Thoughts on the Presidential Debate

On the format of the debate –

I thought having microphones off except during the allotted time to speak was the right thing to do!  That got rid of the constant interruptions seen in the last ones.  The missing element was fact-checking,  which should have been happening essentially real-time!  This is actually the bigger risk to democracy,  as it is impossible for anyone to make good decisions,  based on bad information.

Evaluation of the fitness of the candidates –

I saw a person with both physical and cognitive difficulties in 81-year-old Joe Biden,  as did all who watched the debate.  But,  I also saw cognitive difficulties in 77-year-old Donald Trump,  which many seemed to have missed as they watched,  simply because they were not as glaringly apparent.  I saw fewer physical difficulties with Trump,  but at his weight and with his bad lifestyle preferences,  I foresee failing physical health coming very soon,  likely a heart attack,  stroke,  or diabetes.

The risk of cognitive problems in the job of President is obvious,  and need not be further pursued here. 

The risk of physical health difficulties is not so obvious,  although this has already come up in prior Presidencies over the last 2 centuries.  The main risk lies in the suitability and readiness of the Vice President to take over the duties of President.  This is compounded by the nature of the job,  which at least from Franklin Roosevelt forward,  visibly ages all who serve.

Observed cognitive deficits –

With Joe Biden,  it was obvious,  and compounded by evident physical frailty.  He completely lost his train of thought while answering one question,  and never recovered it,  an event ended by the timing-out of his time to speak.  I saw 3 or 4 other such stumbles,  losing his train of thought in the middle of speaking,  but he was able to recover it,  and continue speaking.  These were noted as “rambling answers” by other observers.  I know what they really were,  I have seen such before!

With Donald Trump,  it was not quite so obvious,  but it was there for all to see:  he never actually answered any of the questions put to him!  Instead,  he invariably jumped repeatedly into the same debunked lies he tells at his political campaign rallies.  I actually saw him stumble and repeat himself,  while telling these well-practiced lies,  about 3 or 4 times.  The exaggerated nature of the lies themselves were alarming enough,  but not actually answering any of the questions is even more alarming,  as it indicates rather low cognition of the unexpected!  That is very dangerous to the country,  in the job of President!

Truthfulness –

Biden wins hands-down in this category!  Virtually everything Donald Trump said was an exaggerated,  egregious,  and long-debunked political lie!  While the conventional wisdom says politicians lie anytime their lips are moving,  there is actually a wide spectrum of how serious the deception is,  and thus how dangerous it is.  With Trump,  the deception is extreme,  and therefore extremely dangerous.  With Biden,  it is not.

Vice Presidential choices –

With Joe Biden,  there is Kamala Harris,  who is still young enough physically and mentally to serve well.  She is knowledgeable about what is going on,  and could step in and come up to speed almost immediately,  something very important in a time of war,  or impending war.  She,  like Biden,  does not pose a threat of extremely deceptive lies. 

With Donald Trump,  we do not yet know who his Vice Presidential pick will be.  Those purported to be on his “short list” are all “Trump wannabees”,  spouting the same extreme,  dangerous,  and long-debunked lies that Trump does.  I do not see a choice here that is not just as dangerous a threat to democracy as Trump is,  with those lies. 

Legal issues –

Trump has these “in spades”.  Biden does not,  despite years of trying by the “Trump wannabees” in Congress.  Depending upon future jury verdicts,  they could preclude Trump actually serving effectively,  independent of any health risks.  Further,  the President is supposed to be a role model.  The felony conviction,  with more looming,  precludes that role for Donald Trump.

Conclusions –

Neither of these men is actually mentally fit to serve another term as president,  especially in a time of regional wars that threatens general war.  And both men present risks of failing physical health,  simply due to advanced age.  The 25^th Amendment and the line of succession is supposed to take care of that risk,  although it perhaps cannot be done quickly enough in an emergency,  unless the President actually quickly dies.

The second scheduled debate (in August,  I think it is) [actually,  September 10^th] absolutely must have real-time fact-checking in its format,  and continue the dead mike practice!  Such fact-checking is utterly essential to identify good information for the voters to make informed decisions.  Lies of the type Trump repeatedly tells,  are very dangerous to our democracy.  They cause insurrections,  as we have already seen.

Neither party has any business running candidates for President as flawed as these two men.  Polls say about 70% of Americans agree with me on that.  But since they are the apparent candidates,  physical and mental health risks are not the worst issue here,  telling the truth is,  because lies are so dangerous! 

On that truthfulness basis alone,  I recommend you vote for Biden/Harris,  and against the many other Trump “wannabees” down-ballot. 

Update 7-2-2024:  To summarize,  what we are required to trade off here is the rather strong likelihood of infirmity leading to inability to function,  in Joe Biden,  if selected for another term as President,  versus the strong likelihood of severe damage to,  or even the loss of,  our democracy with another term for Donald Trump,  plus the fair-to-middling likelihood of at least some infirmity trending toward inability,  affecting Trump during another term.

Joe Biden has a good,  credible backup in his VP,  Kamala Harris,  who could assume the duties and come up to speed almost immediately.  There is no risk to democracy with either her or Biden.  Donald Trump’s potential VP choices pose the same threat to democracy that he does,  since they all publicly promote the same lies that demonstrably provoked one insurrection already.  None of those VP choices would be immediately ready to assume the duties of President,  should Donald Trump’s cognitive or physical issues quickly worsen to the point of inability to function.

And then there is demonstrated behavior histories of the two candidates to consider.  Trump did everything he could,  legal or not,  to overturn his election loss in 2020,  up to and including using his lies about that election (over months) to incite an insurrection at the Capitol,  Jan. 6,  2021.  He also threatened to renege on our NATO obligation to defend our allies,  and clearly wanted us out of that alliance,  instead giving Putin everything he wants.  Biden has none of those rather egregious faults.

Weigh the risks for yourself:

Significant likelihood of inability with Biden,  but with a good replacement in Harris;  versus severe damage to,  or loss of,  our democracy with Trump,  plus no credible VP backup for Trump if inability should happen. 

The choice is quite clear:  Biden.