will beat back the influence of money…

COOPER: Thank you, Senator.

WARREN: … and repeal the filibuster. And the third, we want to get something done in America, we have to get out there and fight…

COOPER: Thank you, Senator.

WARREN: … for the things that touch people’s lives.

COOPER: Mayor…

BIDEN: I agree. Let me — she referenced me. I agreed with the great job she did, and I went on the floor and got you votes. I got votes for that bill. I convinced people to vote for it. So let’s get those things straight, too.

COOPER: Senator Warren, do you want to respond?

(APPLAUSE)

WARREN: I am deeply grateful to President Obama, who fought so hard to make sure that agency was passed into law, and I am deeply grateful to every single person who fought for it and who helped pass it into law. But understand…

BIDEN: You did a hell of a job in your job.

You really have to watch the video to appreciate the degree to which Joe Biden loses his sh** over credit for passing a bill that establishes an agency that has been declared an unconstitutional monstrosity. What is significant here is that for the first time in his career, Biden was called out by the liberal media for his heroically athletic fantasy world. Apparently, Biden was lukewarm to the idea and is only now coming to the realization that the Democrat base is so far left that he’d better embrace Marxism if he’s to survive.

None of this bodes well for Biden. His strategy was that used by Jeb Bush–inevitability and electability. Now it is obvious that he’s neither.

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