Vox Populi

.@davidaxelrod tells me on @InsidePolitics that George Clooney's assessment of Joe Biden was "devastating and it's what people fear." @jonfavs, who was at Clooney's fundraiser, adds "every single person I talked to at the fundraiser thought the same thing." pic.twitter.com/ZWdVwhayhQ

— Dana Bash (@DanaBashCNN) July 10, 2024

OK, this is now silly. Biden has probably lost 2 points in the wake of the debate. That's obviously bad, and he's now an underdog, but he's not suddenly losing districts he won by 19 in 2020.

The average swing voter has not reacted like the average elite has. Keep perspective.

— Lakshya Jain (@lxeagle17) July 10, 2024

Trump is joining the wild rumpus:

Trump campaign caught flat-footed by possibility of Democratic race shakeup: report https://t.co/y749MYNAte

— Raw Story (@RawStory) July 10, 2024

As the likelihood of a Trump-versus-Biden rematch set in, the public responded to the two candidates precisely as LaCivita and his campaign co-manager, Susie Wiles, had hoped," wrote Tim Alberta. "The percentage of voters who felt that Biden, at 81, was too old for another term rose throughout 2023, even as the electorate’s concerns about Trump’s age, 78, remained relatively static. By the end of the primaries, the public’s attitude toward the two nominees had begun to harden: One was a liar, a scoundrel, and a crook — but the other one, the old one, was unfit to be president." 

Wiles and LaCivita insisted to reporters months ago that they have solid contingency plans for if Biden exits the race — but according to Alberta, they don't seem as confident about that anymore. 

"By mid-June ... not long before the debate, their tone had changed," wrote Alberta. "Trump was speaking at a Turning Point USA rally in Detroit and the three of us stood backstage, leaning against the wall of a dimly lit cargo bay, a pair of Secret Service vehicles idling nearby. When I asked about the prospect of Trump facing a different Democratic opponent in the fall, LaCivita and Wiles shook their heads. They told me it was too late; the most influential players in Democratic politics had become too invested in the narrative that Biden was fully competent and capable of serving another four years." However, "as we talked after the debate, it was apparent that they might have miscalculated. Elected Democrats were calling for Biden’s removal from the ticket." 

When Alberta asked Wiles how they would handle a Biden departure at this point, she said, “I don’t know. I don’t know.”

Of course they’re scared of Harris. Why wouldn’t they be? And why wouldn’t they announce it? Hmmmm? What strategy could they have in mind? 

It simply amazing what naive stenographers some journalists are.