President Biden is not only a lame duck President. He is a dead duck President.
He was given an opportunity to present his own political obituary at the Democratic National Convention. He reflected on his loooong political career as a Washington establishment insider. His retrospective is appropriate at this time since Biden has no more accomplishments to be achieved. His speech was divided between hyperbolic bragging – with a good measure of malarky – and a few nasty barbs at President Trump and the Republican Party.
Biden is not likely to be an activist past President like Presidents Obama and Carter. Biden has neither the political capital, the box office appeal nor the physical and mental vitality to be an activist former President. He is more likely to be like Carter of recent years.
That was evident in Biden’s convention speech. Biden was provided a speaking part at the least viewed time on the least viewed day – post-prime time on the first day of the convention. That is the day when the lesser luminaries are scheduled – folks like Representatives Ocasio-Cortez, Jasmine Crockett, Congressman Jamie Raskin and former First Lady Hillary Clinton. (No … Hillary is no longer a major or influential luminary in the Democratic Party. She is another blast from the past to whom the current Democrat leadership pays scant attention.)
Biden spoke forcefully for 55 minutes – with only an occasional glimpse of his declining mental acuity. At one point, he seemed to go blank in the middle of a sentence. Interestingly, the audience came to his rescue by cheering and chanting — in a seeming effort to provide Biden some time to recover. Even in reading from the teleprompter, he was intensely focused on the script – obviously reading. He apparently lost his skill at making it appear off the cuff.
For the most part, however, Biden looked and sounded good. But much of that was due to having a scripted speech to read. Older folks with mental acuity issues are often able to read flawlessly. It is just that they cannot remember or connect thoughts extemporaneously. We have seen that in the past when comparing Biden’s teleprompter State of the Union Speech and his later debate performance.
When claiming their accomplishments, typical politicians create narratives based on spin, exaggeration and outright lies. Biden is a typical politician in that regard. He took credit for things he did not do. He took credit for things that did not work out as well as he claimed. He said a lot of things that were just … malarky. And of course, he omitted his failures (Afghanistan, the border, Israel ceasefire, deterring the Russian invasion, curbing inflation).
Once Biden leaves the Oval Office, he will shuffle off into eventual political oblivion. No … he is not the greatest President of modern times – or any time. Not by a long shot. Those claims are nothing more than hometown political flattery.
It has been a long run – a very, very long run. Biden will now get the peaceful retirement he has earned – much like Reagan in the final years of his life.
So, there ‘tis.