Friday’s CNN This Morning attempted to make sense of President Biden’s porous performance in the network’s presidential debate on Thursday night with varying doses of cope, excuses, and even conceding reality. Even one White House reporter on-set blasted the administration’s years of denying reality about Biden losing a grip on reality.
Axios’s Alex Thompson — who’s been one of the few in the regime’s press corps to repeatedly write about Biden’s age — lambasted Team Biden just after the top of both hours of the show (click “expand”):
Well, listen, I've covered the Biden White House now for three-and-a-half years. And as someone that's reported on his age quite a few times, I can tell you that the White House’s response every single time has come up for three-and-a-half years has been to deflect, to gaslight, to not tell the truth, not just to reporters, not just other Democrats, but even at times to themselves about the President's limitations at his age. There's a reason why he has not done as many interviews and press conferences as any president in decades. There's a reason he does not do events almost ever before 10:00 a.m. and is rarely on camera after six p.m. And the reason is because he has limitations. He is 81-years-old, but the problem was they were not forthright with other Democrats. They weren’t forthright with themselves.
(....)
There is one good piece for Democrats is that there are still tens of millions of people in this country that would take Joe Biden at 110-years-old, then vote for Donald Trump. The problem is there's probably not enough of those millions of people. And part of the problem is someone that's covered, Joe Biden's age for the last 3.5 years is they deflect, they gaslight at times they have not told the truth about the limitations of his age, that he gets up late in the morning, that he does not appear on camera, usually late at night, that does not do interviews — more than — he's done less interviews than any president in decades. There are limitations on this present because he is old and he is not been forthright and addressing those in a way that Jamal was saying. And so that's why you have this collective freak out because now it's four months to election day. And you realize that maybe he does have some bad moments.
Host Kasie Hunt — yes, that CNN host — tried to suggest this was coming, wondering if there’s been a “level of angst and hand-wringing behind the scenes” that’s only “started to bubble up really aggressively in the last couple of months”.
Thompson wasn’t having it and stated the simple truth that “Father time” remains undefeated and Democrats refused to grapple with Biden’s cognitive abilities after the 2022 midterms because it wasn’t far better for them than expected.
CNN data guru Harry Enten tried to seem critical of Biden, but it was more genuine sadness (and despite his insistence of being “a nonpartisan analyst). He argued this “was like watching a great ball player in decline” compared to past debate performances.
Later, faux Republican and former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan arrived to comically go through some on-air therapy about backing Biden despite what happened (click “expand”):
HUNT: Look, you have been out front as someone who has been arguing in no small part because of what we saw there — the January 6 issue — but, of course, also the 11,000 votes he was hunting for here in Georgia — about the dangers of another Trump presidency. You have said that you are supporting Joe Biden. Are you still supporting him after the performance we saw last night?
DUNCAN: You know, I'm one of those folks that I'm against Donald Trump because of — because of facts and details. You just mentioned them — him trying to bully his way here and lie, and conspiracy theories. My family has received death threats. My wife and kids have received death threats. I've watched him operate. I've watched him stoke the fires of January 6.We cannot afford Donald Trump to be back in the White House. And last night was — was difficult to watch, right? Joe Biden did not show up ready to go. Mentally and physically, he needed to cross a bar that was relatively low, and he didn't do it. I think he picks up additional headwinds from his own party and I think the folks in the middle, like me, that want anybody other than Donald Trump to be in charge of our country — I think the couch caucus got a little bit bigger last night. I think we're still trying to figure out how can we justify not voting for a Republican and figure out how we can vote for a Democrat. Joe Biden's got work to do.
To start the second hour, even Hunt acknowledged the blatant issue in Biden’s competency that’s “sent his party scrambling” after having seen his “halting” “cadence” and “voice nearly inaudible at times as he struggled to finish some of his thoughts.”
Yet after all of these critiques the conversation was capped off with even greater disillusionment thanks to chief national affairs correspondent Jeff Zeleny, who floated the idea Biden flopped because he was “overprepared”:
So look, today's a new day, the President has to address this when he speaks to North Carolina today, it's — it would be unthinkable for him not to, but going forward from that, I think we need a few days to settle in to what is he personally, what is his family personally thinking about this. To me, he was over — he looked overprepared, completely tired, and he may have had a cold. That's probably the most charitable thing. But, Biden advisers know how to reach everyone, why didn't they alert people to his cold at say, 5:00 as opposed to 9:45 during the debate?
(....)
What about the stare? It wasn't just the cold, though. Let's be honest if you watched the debate, it was more than just his voice. It was how he carried himself and it was almost like he wasn't sure which camera luck through. But again, he was so prepared. Was he over-prepared? just look at that. And, you know, this is not the first time this has happened necessarily. We have covered many events with him this is actually the Joe Biden we see on most days, the State of the Union address was the outlier here, at least according to last night.
The transcript is below, click “expand” to read:
CNN This Morning
06/28/2024
05:03 a.m. EasternALEX THOMPSON: Well, listen, I've covered the Biden White House now for three-and-a-half years. And as someone that's reported on his age quite a few times, I can tell you that the White House’s response every single time has come up for three-and-a-half years has been to deflect, to gaslight, to not tell the truth, not just to reporters, not just other Democrats, but even at times to themselves about the President's limitations at his age. There's a reason why he has not done as many interviews and press conferences as any president in decades. There's a reason he does not do events almost ever before 10:00 a.m. and is rarely on camera after six p.m. And the reason is because he has limitations. He is 81-years-old, but the problem was they were not forthright with other Democrats. They weren't, at times, forthright with themselves.
KASIE HUNT: Mmhmm.
THOMPSON: And that is why Democrats sorry, I'm full freak out mode because what they saw is finally what they have been obscuring
HUNT: Alex, how much of this is relatively recent because it does seem like there has been a – the level of angst and hand-wringing behind the scenes has started to bubble up really aggressively in the last couple of months —
THOMPSON: Yes.
HUNT: — in particular, is there something that happened? Was — was there a turning point —
THOMPSON: I mean, its Father time–
HUNT: – that crossed?
THOMPSON: — I mean, it's father time. I think the thing is you have to remember, take us back to 2022 and it was supposed to be a red wave. There wasn't, and sort of the exuberance of victory, or at least not doing as, you know, proceed victory, not doing his bad they hoped there was this — there was a sense that, hey, we can do this. And thing is that when Joe Biden, you look at Joe Biden even like late 2022, the fact is that he has — you know, his public performance has slipped considerably over the last year, and that's why you saw basically a lot of Democrats get angsty. Now, Joe Biden was able to put off some that angst in the State of the Union address, but he was on a teleprompter there and now he wasn't a teleprompter. It was 90 minutes. And this is what happened.
(....)
05:06 a.m. Eastern
HARRY ANTON: As a nonpartisan analyst, it was tough to watch. It was like watching a great ball player in decline. I went back and watched his debate performances during the 2008 Democratic primary season or in the vice presidential debate in 2008. And the market difference between the man that I saw back in 2008 and the one that I saw on that stage last night, it was almost as if I was looking at two completely different human beings.
(....)
05:34 a.m. Eastern
HUNT: Look, you have been out front as someone who has been arguing in no small part because of what we saw there — the January 6 issue — but, of course, also the 11,000 votes he was hunting for here in Georgia — about the dangers of another Trump presidency. You have said that you are supporting Joe Biden. Are you still supporting him after the performance we saw last night?
GEOFF DUNCAN: You know, I'm one of those folks that I'm against Donald Trump because of — because of facts and details. You just mentioned them — him trying to bully his way here and lie, and conspiracy theories. My family has received death threats. My wife and kids have received death threats. I've watched him operate. I've watched him stoke the fires of January 6.We cannot afford Donald Trump to be back in the White House. And last night was — was difficult to watch, right? Joe Biden did not show up ready to go. Mentally and physically, he needed to cross a bar that was relatively low, and he didn't do it. I think he picks up additional headwinds from his own party and I think the folks in the middle, like me, that want anybody other than Donald Trump to be in charge of our country — I think the couch caucus got a little bit bigger last night. I think we're still trying to figure out how can we justify not voting for a Republican and figure out how we can vote for a Democrat. Joe Biden's got work to do.
(....)
6:01 a.m. Eastern
HUNT: [L]ast night, one candidates performance sent his party scrambling. Good morning, everyone. CNN This Morning is live here in Atlanta, where it is 6:00 a.m. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us this morning. “We are f***ed”. That reaction from a Democratic source after watching president Biden's performance in last night's CNN debate, other Democratic insiders telling me Biden looks and sounds terrible that he was simply “horrific”. All those comments coming from party operatives who found moments like this incredibly difficult to watch.
(....)
6:02 a.m. Eastern
HUNT: With so much on the line last night, the president's performance was alarming to many who support him. His cadence was halting, his voice nearly inaudible at times as he struggled to finish some of his thoughts.
(....)
06:08 a.m.
JEFF ZELENY: This goes beyond Democratic bedwetting. This is a very different thing and it was more a sense of concern, alarm, pain. I was in the spin room last night after the debate sort of looking around and boy, talk about not a single Biden person could be found for quite awhile. Finally, Governor Gavin Newsom came in. Senator Rafael Warnock came in and yes, they did, you know, talk about the policy, but very little talk about the performance. So look, today's a new day, the President has to address this when he speaks to North Carolina today, it's — it would be unthinkable for him not to, but going forward from that, I think we need a few days to settle in to what is he personally, what is his family personally thinking about this. To me, he was over — he looked overprepared, completely tired, and he may have had a cold. That's probably the most charitable thing. But, Biden advisers know how to reach everyone, why didn't they alert people to his cold at say, 5:00 as opposed to 9:45 during the debate?
HUNT: I told — I had — I got a text from someone that said, “They should have lied and said he had COVID, if this — if they knew this was the guy that was gonna show up.”
(....)
6:10 a.m. Eastern
THOMPSON: There is one good piece for Democrats is that there are still tens of millions of people in this country that would take Joe Biden at 110-years-old, then vote for Donald Trump. The problem is there's probably not enough of those millions of people. And part of the problem is someone that's covered, Joe Biden's age for the last 3.5 years is they deflect, they gaslight at times they have not told the truth about the limitations of his age, that he gets up late in the morning, that he does not appear on camera, usually late at night, that does not do interviews — more than — he's done less interviews than any president in decades. There are limitations on this present because he is old and he is not been forthright and addressing those in a way that Jamal was saying. And so that's why you have this collective freak out because now it's four months to election day. And you realize that maybe he does have some bad moments.
JAMAL SIMMONS: Yeah and it raises the question, why do you go to Europe twice, right? You seem like there's sort of over-working him to show this mode, this movement, and what you're talking about that somebody is at home, I mean, it's working, but he is 81-years-old. Let him them stay home on one of those trips. Let the vice president go on one of those trips, so that he could be focused on his job. And it does raise questions about staffing. If he had a cold, I would've liked to have known as somebody who's been out talking on behalf for Democrats because at least that way when we heard the raspy voice at the beginning of the beginning of the debate, we would have had a moment and say, oh, he's got a coal, let's give them a chance — like, gain his footing, but that's not what happened.
ZELENY: What about the stare? It wasn't just the cold, though. Let's be honest if you watched the debate, it was more than just his voice. It was how he carried himself and it was almost like he wasn't sure which camera luck through. But again, he was so prepared. Was he over-prepared? just look at that. And, you know, this is not the first time this has happened necessarily. We have covered many events with him this is actually the Joe Biden we see on most days, the State of the Union address was the outlier here, at least according to last night.
