There are at least five key takeaways from the Presidential Debate hosted and moderated by CNN on Thursday night.
It should have been apparent to anyone watching that Joe Biden is not the President. He may be occupying the seat. It is, however, a very sad testament to anyone who has a family member experiencing mental decline to see what the political puppeteers have done to this man to remain in power. He is not capable of clear thought, recall, or even putting sentences together or words in sentences together without slurring and mumbling. This is not a good optic for the rest of the world to see, especially those who are enemies of the United States. It is worse than embarrassing. It is a national security risk.
This was so bad that it felt like the moderators, clearly in the Biden camp from their previous on-air comments, were bailing out Biden by quickly switching to Trump when Biden was trailing off or stammering at the end of an answer.
Biden’s best recall was the hoaxes and lies the media and Democratic Party faithful have made up against Trump—which Trump clearly debunked time after time. The idea that Trump had been indicted as a felon just seemed to fizzle out as he effectively stated that Biden is using the courts to persecute a political opponent—which Biden didn’t deny. Trump also made good points about illegal aliens and crime, as well as the impact of Biden’s record inflation on Americans.
Abortion, which is the centerpiece of the Democratic Party’s presidential hopes, was totally botched by Biden. Citing repeatedly that Nobel scholars, whoever they are, thought the Roe v Wade decision in 1973 was Constitutional has nothing to do with anything. The difference was clear: Biden advocates no restrictions on abortion even up to term. Trump believes the states should decide how they want to handle abortion—just as the Supreme Court has ruled. Trump said that he would not stand in the way of the abortion pill. Pro-lifers may not like that, but at least everybody knows where Trump stands on the issue. Biden didn’t seem to know what the issue was.
Finally, the best line in the debate was delivered by Trump on the issue of Israel. Biden said Hamas should be eliminated, but he wants a ceasefire. Trump underscored Biden’s political dilemma with this quip:
“You got to ask him, as far as Israel and Hamas, Israel is the one that wants to go. He said the only one who wants to keep going is Hamas. Actually, Israel is the one, and you should go and let them finish the job. He doesn’t want to do it. He has become like a Palestinian. But they don’t like him because he is a very bad Palestinian. He is a weak one.”
Trump also said that Biden’s weakness has led to the wars in Israel and Ukraine.
All in all, it was a very bad night for Biden. While the media will be doing its normal “fact checking,” people need to remember that debates are performances. They are style over substance. Hyperbole and half-truths are part of the show. But the one thing that cannot be ignored is the feebleness of Biden and his lack of mental cognizance. Exposing this on the international stage is a danger to America. There should be no more debates between these two. They are a waste of time and put our nation at risk.
We all should remember this when we go to the polls: Proverbs 29:2, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked bear rule, the people mourn.”
Transcript of the debate: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/06/27/politics/read-biden-trump-debate-rush-transcript/index.html