24th July 2024
Before the summer recess, the Joe Biden performance in the Atlanta debate with Donald Trump was referenced by our contributor Seamus Gunn describing it as unedifying on both sides. He thought that the handling of it by CNN left questions to be answered as there was no real time facts check run simultaneously, which may have highlighted some of the claims by Donald Trump which were untrue. He thought that it was an opportunity missed and that the Biden of some 4 years back would have honed in on Trump’s inaccuracies. One would have expected that his advisors would have been aware of his capabilities as he had been a number of days in Camp David in prep for the engagement. A point was made that he could lose it, not in the debate, but in the aftermath with his explanation of fatigue, referencing that he almost “fell asleep on stage”. Seamus Gunn was at a loss to understand why his handlers would have exposed him to this situation, with Greg Hughes countering that they had not been upfront with the electorate to date if Joe Biden was compromised in his capacity. The discussion continued with Gunn expressing surprise that the Democrats some years back did not groom an obvious successor, such as his Vice President Kamala Harris which he thought could yet occur as the sentiment was growing that Biden should stand down but to date he has indicated that he is going to continue, but this all may change, Seamus Gunn referencing an interview scheduled for later today on ABC television. No doubt as the summer moves on, there will be a lot more to play for on this stage.
A lively Q&A followed which can be listened to below