I don’t know what was wrong with Joe Biden. It’s hard to imagine that they ever would have asked for a debate if this was the way he is normally. We’ve seen him recently holding press conferences and giving speeches and he seemed to be fine. They said he had a cold so maybe he really was on drugs — Nyquil or Mucinex or something that made him seem so shaky and frail. Whatever it was, it was a terrible debate for him and if he does stay in the race (which is almost certain in my opinion) the campaign is going to have a lot of work to do to dig out of the hole that was dug last night. The media smells blood and they are circling like a bunch of starved piranhas.

. . . For some odd reason, moderator Jake Tapper told Trump in the beginning that he didn’t need to answer the questions and that he could use the time however he wanted. Trump ran with that, essentially giving a rally speech whenever he had the floor and was unresponsive to the vast majority of the questions. He made faces and insulted Biden to his face, at one point calling him a criminal and a Manchurian candidate. If anyone had said 10 years ago that this would happen at a presidential debate they would have been laughed out of the room.

After the debate when most of the country had turned off cable news or gone to bed, CNN aired its fact check. And it’s a doozy:

It sure would have been good if even some of that epic litany of lies could have been checked while people were still watching. The decision to have the moderators sit like a couple of potted plants woodenly asking questions about child care while Trump responded with irrelevant lies was inexplicable. Why did they even bother to ask questions at all? They could have just run the timer and let the candidates talk for two minutes each about anything they wanted. It probably would have been more enlightening.

  • DAMunzy@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    5 months ago

    They need to defend their talking points:

    • Trump is the worst thing to ever happen to the US (I think GWB was worse- Global War on Terrorism us $8 trillion IIRC, est. 1 million excess deaths in Iraq, est. 360’000 excess deaths in Afghanistan, and both countries ravaged economically and socially).
    • Biden is the only one that can save us from Trump and the Republicans and Project 2025.
    • A vote not for Biden is a vote for Trump. When I go to vote for Jill Stein I’m literally, according to them, voting for Trump. I don’t know how their stupid minds figured this one out. Must be some Terrence Howard math they are doing (one multiplied by one equals two- look it up).
    • This is the most important election evar!! Every election seems to be the most important: The world is going to end if my guy/gal doesn’t get in! Chicken Little, the sky has been falling for so long, or more accurately, you’ve been yelling about it for so long that I’ve come to believe that it’s all lies and not truth.
    • Big Miku@lemm.ee
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      5 months ago

      The part about voting is pretty simple logic.

      In a voting system where the one who gets majority of the votes wins, the other votes don’t really have an impact. Of course they are part of the race to win, but outside of that, what do the other votes do? Nothing. In other systems those votes would cause a second round to happen, but in the US system they don’t. Those votes are just… gone.

      Sure, you could argue that it’s about “sending a message”, but… why? Why do this now while the Project 2025 looms over the US if the Republicans win? The Democratic Party won’t change before the elections and no amount of threatening to vote for 3rd party will change that.

      The part about “if you don’t vote for Biden, you vote for Trump” is not literal. It’s more… abstract if that makes sense. Since if you vote for parties that have no realistic chance of winning, it means that a party that has a chance of winning doesn’t get that vote and the party you least want in power is one vote closer to win the election. This logic goes for both Democrats and Republicans. If a Republican votes for third party that has no chance of winning, their vote metaphorically goes to the Democratic party, since the Republican party will be one vote further away from the Democratic party. Hell, this same logic, to some extent, also applies to other systems, but not as much as the US system.

      So unless you are predicting Jill Stein to be making history and winning as a third party, a thing that hasn’t happened, that vote won’t affect the elections and the party you least want in power is just one vote closer to be winning.

      In a two round system, your vote would matter more, since your vote would be affecting everyone’s chance of getting an absolute majority of 50% all votes. And since everyone, but your chosen party, is one vote further from the 50% mark, a second round has a higher chance of happening.

      • DAMunzy@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        5 months ago

        I addressed “tHiS iS tHe MoSt ImPoRtAnT eLeCtIoN eVaR!” and Project 2025- there is always a Boogeyman that we always have to vote Democrat or the Republicans will destroy us (and the lukewarm Republicans/Conservatives get the opposite message from the opposition). They play us too keep us in line.

        Sending a message to Joseph “if you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black” Biden and the DNC is about the only thing I can do with my vote since I refuse to support genocide, which is a full stop issue and precludes the need for any other reasons. I’m trying to not be a Doomer and saying that revolution is the only way but what other options are there?

        We have to stop thinking the current election and think long term. If more people vote their conscience then the DNC would take that into account. Instead people listen to their doomsaying and vote in fear of the immediate and nothing changes about the party.

        I know Jill isn’t going to win, but I’m not a team person and I’m just picking what I see as the best candidate- I’ve picked the lesser evil too many times and here we still are, in a worse place.

        I would love a different system but I still wouldn’t put Biden down as my second choice because genocide support is not acceptable.

    • Linkerbaan@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      These people are so stupid they’re falling for the exact same stuff we heard in 2016.

      Trump was a racist and said stupid stuff. But he didn’t start any wars. Trump was far from the world ending. Then again, Biden was being insanely racist this debate too. Blaming the need for abortion on foreign immigrants raping women.

      Deluded Democrats have no idea what an actual militarist Fascist looks like. This cycle of sliding right will only be broken by a third party.

      • nonailsleft@lemm.ee
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        5 months ago

        Lol @ mr “Gaza is the worstest genocide 4evah” going “at least donnie doesn’t start no wars”

        • Linkerbaan@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          Lol @ people pretending to care about Genocide and simping for Genocide Joe committing Genocide.

          Factually my statement was correct. You might not like it because your reality gets shattered that Trump is a far cry from being the worst Republican ever.

          • nonailsleft@lemm.ee
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            4 months ago

            Why would you choose to mention Donnie ‘Factually, just get it over with’ T started just as many wars as Biden, if you weren’t his #1 simp?

            • Linkerbaan@lemmy.world
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              4 months ago

              Because Donnie didn’t. Donny retreated from Aghanistan. The dumbest thing he did was bomb Suleimani. But in the end that did not lead to war.

              Biden is currently illegally at war with Yemen. He did not ask congress to go to war.

              And Biden is currently supporting the israeli Genocide of Gaza with both military intelligence personell and weapons.

              As much as you want to believe it, during his 2016-2020 rule Trump somehow did far less crazy shit than expected.

              Will Trump continue the Genocide? Very likely.

              Will Biden continue the Genocide? 100%.

              • nonailsleft@lemm.ee
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                4 months ago

                Biden is currently illegally at war with Yemen. He did not ask congress to go to war.

                Lolsimp

                Did your donnie ask congress before he put missiles on Syria? Did he ask congress before he put a genocide on IS?

                • Linkerbaan@lemmy.world
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                  4 months ago

                  You’re so fixated on Trump that you’re willing to excuse anything done by Democrats. It’s clear you’re not willing to hear criticism of the Blue God Emperor.