Jack Tame: The Democrats need a new candidate

“I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said either.” 

That was it. The moment. The line. The death knell. And the crazy thing about the words that best defined the 2024 Presidential Election debate is that Donald Trump wasn’t blustering or lying. I don’t think anyone who’d seen Joe Biden’s attempt at an answer honestly disagreed.  

Election debates are rarely significantly consequential. They might give a candidate or a party a little bump in the polls or some choice clips for social media or campaign advertisements. But as much as Democrats are in damage control today, playing down the significance of their candidate’s performance, this will go down in history as the moment that lost Biden the Presidency. The moment where it became absolutely crystal-clear for millions of people watching live and the billions of people viewing subsequent clips; either Joe Biden stands down or Joe Biden will be defeated.   

The crazy thing to remember is that everything about the debate was played on his terms. This was the Democrats’ big play to dispel the criticisms of his competence and energy. Joe Biden took a full week at Camp David to prepare. His team requested rules around the microphone being cut off to stop Trump from interrupting. And yet with all the prep, all the resource, he stood there with his mouth gaping, a dithering, pitiful, sometimes incoherent picture of a diminished, elderly man. If the goal was to prove the President had the energy and sharpness for four more years, it was a stunning own goal. Trump didn’t damage Biden. He didn’t need to. Biden damaged Biden. Take the politics out of it. At a human level, it was sad.  

I’ve covered the last three U.S elections, from Biden’s Vice-Presidential debates in 2012 through to his win in 2020. I was in a freezing Delaware car park on election night, four years ago. I’ve long felt that age alone is no reason for someone not to be President, but that a lack of vim and vigour most certainly is. I’ve taken time to get to this point –12 months ago I felt that Biden might be able to dispel the criticisms and the noise. Now, I cannot see a way in which he recovers his campaign.  

If the Democrats are to win the election, they need a new candidate. Someone young. Someone relatively centrist. Whatever it takes to pressure Biden to stand down, they must do it and do it now.  

If you step back, there are a couple of positives in this. Imagine for a moment if this wasn’t an abnormally early election debate. Imagine if yesterday couple of weeks before the election.  

Even though it’s an unprecedented situation, there is time for the Dems to scramble and to find a new candidate. 

It’s funny, in watching the fallout from the debate and imagining what will happen if Biden stands down, I was reminded of our own election in 2017 when Andrew Little stepped aside and Jacinda Ardern became leader. She enjoyed a huge surge in popularity. Jacindamania. It’s totally possible a new Democrat candidate would experience something similar.  

And even if they didn’t, even if a new candidate was defeated come November, would the result be any worse for the Democrats than that which they are heading towards right now?  

Either Biden stands aside or Biden will be defeated. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Team podcast
from News Talks ad Be.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
I really don't know what he said at the end
of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he
said either. That was it. That was at the moment,
the line, the death knell, and the crazy thing about
the words that probably best defined the twenty twenty four

(00:33):
presidential election debate is that Donald Trump wasn't blustering or
lying or even being mean. He was being honest. I
don't think anyone who had seen Joe Biden's attempt at
an answer honestly disagreed. Election debates are rarely significantly consequential.

(00:56):
You know, they might give a candidate or a party
a little bump in the polls for a week or two,
or you know, some choice clips for social media or
campaign advertisements. But as much as the Democrats are in
damage control today playing down the significance of their candidate's
performance last night, this will go down in history as
the moment that lost Joe Biden the presidency, the moment

(01:20):
where it became absolutely crystal clear for millions of people
watching live and the billions of people watching the subsequent
clips on the Internet that either Joe Biden stands down
or Joe Biden will be defeated. The crazy thing to
remember is that everything about the debate was played on
his terms. This was the Democrats' big play to dispel

(01:44):
the criticisms of his competence and energy. Joe Biden took
a full week to prepare, a week as president to
prepare for that performance. His team requested rules around the
microphone being cut off to stop Donald Trump from interrupting.
And yet with all of the prep all of the resources,
he stood there with his mouth gape open, a sort

(02:09):
of dithering, honestly pitiful, sometimes incoherent picture of a diminished
elderly man. If the goal was to prove the president
had the energy and the sharpness for four more years,
it was a stunning own goal. Trump didn't damage Biden,
he didn't need to. Biden damaged Biden. And if you

(02:32):
step back for a moment and just take the politics
out of it at a simple human level, it was sad.
I've covered the last three US elections, from Biden's vice
presidential debates in twenty twelve through to his win in
twenty twenty. I was in a freezing Delaware car park

(02:53):
on election night four years ago. And I've long felt
personally that age alone is no reason for someone not
to be president. You can't say that someone's too old
to be president, but instead that a lack of them
and vigor most certainly is age. Isn't the concern competency is.

(03:16):
I've taken time to get to this point, Like twelve
months ago, you know, I thought that Biden might be
able to dispel the criticisms and the noise. Now, comparing
that debate performance with his debates from just four years ago,
I cannot see a way in which he recovers his campaign.
If the Democrats are going to win the election in November,

(03:36):
they need a new candidate. It's got to be someone young,
someone relatively centrist. Whatever it takes to pressure Biden to
stand down, they must do it, and do it now.
If you step back, there are maybe a couple of
positives in this. Just imagine for a moment if this
wasn't an abnormally early election debate. That was one of

(03:58):
the things that really distinguished this debate. It's way earlier
than they would usually have them. Imagine if yesterday was
a couple of weeks before the election, even though it
is an unprecedented situation, there is still time for the
Dems to scramble and to find a new candidate. Yeah,
it's funny in watching the debate or the fallout from

(04:21):
the debate and imagining what's going to happen if Biden
does stand down. I was reminded of our own election
in twenty seventeen, when Andrew Little stepped aside and Jinder
Ardun became Labour's leader. You know, she enjoyed that huge
surge in popularity just Sinda Mania. It is totally possible
to imagine a world in which a new Democrat candidate

(04:41):
would experience something similar. Can't be Biden, can't be Karmela Harris.
And look, even if a new candidate didn't experience a
just sinder Mania effect, even if a new candidate was
defeated come November and lost to Trump, would the result
honestly be any worse for the Democrats than that which

(05:03):
they're heading towards right now. It's, as far as I'm concerned,
either Joe Biden stands aside or Joe Biden will be defeated.

Speaker 1 (05:14):
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