I watched the way-too-early-in-the-campaign-season US Presidential debate last night. The reviews are in and it looks like it may be curtains for Biden (unless he can pull an rabbit out of his hat), while Trump was seen to have bent the truth on occasion, while winning the debate overall.
I always wondered why Trump agreed to this oddly spaced-out format, instead of the typical three debates in the fall closer to the election. I wonder if the powers that be set this up to illustrate the Presidents cognitive decline early enough to swap him out for a fresher horse in time for the convention.
Viewing it live, I found Trump to be more restrained than expected, and in fact, a little more "Presidential" even. But you could tell he had to work to restrain the beast inside him, and it peeked out on a few occasions.
While his performance was less than expected, I thought Biden came prepared with some zingers even though much of his speaking was shuffling and halting.
With the next debate not up until September (I think), there will be plenty of time for the democrats to perform a post-mortem on what in the hell happened and what they need to do to solve 'The Biden Problem.'
Recall that President Obama faced the same Dem panic when he failed to take Mitt Romney seriously as far as debate prep during the 2012 contest. Obama won that election by a cunt hair in what was expected to be a runaway landslide for him. People often forget just how close Romney came to winning that one.
This is why I think Trump's selection of his VP candidate may be crucial to the outcome of this election. He says he already knows who he's going to choose, and he'd better be right.
Grover Cleveland Did it!
Do I think there will be an open convention for the democrats, I dunno. There are benefits as well as some pitfalls to putting old Joe out to pasture at this point. Do I think Gavin Newsome is ready to pounce if they do? You bet your sweet ass he is, his protestations to the contrary notwithstanding.
Either way, the 2024 election season will be one for the ages. Can Trump "Grover Cleveland" himself into only the 2nd non-consecutive term in US history, as candidate Cleveland did in the Presidential election of 1892? Or will Joe Biden end up snatching victory from the ever-encroaching jaws of defeat? Stay tuned!