The comedown is always steep for Joe Biden after his handlers "prep" him for a major speech. During the State of the Union, the president appeared to be on some combination of Red Bull and amphetamines, leading to a lot of shouting and slurring of his words.
Biden was back to his normal self on Friday, which could be best described as "bumbling," and reporters were waiting for him on the tarmac as he boarded Air Force One. The first question centered on his referencing of the illegal immigrant who murdered Laken Riley as "illegal" during the State of the Union.
As RedState reported, the mere use of the word, accurate as it was, sent the far left into fits of rage. Multiple Democrat congressional members, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, slammed Biden. Even Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who rarely does anything but fawn over the president, proclaimed that he should have used the word "undocumented."
READ: Democrats Are in Full-Scale Revolt Over Biden's Accurate Description of Laken Riley's Murderer
When pressed about it, Biden had a senior moment and then said the one thing he shouldn't have said.
“Do you regret using the word ‘illegal’ to describe immigrants last night?”
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024
BIDEN (short circuiting): “Well, I probably, uhhhh, I don’t re— it, uhhh, aghhh, technically not supposed to be here…” pic.twitter.com/ubl5SEOAyc
I will never understand the propensity of major politicians to not just take the win when it's being handed to them on a silver platter. The following is all Biden had to say to secure one of the biggest wins of his presidency.
MAKE BELIEVE BIDEN: Look, the man was an illegal immigrant who flaunted our laws, crossed the border illegally, and then brutally murdered an innocent woman. I'm far more concerned about that than playing semantics about his status.
Had the president said that, he would have completely flipped the conversation on its head. Further, had he then followed up such a comment with an executive order helping to secure the border (primarily by reinstituting Donald Trump's policies), I think he'd be the favorite for re-election. The moment was teed up for him to break away from his radical base and show the American people that he cares more about the harm being caused to them than the media's protestations.
He can't do that, though, because he doesn't care. Biden is feeble and senile, but he's not a moderate, and no part of him wants to do the right thing. It doesn't matter that the border crisis and his refusal to speak clearly about it are costing him the election. He's happy to go down with the ship, clinging to his arrogance, rather than admit he was wrong.
Ever-primed to step on his own feet, Biden was then asked about his "come to Jesus" hot mic moment, in which he was referring to Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, a Jew.
READ: Biden Hot Mic Moment at the SOTU Is Epic Cluelessness
Q: “Why does Mr. Netanyahu need a ‘come to Jesus’ meeting?”
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024
BIDEN (confused): “I didn’t say that in the speech.”
Q: “What about after?”
BIDEN: “You guys eavesdropping on things!” pic.twitter.com/804aXMmBmQ
No one eavesdropped on Biden. Rather, he was blabbing into an active microphone because he was not mentally capable of processing his surroundings at any given point. Again, this was teed up for him to offer a simple apology and clarification while affirming his opposition to Hamas. Doing that would anger the Rashida Tlaibs of the world, though, and Biden instead mumbled his way a "joke" and then threw Israel under the bus.
Past that, a reporter also asked the president about committing to a debate with Donald Trump, to which he responded, "It depends on his behavior."
🚨 Biden refuses to commit to debating President Trump: “It depends” pic.twitter.com/sNzH8TlbIr
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024
Let's just get it out of the way now. Biden is never going to debate Trump. Instead, he's going to keep making passive-aggressive comments like the above, pretending that he has the mental acuity to do so when he doesn't. In the end, it just makes him look weak, and perhaps he's fine with that. After all, the press will just defend him anyway.
With that, Biden shuffled up the short stairs onto Air Force One.
Biden’s handlers have him back to using the short stairs again pic.twitter.com/BbWUMJSkY4
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024
I don't know why his handlers even allow him to do these impromptu pressers. He never says anything of value, usually deflecting the questions with odd comments meant to be humorous. When he does speak, though, as he did above, he only makes things worse. His equivocation on the use of the word "illegal" is going to make no one happy, and his doubling down on criticism of Israel will do nothing to repair his relationship with his pro-Hamas supporters.
So many politicians would do themselves a favor by just speaking with clarity and conviction, including Biden. Unfortunately for Democrats hoping for an electoral turnaround, the president doesn't have the capacity to do that even if he wanted to.
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