Hazard Ahead

Grandpa is crossing the double-yellow line and heading for the oncoming MAGA panzer tank. All the backseat passengers are panicking, but Grandma is smiling and unperturbed. Grabbing the wheel would be rude, and insisting he pull to the side and hand over the keys might be humiliating. Yet, the vision of being crushed under the relentless metal tracks of the approaching assault vehicle is becoming increasingly vivid by the moment.

Since the debacle of Thursday’s debate, the Democratic Party's official stance has stood in stark contrast to the reality we all witnessed. They've been trying to muster as much performative optimism as they can, downplaying the significance of what was plainly visible. Biden was just under the weather. Debates don’t really sway voters. Remember, even Obama had a rough first debate. And let's not forget that Trump is a repulsive, lying psychopath loved only by his base. (No argument with the latter. If you can bear to understand more about that toxic symbiosis, my new book, Hatreds We Love, has just launched.)

What they are trying to ignore, and most viewers couldn’t deny, was the graphic and undeniable display of the president’s cognitive decline at the debates. What we saw was far worse than the most deceptively edited Fox News clips of his bloopers and befuddlement. He confirmed the worst fears of Democratic voters and gave the Trump campaign team a nearly inexhaustible font of clips of Biden’s cringy bungling, excerpts that will require no editing to cause maximum political damage.

It’s truth-telling time. This has to start with those closest to him: his wife Jill and his closest advisors. They must say to him: Joe, you have served your country with honor and distinction. You have achieved much in your four years in office. But your difficulties in the debate are due to neurological challenges, not a random bad night. They may wax and wane but will continue to make defeating Donald Trump and thus protecting the country from fascism difficult. Unlike Trump, you have never placed personal ambition above the country's interests. Ending your candidacy now and releasing your delegates to create room for someone from the next generation to compete for the nomination and fight to protect our freedoms would be the most patriotic thing you can do.

Liberal journalists and fact-based media are divided, although a significant plurality, if not the majority of New York Times op-ed columnists, along with the editorial board, are advocating that the Democratic Party hold an open convention. If, in the coming weeks, polls show a growing and enduring loss of support for Biden, Dems may find themselves forced to confront the obvious. There is no risk-free path forward. But there is no more hazardous one than keeping Biden behind the wheel.