Chuckie Finster

Look, it's fine to be frustrated with the situation, but I will not accept that millions of people collectively agreeing at the same time that this dude cannot be our President is a bad thing. This wasn't some power grab or coup based on difference in policy. This wasn't some long simmering feud where everyone was waiting for a moment to strike. Biden had 100% party support prior to June 27. This was a genuine, impromptu reaction to what was playing out before our eyes, and I do not accept that the answer is blind loyalty. Additionally, being able to effectively and persuasively communicate is, like, THE most important skill for a President, and it's silly to blame the media for pointing out when a candidate clearly can no longer do this. Biden has done a great job and I hate that he is in this current state. But asking Democrats to ignore their eyes and vote for Joe no matter what, especially after 8 straight years of demonizing Republicans who do the same, is not the path to victory.

I know, can you imagine? She might even confuse the Secretary of Defense with a Supreme Court Justice or tell a crowd that she’s capped rent increases at $55.

I think baiting the loudest and worst segment of the opposition party is a smart political move.

Given the timeline of events (meeting last weekend with Dem leaders and the sudden outpouring of "he needs to step down" comments from congressional leaders yesterday), many are speculating that Biden was given a few days to make the call on his own and now the Party is going all-in to get him out. The COVID diagnosis and resulting campaign fallout is just another datapoint that folks can use against him.

stop with the facts please

Reagan-Bush-Clinton the most recent. Not exactly the question you asked, but there were 7 different presidents in the 7 election cycles between 1956 and 1980.

Additionally, Pennsylvania Constitution states that the Lt. Gov. (also a Dem) would serve the rest of Shapiro's term. Kelly's vacancy would result in a special election, which may be too risky given the current margins.

Genuine question: if nobody picks up Machete, can we invent some sort of coaching position to get him in the dugout/working with the team? Or is there a limit to that kind of thing?

Bullets were fired at Trump. Something (bullet/glass/meteor) grazed his ear, causing bleeding. Trump WAS taken to a hospital and quietly discharged not long after. The simplest explanation: the injuries were embarrassingly minor, and Trump has instructed the medical staff to not provide any big public updates as this would undermine the "badass"-ness of the whole thing. Any questions about the secret service actions can pretty easily be summed up by incompetence combined with Trump being a showman, even if his life might still be in danger. I also think this has spooked Trump more than he would ever let on publicly, hence the lack of any big public speeches since then.

I cannot stress enough how abnormal those of us that post on this board are when it comes to politics. A third of Americans can't name their own governor, let alone one from a random state like Pennsylvania or Maryland.

Is it really considered bending the knee if you are already working together?

We really gonna do this again?

In the year 2024, there will not be a single voter swayed on either side of the aisle by a VP pick. Pretending that any of this matters is annoying.

Hope everyone realizes the violence on Saturday was not a one-off, it was the beginning of what's coming.

So Democrats can’t campaign FOR their candidate, as he is historically unpopular and the vast majority of the country thinks he is incapable mentally of leading. They also are now functionally unable to campaign AGAINST the other candidate, as speaking the truth about the man will be viewed as inappropriate. Turn off the lights, this one is over.

Yep, this is gonna turn me into the Joker.

The fact that we will all get to listen to folks like Trump, MTG, and Ted Cruz complain about the toxic political climate over the next few days is enough to drive a man insane.

We have to have the most incompetent medical staff in all of professional sports.

Also Cook Political Report:

Chances he makes it to campus?

I just want to beat Trump. I think Biden's been a fine president and is a good man, but I have no specific loyalty to him nor do I think he "deserves" anything. I think the odds of him running a "old moment"-free campaign for the next four months are next to nil. You can whine and complain that coverage of Biden is different than coverage of Trump and you'd be absolutely right, but that's as useful as a basketball coach complaining in 2024 that some shots are worth 3 points while others are only worth 2. It's the rules of the game, like it or not, and you must adjust accordingly. I also think "will this guy survive the next four years?" is a perfectly valid question for voters to ask themselves and those just waving off the voters concerned by it have a poor understanding of the American electorate as a whole. Bottom line: If I was a betting man, Trump beats both. I think the best case for the Biden campaign is a slow, boring trudge over the next four months that results in a squeaker of a victory. Worst case, he has some moments where his age is evident and the bottom absolutely falls out of his campaign. For Kamala, I think the worst case is similar to Joe, but the best case is completely unknown. Sometimes, all a team needs is a coaching change midseason to give everyone a shot in the arm and then the positivity snowballs. And sometimes a team switches coaches and absolutely nothing changes. I don't know the answer, but I feel like I know exactly what will happen if Joe stays in and it worries me. For that reason, I would choose the mystery box of Kamala... but I understand why this is a tough call and I would much rather be on the other side of the aisle at this time. (Note: The absolute certain way to lose would be for Joe to be replaced but for him to publicly air his grievances with the decision. It CANNOT appear like it was "taken" from him, even if that's the reality. Without at least an appearance of buy-in from Biden, this conversation is moot.)

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/07/11/nato-allies-weakened-biden-trump-return-00167424 There's definitely more out there, we'll see if last night stops the drip-drip-drip.

Tonight makes the debate performance even more frustrating. If Tonight Joe showed up to the debate, age concerns wouldn’t have made it past the Breitbart section of the internet. Not knowing which Joe will show up is a scarier prospect than knowing for a fact that he’s gone up there.