Leftwing Propaganda Organs Politico and NYT Moan: Biden Is Actually Serious About Running Again

Last week, John Sexton noted that Politico worried that Biden... "refuses to leave the stage."

Or, is not "ready to cede the stage," as they put it.

If there's one upside to essentially losing the midterms, it's that Biden would clutch tightly to the presidency like it was a girl scout who uses bubblegum-scented shampoo.

Days after his 80th birthday, President Joe Biden gathered loved ones on Nantucket to earnestly begin family discussions about his 2024 plans.

The talks come a week after the 82-year-old House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that she would be handing over her leadership role, declaring: "The hour has come for a new generation to lead." Those words echoed Biden's own from the presidential campaign trail where he once declared himself a "transition candidate" who would restore stability to the White House before passing the torch to younger leaders.

But that was then. Now, it increasingly appears that Biden isn't ready to cede the stage just yet.

While there has been simmering tension within the Democratic Party about making a generational change, Biden's fate appears to be intrinsically linked to Donald Trump, whom he defeated in 2020 and has deemed a threat to American democracy.

The former president has already declared his own 2024 campaign and Biden has privately made clear that he believes he might be the only Democrat who could vanquish Trump again. And while Pelosi had an established line of succession in the House, those close to Biden say the field to follow him is far more unsettled...

If Biden opted against a run, few in Washington believe the field would clear for Vice President Kamala Harris, and that could create a bruising primary battle.

Today, Sexton writes that the NYT frets that Biden appears serious about running again, while Democrats continue noticing his galloping decrepitude.

The concerns about Mr. Biden's overall weak standing in public opinion polls -- which was a burden for many Democratic candidates -- have not dissipated entirely. And some Democrats say that the challenges confronting the 80-year-old president and his party should not be glossed over in the party's relief over the outcome of the elections...

Surveys of voters leaving the polls found that two-thirds, including nearly a third of Democrats, said they did not want Mr. Biden to run for president again -- though Mr. Biden's allies have noted those numbers are not predictive of how voters would respond when presented with a choice between the president and a Republican candidate...

David Axelrod, who served as chief strategist for President Barack Obama, said the midterm elections had given Mr. Biden "a little giddyup in his step." As for a run for a second term, Mr. Axelrod said, "If he were 60 and not 80, there would be absolutely no doubt."

...

Shelia Huggins of North Carolina, a member of the Democratic National Committee, said the country was "looking at what the future looks like, especially with the speaker deciding that now is the time for her to step away and to give other people an opportunity."

Ms. Huggins, who has been open about her reservations regarding Mr. Biden, praised the president's record but added, "I just still have some concerns about him running again. Part of it does have to do with his age."...

Probably the other part is about his presidency being an unmitigated catastrophe.

posted by Ace at 05:06 PM

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