Let me preface everything I am going to say here by stating outright—Joe is my guy. If a pollster calls, I’m supporting Joe. Come hell or high water, if his name on is one the ballot in November, that’s name I’m selecting. Kamala is my gal for 2028, but for now it is Joe all the way. What he has accomplished as the head of the current administration for the past 3 ½ years has been absolutely remarkable. It has been his political acumen, his knowing whose buttons to push and how, that spearheaded every success. The idea of what could be accomplished in another four with the appropriate party in charge of both houses is beyond amazing and well worth salivating over.
Like most of you, when the debate was first announced, I loved the idea. ‘Dark Brandon strikes again!’ I sat down on debate night, nestled into my chair, and waited for the fireworks to begin. And like most of you, my reaction within the first 5 minutes was, ‘Oh dear...’ or something like that.
What has played out since then, with cascading reports of what has been happening behind the scenes for quite a while, however, brought me to wonder about a question no one really seems to be asking. Who dun it? Who got Biden to agree to debate in July, since the purpose turns out to have been not to embarrass the other side, but to avoid keeping the lid on a surprise until October. It was a wise move regardless of the outcome, and better still to have happened before everything was really locked in. Nevertheless, somebody cleverly stabbed the knife in his back by presenting this as an opportunity when it fact it was a massacre. Is it family vs. staff? Is it everybody vs. Joe in a version of taking away the car keys that is sadly being played out as the entire nation looks on? Was it one guy or a bunch of guys who knew the truth and felt that this would ultimately be the least surprising way to let the word out, believing that there would be more questions and less support for the decision if it was done in private or semi-private? I am hoping that this latter is actually the answer, and that someday we will know more of the sad details. For now, this is painful, like a hospital stay or some other thing that you have to do but you don’t want to do (filing for bankruptcy, getting a divorce, etc.), but you do come out repaired when it is all over, and ready to move forward again.
I still hope that this will not be the case. If Joe stays in, then he has learned an important lesson and everyone around him has learned it to, and is adjusting accordingly to his needs to see him through on this, but if he does not stay in, thank goodness this is happening now and not later on, and thank goodness for the debate, because the truth shall set us free.