Last night the worse possible thing for TV was the debate between Biden and Trump…..billed as an ‘anticipated moment’ left me a bit flat and a bit giggly…..it has been thrown around that it is a pivotal moment in history….can’t see that either.

Plus some said this debate could have been the ‘most consequential’ in history….not once did I consider that option…..and whoever made that statement was smoking crack.

I said early on that it would be a clown show….and I was not disappointed.

The reports are in….shall we dive in?

The short analysis….Trump lied….Biden stumbled.

So you want more?

First let me say that the idea of asking about UFOs did not make the cut  (thank god)

Early on the debate became chaotic….Biden looking out of sorts….

—the first-ever debate between a sitting president and a former president. The first question of the night for President Biden and former President Trump centered on the economy, but another early focus has been on stumbles made during the debate by Biden:

• “Things were in chaos,” Biden said of the state of the economy he inherited by Trump, per the New York Times. The president blamed his predecessor for contributing to that by mismanaging the pandemic. “All he said was, ‘It’s not that serious, just inject a little bleach in your arm.'”
• Trump rejected all of the above, declaring that he created “the greatest economy that we’d ever seen,” per CNN. And he hit Biden on a crucial point in the eyes of voters: “Inflation is killing our country.”
• In an another early question, Biden “appeared to just lose his train of thought, concluding (incongruously) with, ‘We finally beat Medicare,'” writes Reid J. Epstein at the New York Times. Trump quickly took advantage: “He did beat Medicare—he beat it to death.” Biden likely meant to say, “We finally beat pharma,” notes the Washington Post.
• Quick analysis on that: “Not only was that a tough moment—and the kind of moment Biden’s allies feared—it also teed up Trump to go on offense on Medicare,” writes Phil Mattingly at CNN. “That’s an issue Democrats always view as their advantage. Trump just grabbed it from Biden.”
• On that front, Cleve R. Wootson Jr. of the Washington Post noted, even before the Medicare moment: “In these early moments, how Biden is talking seems to matter as much as what he is saying. His voice is a little raspy, even strained. Voters routinely, without prompting, bring up concerns about his age. I don’t know if he’s assuaging those concerns.” Colleague Josh Dawsey adds: “It’s hard to follow exactly what Biden is talking about on some of these answers on abortion and immigration.”
• About 20 minutes in, Trump said of Biden after an immigration answer: “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence,” per Politico. “I don’t think he knows what he said either.”

Then of course the attacks got all personal…..

• Biden: “The only person on the stage that is a convicted felon is the man I’m looking at right now,” Biden said. This came after Trump called Hunter Biden, the president’s son, a “convicted felon,” notes the Washington Post.
• Trump: “Joe could be a convicted felon as soon as he gets out of office.”

Then the age old (no pun intended) question of age was thrown at them….

Biden: Moderator Dana Bash of CNN pointed out to Biden that he would be 86 at the end of his second term and asked him how he would reassure voters worried about his age. Biden began by joking that he was for much of his political career considered young in comparison to his political peers. He then talked about his accomplishments as president as proof he can do the job. “I’m not sure this Biden answer is helpful when it comes to concerns about his age,” writes Abby Phillip at CNN.

Trump: The former president would be 82 at the end of his term, and he was asked the same question about worried voters. “I took two cognitive tests—I aced them,” Trump said, challenging Biden to do the same, per the New York Times. He added, “I just won two club championships, not even senior. To do that, you have to be quite smart, and you have to hit the ball a long way.”

Golf handicaps? Biden suggested Trump has lied about his weight. “Take a look at what he is,” he said, adding, “I’d be happy to have a driving contest with him.” The two then argued a bit about their golf handicaps. “Let’s not act like children,'” Trump said. Biden shot back, “You are a child.”

This was when the silly reared its ugly head.

My favorite part of this whole night was the question about election results…

One of the last questions put to former President Trump during Thursday’s debate was on whether he will accept the results of the 2024 election even if he loses. He declined to make that pledge unequivocally:

• Dana Bash: “Will you pledge tonight that once all legal challenges have been exhausted, that you will accept the results of this election, regardless of who wins?” asked the co-moderator, per the Guardian. “And you will say right now that political violence in any form is unacceptable?”
• Trump: “Well, I shouldn’t have to say that, but of course, I believe that it’s totally unacceptable,” said the former president, focusing on the notion of political violence.
• Trump II: “But the answer is, if the election is fair, free, and I want that more than anybody—and I’ll tell you something, I wish he was a great president, because I wouldn’t be here right now. I’d be at one of my many places, enjoying myself.” He then began a critique of Biden, accusing him of putting the US on a path toward war.
• Trump III: The third time Bash pressed him for a direct answer on accepting the results, Trump said: “If it’s a fair and legal and good election, absolutely.” As the New York Times notes, however, Trump already has begun accusing the Democrats of fraud.
• Biden: The president pointed out that Trump’s 2020 fraud claims have been rejected by the courts, per Politico. “I doubt you’ll accept it,” Biden said of the 2024 results, “because you’re such a whiner.”

This was more interesting than I had originally thought….but the viewers learned nothing other than the days of quality candidates has long slipped away.

This was a slap fight of two old geezers trying to look important….and they failed.

You want winners and losers?

Winners….not a goddamn person.

Losers….Two old farts, CNN, and especially anyone interested in our country…..I weep for the nation and its people.

Dems are in a panic after a dismal night for their candidate….

Politico uses the term “freaking out” to describe how Democrats are reacting to President Biden’s debate performance Thursday night, and that seems to be a near-universal take when following analysis of the first presidential debate of the 2024 election:

• “Toast.” Politico was texting with Democratic operatives and activists during the debate, and one—the co-chair of Martin O’Malley’s 2016 presidential campaign in New Hampshire—said, “Biden is toast—calling it now.” Another said, “Time for an open convention.”
• Biden’s health: At least two Democrats familiar with Biden’s condition said the president has a cold, which would explain his raspy voice and, perhaps, the seemingly confused nature of some of his answers.
• Even so: On MSNBC, Joy Reid said that despite the president’s cold, the Democratic campaign operatives she was texting with throughout the debate had a reaction she described as “somewhere approaching panic,” noting that Biden actually performed worse than some had expected. Watch it in our gallery or here.
• “An embarrassment.” On NewsNation, Chris Cuomo said Biden, Donald Trump, and the entire debate are all an “embarrassment” to America. However, he warned an open Democratic convention would be “chaos,” and suggested no Democrat is going to attempt to force Biden to take himself out of contention unless the president agrees.
• “Personally painful.” That’s what Van Jones said it was like to watch Biden’s performance, and he said, per the Daily Caller, “we’re still far from our convention and there is time for this party to figure out a different way forward if he will allow us to do that.”
• “I’ve seen enough.” That was Nicholas Kristof’s take in a piece at the New York Times. “We see the world through narratives, and one of the narratives about Biden is that he is too old. His performance reinforced that narrative when he needed to shatter it. Biden, unable to puncture Trump’s repeated falsehoods, allowed a convicted felon to win the debate,” he writes. But he echoes others in saying that Biden will need to make the choice himself to step aside in order for it to have any shot at working.

No one was converted to the other side by either performance…..the only reason people watched was to see if the other guy screwed up….no minds were changed.

In a society that is ate up with youth and beauty and these are the best people to represent the country….it just baffles me.

Let the spin begin!

I am at a crossroad for my vote (a post is forthcoming).

Are the two most capable candidates….think long and hard on your vote.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”