Things aren’t looking good for Joe.
An admitted Never-Trump columnist, Bret Stephens, wrote in an opinion piece for the New York Times that Joe Biden should state sooner rather than later that he would not be seeking re-election in 2024.
Although Stephens supported Biden in the 2020 race, it seems as though he has strong criticism for President Biden, going as far as calling out the current president’s “alarmingly incoherent” appearances. The Times columnist also asked whether Biden’s appearances (even the good ones) inspired confidence that the 79-year-old could “go the distance.”
These questions seem to coincide with murmurs around the President’s competencies concerning his age. In the 11 months since he took office, some of Biden’s most notable appearances include instances where he appeared to doze off, forgot the Prime Minister of Australia’s name, and corrected UK Prime Minister Borris Johnson on a mistake he did not commit.
Stephens went on to question the president’s age more directly, querying whether it would be good for the U.S “to have a president who is 86 –– the age Biden would be at the end of a second term?” Stephen blamed the reason for his blunt line of questioning on the need to have these discussions candidly, rather than it being “whispered constantly.”
In the piece, he also highlighted Vice President Kamala Harris’ poor performance in recent polls, saying it was the worst of any vice president in recent history. He also added that if she would become the default nominee, Democrats “would have every reason to panic.
To conclude, Stephen suggested that the President announce –– sooner rather than later – that he would not be running for a second term. This would allow successors to appeal for attention, adding that this move would enable Biden to devote himself to “addressing the country’s immediate problems without worrying about re-election.
