I think the freakout has been absurd and overblown and far more damaging than the debate itself, which would have been survivable if everyone had been willing to circle the wagons and push back on it
I am, from a purely pragmatic standpoint, extremely concerned that the damage cannot be overcome
Breaking news: President Biden and his senior team said they accepted the grim ultimatum they’ve been hearing from almost all quarters of the Democratic Party — to demonstrate his fitness for office or face a significant effort to force him to step aside.
I may well be wrong about this - it's still the beginning of July, and a number of people I respect have a different view of the situation
but at this point the only thing that matters to me is beating Trump in November and I don't think Biden can do that without full support from his party
the Times and the rest of the media ratfuck are one thing, but it's beyond obvious at this point that the calls are coming from inside the house, and the Biden folks have failed to contain the party-level freakout
either that needs to be fixed, and very soon, or you tag in Kamala
I'm convinced that if you "Tag in" Kamala she gets max one positive news cycle & then they tear into her, whining how much better a different candidate would be, meaning you lose incumbency and gain nothing.
Given that they're already ragging on her, one positive cycle seems like wishful thinking.
I dunno, I think if Thomas fucking Friedman tells you to do something, then that's a pretty clear hint that the opposite course of action is the one to take.
