Since the release of the Hur investigation last week, which examined how President Joe Biden handled classified documents, defenders of the President have alternated between claiming that Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report was a biased and unfair representation of the facts (despite the fact that it was Biden’s Attorney General who initiated the investigation) and blaming the media for the way they presented the findings, which they have characterized as damaging to Biden’s reputation. One might also consider the role of General Merrick Garland, who called him out of retirement, or the media’s responsibility for the way they handled the most damaging of his findings—that Biden was a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory” and “diminished faculties.”
In response to the latter—the incensed instance that the media was magnifying a minor issue—the National Review Online’s Jim Geraghty dismissed this as a coping mechanism to ignore the overwhelming evidence that the public does not believe Biden is capable of fulfilling the role.
These individuals appear to believe that if the media did not address the issue of Biden’s age, Americans would not be aware of it. In the ABC News poll, 86% of Americans believe that Biden, 81, is too old to serve another term as president. This does not indicate that the mainstream media is influencing Americans to perceive Biden as too old. Rather, it reflects the fact that Americans have the capacity to perceive information and form their own opinions.
On Monday, Politico published an article on the potential for Democrats to politely encourage Biden to withdraw from the race. After a detailed examination of the various options, the article concluded that “the only way for a backup strategy to be deployed is if Biden chooses to step aside, or is unable to stand for nomination.” In light of this, Charlie Mahtesian and Steve Shepard have proposed a number of scenarios for Biden to leave with “dignity and on his terms.” The probability of any of these scenarios materializing is extremely low. Biden is too obstinate, and the options are excessively complex.
Another noteworthy contribution was made by Sara Pequeño, who published an article in USA Today. In it, she admonished Biden, stating, “Somebody tell Biden 2024 is here and he needs to enhance his electoral campaign strategy.”
All that was required of Biden was to run a campaign focused on the abortion issue and convince the country that the economy was improving. However, this approach has not been successful.
It is therefore unlikely that Biden will be able to win the election. The New Yorker, a publication known for its liberal bias, ran a headline on the topic of Biden’s economic policies, which it deemed a political liability for the president. The article, titled “Bidenomics Is a Political Bust for Biden: On the Perils of Running a Feel-Good Tour of America When the Country Is Down in the Dumps,” delves into the challenges of pursuing a feel-good economic agenda when the country is facing economic and political challenges.
Chelsea Garcia is a political writer with a special interest in international relations and social issues. Events surrounding the war in Ukraine and the war in Israel are a major focus for political journalists. But as a former local reporter, she is also interested in national politics.
Chelsea Garcia studied media, communication and political science in Texas, USA, and learned the journalistic trade during an internship at a daily newspaper. In addition to her political writing, she is pursuing a master's degree in multimedia and writing at Texas.
