Joe Biden had a bad debate

But barring the unlikely, the choice will still be Biden or Trump

First things first: Joe Biden had a bad night.

He looked dazed. Too often, his answers were rambling and incoherent.

Today, the morning after, many Democrats are in a panic. Several columnists are calling on Biden to step aside.

Anything could happen, of course. But I’d be shocked if Biden bows out. Afterward, he said, “I think we did well.”

I don’t agree. Either way, he doesn’t sound like a guy who’s ready to call it quits. Even if he were, I’m not sure the fight to replace him—and make no mistake, there would be a fight—might not irreparably damage the Democratic Party going into the fall elections.

It might even make it more likely Donald Trump gets elected.

So where does that leave the country?

In the same place we were before the debate—with a choice. Trump or Biden.

Yes, there are real and legitimate concerns whether Biden has the ability and capacity to sell himself to the American people—and, frankly, to do the job for a second term. That was on display Thursday night. But what else did we see?

Donald Trump. A candidate who was incoherent and divorced from reality.

One example: Covid. Trump said his administration had “largely fixed it” by the time he left office.

Largely fixed it?!

The number of Covid deaths in December of 2020 grew to 3,000 per day, a trend that continued into 2021. Relatively few had been vaccinated yet. The rollout was stumbling. Our economy was still struggling. And what was Trump doing all this time? He was trying to steal an election.

Largely fixed it?! This is what Trump actually believes. Is that how the American people remember that awful period in our nation’s history?

Here’s another: Trump claims Nancy Pelosi said, “I take full responsibility for Jan. 6.”

Does anybody in their right mind believe Pelosi said that? Americans know Trump is to blame, but he bizarrely claims she admitted to doing it.

These are just two examples from a 90-minute debate. There are plenty of fact checkers out there documenting Trump’s torrent of lies. But they weren’t just lies. They were Trump’s delusions. A separation from reality that, if Trump is elected, will greatly endanger this country for years to come.

So yes, over the next few days there will be increasing calls for Biden, with all his flaws, to step aside. I understand why. But I greatly doubt it will happen.

Norman Ornstein, the longtime American Enterprise Institute scholar, says Biden should go out aggressively the next few days and do long interviews with media outlets to try to dispel the doubts. Perhaps a town hall, too. That would certainly help, and if he is successful—if his performance is closer to his State of the Union speech rather than what we saw last night—it will help to dampen the damage done from this debate.

But Americans also should realize this: The morning after is not the day to form lasting impressions over a debate’s impact.

Stuart Stevens, who advised Mitt Romney in 2012, recalls that after Romney’s first debate with Barack Obama, the political class had written off Obama’s chances of winning re-election.

Obama won.

Politics can change fast. Much of what we think we know, we don’t. Remember the Red Wave of 2022?

The thing to remember is this: The choice hasn’t changed.

Donald Trump is deeply unfit and unqualified to be president. That will never change.

Clearly, this country should have better choices. But in all likelihood, these will be the options we have this fall.

Joe Biden hurt his chances for re-election last night. But it’s June. Things can change. So, panic if you must. But don’t let it stop you from realizing this fundamental truth: If it’s not Joe Biden, it will be Donald Trump.

I can’t think of a worse fate for this country.

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