You have to remember that my interest in Senator Biden's career has always mirrored my interest in US foreign policy. And, you might imagine that my expectations for how US foreign policy would be carried out were SKY HIGH when Biden was elected. They went even higher when Biden named a great statesman to head up the CIA. Instead, Biden and his man at State showed their true colours - always on display to some but, obviously, I overlooked them.

Also, you have never understood what I have been saying here Re. the war in Ukraine. I have never said or even thought that it was "Joe's/NATO's fault that Putin escalated the war in Ukraine." What I did say and still believe is that when Biden refused to put Ukraine's membership in NATO up for negotiation (Ukraine isn't the only one who will decide upon that question, by the way!) he made sure we'd never find out if a diplomatic avenue might have been followed that could very well have had a better result for Ukraine than the end of this war will.

And, what made me so angry about that was the notion that NATO, as a whole, was being totally disingenuous about the real prospects for Ukraine's membership in NATO. (Again, it is not up to a sovereign Ukraine alone as to whether it will become a NATO member.)

As for the US-partnered Israeli siege of Gaza where the numbers of non-combatants/women and children killed, even by the most conservative estimates, has been despicable and horrific - that will be a great stain on the Biden legacy, forever, to say nothing of its mid to longterm impact on the national security of the United States.

If you’re betting that no one is going to pay any attention to post-Presidential Joe you’re probably right.

Of course, that is most decidedly NOT what I was saying in my [2]. You missed the point, completely, in other words. Just like Michale did.

OK, CW, but in fairness to Biden, the so-called "Build Back Better" bill that you mentioned above contained quite a boatload of tax increases on the wealthy that had received a windfall under Trump.

Allow Chris Weigant to explain to you what happened there (hint: Sinema and Manchin):

To state it bluntly: there is no constituency for any of this outside of corporate boardrooms. The state of Arizona has a disproportionate amount of retirees, meaning seniors are a very important part of Sinema's constituency. Seniors are wildly in favor of lower the price of prescription drugs. Sinema doesn't care, she cares much more about her big donors. Even in West Virginia, people want to see America transition its energy policy. Manchin doesn't care. And there's really only one answer to who is against raising taxes on millionaires, billionaires, and corporate America, and that is: "millionaires, billionaires, and corporate America." The only constituency for any of these positions -- which they somehow have bamboozled the media into calling "moderate" or "centrist" -- is made up of big campaign donors. The only way the public's really going to see any of this clearly is if the media ever stop with their false equivalency and misleading terminology.

President Joe Biden realized late in the presidential campaign that the stars had really aligned for him to not be an incrementalist president but rather a transformative president. He has set this agenda, not Bernie Sanders, to put this another way. This is Biden's agenda for the Democratic Party. So in a very real way, he's already on the side of the progressives, he just doesn't want to disrupt the negotiations by coming out and admitting it too much (one assumes).

~ Chris Weigant

http://www.chrisweigant.com/2021/09/27/get-it-right-it-is-corporatist-democrats-versus-mainstream-democrats/

The BBB 2.0 bill with a boatload of similar tax increases on the wealthy was subsequently killed by Manchin.

You may or may not still think it’s Joe’s/NATO’s fault that Putin escalated the war against Ukraine. My only complaint is that Joe slow walked weapons to Ukraine.

Is it safe to say that you’re angry at Joe about Gaza? Well it’s funny how Putin can massacre or kidnap scores of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and the Jews are worse. Or how Assad has massacred his own civilians for ten years now but no one mentions “genocide”.

Fuck the Palestinians they got what they FAFO’d about. If Israel was into genocide they would have simply FLATTENED Gaza fifteen months ago and ensured that Hamas was buried under meters of rubble.

I fucking hate Bibi but the world is holding Israel to a vastly higher standard than even the United States holds itself to.

Oh, I know ... he would have lost, his detractors in his own party will say. And, they may be right. But, I hope they are losing a lot of sleep over, ah, what might have been. :-)

We’ll never know whether or not Joe would have merely defeated Trump a second time (I know that that’s exactly what I predicted) or if he would have been rewarded for all the good things that he accomplished in just four years and really whomped him — to include by the Electoral College. Biden running again might have reminded voters why 81 million of them voted against Trump, since it was decided to NOT run against Trump’s lousy first term.

Liz
2

Post-presidency? Seriously!? Why would you or any of his detractors think he is capable of anything remotely akin to a post-presidency? Too funny for words.

If you’re betting that no one is going to pay any attention to post-Presidential Joe you’re probably right.

You missed the point, completely. :(

In addition to tapping out a horrible comment.

Biden has gone thru the most devastating loss and an even more devastating betrayal..

His legacy is in tatters.. Despite all the good that he has done, Biden is going to be remembered for losing to President Trump (again) and being betrayed by his own Party...

When Biden does succumb to death, it will be his own Democrat Party that has killed him..

Just as sure as if they drove a stake thru his heart..

Because, in effect, that is EXACTLY what his Democrat Party did...

Great job, Democrats.. Ya'all not only sealed Biden's fate, but you have also sealed your own fate..

It takes a special kind of moronic talent to frak things up so utterly and completely perfectly... :eyeroll:

Perhaps an important lesson has been learned ... deceive the people about critical issues and suffer long-standing consequences.

Well, that's the Democrat Party in a nutshell...

Lying to the American people constantly and only looking at the short-term while ignoring the long-term consequences are the defining qualities of the Democrat Party... Along with blatant hypocrisy...

The Democrat Party is simply dead and gone... Burned to ashes... Just like Los Angeles...

That is pretty hilarious...

Basement Biden is going to leave office in 4 days and he will likely never be heard from again...

I fully expect to see his obituary by the end of 2025... 2026 at the latest..

But this is a very odd thing to write. I've been following American politics my entire life, roughly 50 years, and I can't remember any time when an out-of-office political party had a single individual that was the 'leader' recognized by all as the future of that party.

Odumbo... :eyeroll:

Jeezus, JMCT... Yer nothing but a huge batch of low-hanging fruit, ain'tcha... :eyeroll:

What you write about, as if it's a scandalous and losing proposition for the Democrats, is in fact the usual situation in American politics. The out-of-power party never - that's never, as in not ever - has a 'leader in waiting' that everyone in that party acknowledges as such.

See above..

Jeeeze, it's no wonder you run and hide after spewing such complete and utter kaa kaa...

You simply can't defend the words you put down in this forum... :eyeroll:

Those were issues for his second term. Ahem. A term which may have come to be if he wasn't forced out of his re-election campaign so despicably. Oh, I know ... he would have lost, his detractors in his own party will say. And, they may be right. But, I hope they are losing a lot of sleep over, ah, what might have been. :-)

Yep, yep, yep...

Democrats are their own worst enemies...

They live in the moment and completely ignore any long-term strategy...

There are a PLETHORA of facts that prove this beyond ANY doubt...

That's the Republican Party writ large. Quite obviously, the list of "somebody to look down on" has greatly expanded, but the distraction while they laugh all the way to the bank remains intact.

Except it's a DEMOCRAT who is saying that...

And it's DEMOCRATS who continue to act like that..

No GOP involvement at all.. DUH.... :eyeroll:

Which had NOTHING to do with Basement Biden.. The Israeli's state for the record that it was President ELECT Trump's actions that made the Israeli/Hamas deal possible..

Even Basement Biden's own Pentagon spokesman, John Kirby said it was President ELECT Trump's team that made the deal happen..

So Basement Biden deserves absolutely ZERO credit for that Israeli/Hamas deal...

Biden couldn't get his sweeping Build Back Better plan through,

Once again, the OBJECTIVE REALITY is far different from your claim..

That plan was the UN's plan that Basement Biden accosted for us in the US...

And America is a LOT BETTER OFF that the plan failed...

We really dodged a bullet on that plan...

was that the Democratic Party seems to be coalescing around a strategy for opposing Donald Trump and the Republicans: paint the GOP as the party of billionaires who don't care a whit for the average citizen out there.

Except the FACTS clearly show that it's BASEMENT BIDEN and the Democrats who are the Party of Billionaires..

The very richest Americans are among the biggest winners from President Joe Biden’s time in office, despite his farewell address warning of an “oligarchy” and a “tech industrial complex” that threaten US democracy.

The 100 wealthiest Americans got more than $1.5 trillion richer over the last four years, with tech tycoons including Elon Musk, Larry Ellison and Mark Zuckerberg leading the way, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The top 0.1% gained more than $6 trillion, Federal Reserve estimates through September show.

Once again, we have Democrats accusing Republicans of what Democrats themselves are guilty of...

Hypocrisy at it's finest... :eyeroll:

As I said, all good ideas. Which just leaves me wondering: "Why didn't you even try to get any of this stuff done in the last four years?" There was never a big push by Biden on any of these issues.

Because those ideas are great for AMERICANS, but not great for the Democrat Party...

And the Democrat Party will always do what's best for the Democrat Party and NOT lift a finger to do what's best for America and Americans..

It's not rocket science..

Biden failed at building a bridge to the next generation of Democratic leadership, plain and simple. His decision to seek a second term pretty much guaranteed this outcome.

Funny... That's not what you people said at the time, eh??

Ya'all went on and on about how Basement Biden can win and then how Headboard Harris could win blaa blaaa blaaa ad nauseam...

When the FACTS and the OBJECTIVE REALITY clearly proved beyond ANY doubt that ya'all were completely and utterly WRONG about ALL of it...

If this outcome was "guaranteed", why didn't ya'all acknowledge that at the time???

I mean, this is supposed to be a REALITY BASED forum, is it not??

So, this begs the question..

Why didn't ya'all acknowledge the REALITY if it was "guaranteed"??

Sadly, he may be remembered in the future more for this decision -- and his later withdrawal from the race after his disastrous debate with Trump -- than for anything else that happened while he was president.

No "MAY" be about it...

This sad and pathetic debacle is Basement Biden's legacy.. Pure and simple...

And ALL of it could have been avoided quite easily if Democrats.... and YA'ALL... had accepted the facts and the objective reality at the time..

It really is that simple...

Meet the "new" message... same as the old message.

No offense, but that one there isn't exactly a novel concept, and neither is this one:

If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you.

~ Lyndon Baines Johnson

That's the Republican Party writ large. Quite obviously, the list of "somebody to look down on" has greatly expanded, but the distraction while they laugh all the way to the bank remains intact.

But this is a very odd thing to write. I've been following American politics my entire life, roughly 50 years, and I can't remember any time when an out-of-office political party had a single individual that was the 'leader' recognized by all as the future of that party.

As you say, referring to Harris this time around, a losing presidential candidate is not 'forgiven' and assigned the inside track for a second chance.

America doesn't have a parliamentary system where the opposition party has a formal structure of leadership, waiting for a victory that makes the opposition leader into the new national leader. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans work that way. When out of presidential power, it's catch as catch can: governors, senators, billionaires, and even mayors all put themselves forward as the possible next nominee. But none of them are recognized as the 'leader' of their party, when the party is out of power.

What you write about, as if it's a scandalous and losing proposition for the Democrats, is in fact the usual situation in American politics. The out-of-power party never - that's never, as in not ever - has a 'leader in waiting' that everyone in that party acknowledges as such.

Democrats terminally have this problem with not celebrating at the Party until everyone has a cupcake. Meanwhile, Republicans brag incessantly about having the best chocolate cake you ever tasted... like they know what chocolate cake you've tasted, and I've had some pretty dang good chocolate cake.

Democrats have this eternal problem when it comes to tooting their own horn, and Biden is particularly weak in this respect.

Hopefully when Donald Trump and other Republicans are tweeting or ex-ing (or whatever) about ground being broken in the future and patting themselves on the back for something they had nothing to do with, Democrats will remind them about the multiple Trumpian so-called "infrastructure weeks" and how they failed spectacularly and repeatedly and how Republicans are taking credit (again) for something they voted against that Biden got done. #SSDD

This moose poop!? Again!

It makes me no nevermind whether Biden did or did not claim this or that on a stage containing multiple (compared to Biden) "youngsters." None. However, I can definitely keep clarifying actual history for those persons who assumed things based on (what seems to me like) hindsight history and what I will assume is some people's after-the-fact or if-I-knew-then-what-I-know-now wishful thinking.

So then, regardless what people assumed based on whatever speech from March 2020, not only did Biden not claim he would serve one term if elected and then step aside, the issue is something the press invented based on sources they referred to as "anonymous advisers," and candidate Biden as well as his aides answered unequivocally (and multiple times) way back in December 2019:

Joe Biden denies he is mulling a one-term pledge if elected president

A senior adviser for Biden's campaign has also pushed back.

By Molly Nagle
December 11, 2019, 2:13 PM

Former Vice President Joe Biden denied discussing with his campaign advisers whether he would only seek one term in office if elected president-- claims that were first published by POLITICO Wednesday.

The report cited anonymous advisers to Biden who said there have been internal conversations about recent signals from the 77-year-old former vice president would only seek one term if elected in 2020.

“No, I never have,” Biden said when asked by a reporter on Wednesday if those discussions were taking place. “I don’t have any plans on one term.”

A senior adviser for Biden's campaign has also pushed back on the report, calling it “just not true.”

Multiple quotes by Biden and his aides denying the claim repeatedly

While Biden never actually did explicitly promise to serve only a single term as president, many read his comments to mean exactly that -- Biden would defeat Donald Trump, run a bridging presidency, and then step aside and make way for a younger generation of Democrats to carry the torch forward.

Be that as it may and still, Biden and his campaign had already stated unequivocally and repeatedly in December 2019 that there was no pledge and no plan.

This didn't exactly work out as planned, obviously.

Highly likely due to the fact that it was never "planned."

Perhaps an important lesson has been learned ... deceive the people about critical issues and suffer long-standing consequences.

Can you name one Democrat who would have been capable of beating Trump in 2024 or even one Democrat who might be capable of winning back the WH in 2028? Take as much time as you need.

Biden isn't in charge of succession in the Democratic party. And, it's hard to build a bridge when there isn't any foundational pillar on the other side to match the one where you start.

Now, THAT is what's called a good bet ... especially the 'or even beyond' part.

Post-presidency? Seriously!? Why would you or any of his detractors think he is capable of anything remotely akin to a post-presidency? Too funny for words.

Those were issues for his second term. Ahem. A term which may have come to be if he wasn't forced out of his re-election campaign so despicably. Oh, I know ... he would have lost, his detractors in his own party will say. And, they may be right. But, I hope they are losing a lot of sleep over, ah, what might have been. :-)