Remember When Obama ‘Lost’ the First Debate?

Joni Halpern’s views don’t necessarily reflect those of the OB Rag.

By Joni Halpern

It was almost as if he had been sleeping at some points during the debate.  Here he was, Barack Obama, one of the greatest public speakers among all presidential candidates in our history, with his head down, his lips tightly closed and skewed a touch to one side, his expression uncomfortable and disengaged.

Across from him was the affable, smiling challenger, Mitt Romney, who spoke in simple terms with very few filler-words, treating the debate as if he and Obama were old Senate buddies having a brandy while sitting across from each other in overstuffed chairs in front of a fire.

Obama supporters were deeply depressed by his performance in that first debate of 2012.  Various polls concluded that 46% to 72% of the debate audience thought Romney had won, with only 22% to 25% awarding the win to Obama.  Democrats were in free-fall, worried that their champion might not be up to the task of winning against a smooth-talking, intelligent opponent with no presidential track record to pick on.

Aides to President Obama and Democratic Party pols were worried Obama’s dismal showing in the debate might signal the death knell to the President’s re-election, and thus, could mean that down-ballot Democratic candidates would have to distance themselves from Obama in order to win their own elections.

Sound familiar?  The pundits from CNN and MSNBC who have made a mint out of following every word from Donald Trump’s mouth, babbling on and on about his relentless lies, his lost court cases, his conviction (after umpteen failures for anyone to ever hold him accountable for his actions) breathlessly beat their chests like a bunch of relatives sweating at a summer funeral over the death of a wealthy aunt they had been told might live four years longer.  And then, just like those relatives, they probably cast a thought or two about how the death might affect their own fortunes once the beloved aunt was safely buried.

That was the fate of Joe Biden on Thursday night as he did his best to tell the American people that the man next to him was lying through his teeth, making things up right there on stage, supporting completely deceitful statements with imaginary people (“19” who denied what a general  disclosed to the public — that Trump called the fallen Marines of the Battle of Belleau Wood “suckers” and “losers”).

But Biden stuttered, said the pundits.  He lost his focus.  He had one job to do and that was to show he could stand up to this lying, thieving miscreant, the pundits moaned. And he didn’t do it.  Their social media was blowing up with terror from Democratic Party leaders, Democratic candidates in down-ballot races, and any number of folks who were banking on Biden not being Biden, but being, say, Barack Obama in the second Romney-Obama debate.  You know, smooth-talking, not stuttering, not tripping over his tongue, not balding, not old.

Biden, the pundits decided, should step out of the race.  He didn’t come across well.  He can’t resurrect himself like Obama did, because Biden is old.

It is a question for the American people to ask:  Shall we dump a fellow who loves this country, who has served as President the last four years without lying to us, without denigrating the Congress members who disagreed with him, who has spent a good deal of time repairing our relationships with democratically elected leaders in other countries, who has stood up to dictators, who has shown himself able to work with opponents to pass valuable legislation, who has relieved some of the intense economic pressure on American families with tax credits for child care, negotiations to drop prescription drug prices, increases in federal grants and loan forgiveness for millions of college students, and who has led the battle to create almost 15 million jobs during his tenure while keeping unemployment under four percent for the longest stretch in 50 years?

But he stutters.  He’s old.  He’s bald.  He can’t maintain focus.

His opponent talks incessantly, rants about things that never happened, lies about things that did.  He’s not bald, though his hair is appropriated like a gerrymandered voting district in the most partisan state.  He’s not young, and he is laser-focused not on matters at hand, not even on matters of importance to the American people, but on rebutting every negative truth ever spoken or written about him.

Biden knows his own weak points.  That is why he surrounds himself with qualified people who can advise him.  But he’s not stupid.  He has been a student of domestic and geopolitical gamesmanship for decades.  He knows where the bones are buried.  He knows what is at stake.  He can take the information supplied by intelligent, qualified people and lead the way to workable decisions.  This is what he has done during his time in office.  Have his decisions been hailed by everyone?  No.  Have they been complete successes?  No.  But has he made decisions that have improved the present and moved us toward a better tomorrow?  When we look at what America was like when he came into office, the answer is “yes.”

His opponent has already shown his incompetence, his desire to destroy the very parts of our government that have the mandate and the power to help us.  He has favored the rich over all the rest of us.  He has spewed his venom at anyone of decency in order to save his vanity.

The question is not whether Biden looks well in front of a camera while contending with the personification of ill will.  The question is whether the American people are competent to see the difference between truth and lies, between decency and degradation, between lust for power and love of country.

Let the pundits jump ship, fair-weather friends that they are.  There is no victory when a liar wins.  Everyone is a loser then.