June 16, 2020

"In the first presidential race in which the combined age of the two leading candidates exceeds 150 years..."

"... mental acuity and physical health have become a central theme as the 77-year-old Biden and the 74-year-old Trump compete for votes. While previous presidential contests have included whisper campaigns and rumors about candidates’ health, the open charges of senility flying between the two camps sets the 2020 contest apart.... As the video of Trump on the ramp trended online Saturday, the president took to Twitter to explain his cautious stroll. 'The ramp that I descended after my West Point Commencement speech was very long & steep, had no handrail and, most importantly, was very slippery...'...  'I honestly don’t think he knows what office he’s running for,' Trump said.... 'They’re going to put him in a home and other people are going to be running the country and they’re going to be super left radical crazies.'... A Washington Post-ABC News poll released May 31... found that only 46 percent of voters thought Trump had the 'mental sharpness' necessary to serve effectively as president. For Biden, the number was 51 percent.... Some Biden supporters have pushed him to take Trump on more directly and more aggressively on the issue of mental and physical fitness. Some have highlighted how Trump effectively raised doubts about Hillary Clinton’s health in 2016. Philippe Reines, a former top Clinton adviser... publicly pleaded... 'PLEASE force the TRUTH about donald trump’s physical & cognitive health into the open... BEFORE his LIES about YOUR health harden any further.'"

From "As Trump casts Biden as ‘sleepy Joe,’ his critics raise questions about his own fitness" (WaPo).

I'm worried about both of them, so I'm creating a tag — "candidate infirmity" — to keep track of them. That's my absurd little way to help — make a tag about it. I dislike both candidates. Maybe you've noticed. Ever since Trump's West Point ramp descent down that ramp...



... I've visualized him taking the off ramp from the presidency and letting Pence go forward into the election. I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden.

ADDED: Presidential visits are carefully set up, with the safety of the President meticulously attended to. How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense.

185 comments:

Mark said...

Both are of the age where people commonly lose their internal filter and say private thoughts out loud.

The debates are just going to be a series of talking points about infirmity, at least until one of them spouts off some unfiltered statement.

Whichever one commits the biggest unfiltered or odd behavior gaffe, they will lose. All those confident it won't be their guy are delusional and should be dismissed as such.

Hi Drago. What's your personal attack on me today?;

Dave Begley said...

Ann, By any objective measure Trump has done a great job. Yes, he’s rough but we need rough.

Mary Beth said...

They're both walking cautiously down the ramp and Trump takes long comfortable strides once he's at the bottom. It's like the Left thinks that Hillary lost because she was tossed into the van like a side of beef and they're trying to create something similar to use against Trump.

I've noticed gifs of the ramp that cut off just as he reaches the bottom. It makes the anti-Trump people look desperate. Sad! How many people have registered for the weekend rally so far?

cacimbo said...

This just reflects how worried lefty media are about Biden having dementia.Standard operating procedure - accuse the right of whatever misdeeds the left is up to. I watched the ramp video twice and don't get the uproar.Trump is walking carefully on a ramp, he doesn't require assistance or even trip.Pretending Trump is mentally declining or physically unwell due to your Trump hate does not seem like a winning argument.

Rory said...

"I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden."

The Clinton campaign, the DNC, and their megadonors and media allies fixed the Democratic primaries against Sanders, then promoted Trump in the Republican primaries because he'd be easy to beat. Now the DNC has refused to reform itself, raised hell for four years, and fixed its primary in favor of Biden, who's the closest thing they can find to Clinton. That's how we're left with this choice.

Molly said...

(eaglebeak)

The implication that the mental states of Trump and Biden are somehow equivalent seems like a distortion, to put it mildly.

MayBee said...

I think being in your 70s and physically challenged to go down a ramp is very different than being in your 70s and mentally challenged to complete a thought.

MayBee said...

But I do agree. The idea that we are having to choose between Trump and Biden seems ridiculous. As ridiculous as having to choose between Hillary and Trump.

Kevin said...

The left actively tried to put Pence in the Oval Office.

They’d prefer to run against him.

Michael W. Towns, Sr. said...

Maybe it's just me, but I watched the video of the descent down the ramp. And I just don't know what the big deal is. The video of Hillary Clinton's collapse in September 2016 is a million times more damning and shocking. This? Much ado about nothing.

Temujin said...

Of course, the President's steps or ramp down the podium should have been 'cleared'. There's always something missed. Just seems like there's more than ever all around because people are less competent- as a whole- than ever. And I'll stand by that comment. All you need to do is think about the quality of your service or products over the last 15 years- before Covid. It was on a constant decline. But I digress...

Both candidates are impaired to various degrees. But only one of them is considered to be better off if he stays hidden, in a basement, not giving public appearances, and certainly not talking off the cuff at real press conferences. Biden was a super gaffe machine in his prime. He's a walking cartoon today. People forget. And most Americans (being numb as they are) don't even know Biden's uniquely bad history.

I keep saying that they'll learn when he is forced to come out of hiding, but at this point the press is pushing for another round of stay-at-home-and-fear-Covid rather than allow the campaigns to swing into action. They can win if Biden is kept in a dark room. They'll lose if he's let out. So when comparing the two, keep that in mind. One can still stir his troops. The other may require a nurse, a bib, and a media excuse machine.

doctrev said...

If you don't like the President, it's certainly possible to screw up necessities. I'll knock the President lightly for not insisting on having his own event staff insist on planning every single event he attends as a condition of him participating.

I'm a little shocked that ANYONE is dumb enough to say that Trump is physically infirm: the man's planning grueling mass rallies at which he's the main attraction. You will never be called upon as a speaker for any serious rally this year, Professor, much less be the primary draw for one. I'm half Trump's age and I don't have the stamina for rock-star levels of performance, much less the charisma that would make rallies a success. Absolutely absurd, by any definition. About as convincing as saying that Kayleigh is so dumb, and unconvincing, and she's really not that pretty or funny YOU GUYS.

Shane said...

Bingo!
"I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden."

Kevin said...

Trump probably couldn’t win a spelling bee.

Biden wouldn’t know what word he was spelling.

pacwest said...

People see what the want to see I guess.

I saw Trump brace himself on the rail, pause before walking down the ramp and fixate on the ramp as he proceeded, even stutter stepping near the bottom of the ramp, and the hopping over the last foot or so of it, the giving a little 'made it!' fist pump.

I saw the military guy step slowly onto the ramp and proceed slowly, looking down, although not as often as Trump, and using the same braced step as Trump. No stutter step. No fist pump.

Maybe the military guy is a doddering old fool too? Coincidental I guess.

Did they go out and play 18 together after the ramp descent? Or were they so shaken by the traumatic event they ceased all physical activity for the rest of the day? Inquiring minds want to know.

Dave Begley said...

The government built that ramp.

traditionalguy said...

It must really infuriate the Socialist Dems that their only accusation left against President Trump is that he is now too old to out strategize them. But he still does it every damn day.

iowan2 said...

The media is ignoring Bidens very recognizable decline in mental function. Anybody with aging parents sees what is happening. Just 4 years ago, the media did not ignore Clinton's wife's problems, the media actively lied and covered up the facts.
The ramp thing seems very normal to me. As a younger man I did dangerous work, 100 feet in the air. Balance of a cat, and agility of a squirrel. Today, I pay attention to my footing were several years ago I did not. I do not have the reflexes to recover from a misstep like I once did. That is not a sign of dementia, but a sign of wisdom that comes with age.

Same old shit, different day.

Narrative setting.

R C Belaire said...

Yeah, but who do you dislike the most? Like the rest of us, in November we'll have to make a choice -- or opt out altogether. Trump will be on the ballot in November but who knows about Biden at this point?

Browndog said...

Told ya.

All the physical and mental issues Biden has will be assigned to Trump.

Vote Biden. The healthy choice!

Jake said...

Does Joe Biden do any afternoon or evening interviews these days?

TreeJoe said...

I've watched that video a few times and compared it to say, Hillary Clinton walking stairs on many occasions.

To me it looks like an old man carefully walking down a modest ramp with no handrail and quite possibly a difficult to see floor depending on the lighting. It looks to me like an old man being smartly cautious. He definitely sped up at the end and walked just fine afterwards. This is an extremely mild case of showing age, and definitely not some sort of pronounced physical ailment.

Meanwhile Joe Biden literally can't speak for 10 minutes without jumbling his words and thoughts.

rehajm said...

The lefties are trying to draw an equivalency. It's the old accuse your opponent of what you're guilty of strategy. They're hoping you won't notice.

If you're watching both candidates and seeing an equivalency between Biden, who can't put an intelligible sentence together when it's written on the paper in front of him, and Trump navigating a slippery ramp...if you're seeing an equivalence you're mental faculties have left you, too.

rhhardin said...

Presidents speaking from a treehouse are provided a ladder.

rehajm said...

How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense.

It may not have been slippery. Some reporting suggest the ramp had non slip treads. Thing is when you're confronted with a ramp you don't know how slippery it is. Best not to find out...

rhhardin said...

If you form a set of all the years lived, the ages combine to 77 years.

rhhardin said...

Women not liking either candidate not surprising. Nothing about what women like is surprising.

If you think about governmental structure and stability, Trump is the only candidate, but women can't do that.

Howard said...

It's Mister obesity versus botched facelift. Cue the famous Steelers wheels song that sounds a little bit like Bob Dylan: clowns to the left of me jokers to the right here I am stuck In The middle with You people

rehajm said...

It would take an Ig Nobel winner to do the slip calculations on the fly...

Frictional Coefficient under Banana Skin

rehajm said...

Remember when the left was fake worried about howreckless Trump would be? Once again we've come full circle...

Michael said...

We are in deep trouble if the electorate truly believes Biden is smarter than Trump. Or even physically more fit. Instead of debates we should have the candidates walk down increasingly steep wet steel ramps. Time them.

I busted my ass on a wet metal seam on a ramp to an airplane. Bam, down.

AllenS said...

I had to go to River Falls WI yesterday to pick up an order of steel. On highway 65 about a mile north of RV, it happened... I saw my first Biden law sign.

Saint Croix said...

Interesting clip from a Joe Rogan podcast with Owen Smith.

Owen says that Joe Biden "represents home." Meaning, Biden represents Obama, and he has good feeling about Obama, so he's voting for Joe.

And Rogan says, "Joe Biden to me feels like a schoolhouse in a third world country that's going to collapse and kill all the kids."

Ouch.

And while it might be mean to talk about cognitive loss in that way, it's far more important than loss of physical abilities. Imagine Althouse, or any other liberal, mocking somebody in a wheelchair. "He can't even walk down a ramp! How do you vote for that guy? Look at him! Unable to walk."

Relevance, please? They're not running for firefighter.

I don't mind the mean spirit in an election year, but at least try to be rational, people. Some handicaps are far more dangerous than others in national leaders. Hello.

tommyesq said...

Really, there is nothing wrong with his walking down the ramp in that video. He is pretty spry for a 74-year-old, in my opinion. The left says "Why is Trump walking so awkwardly, is it his age?" Any good lawyer would tell you to first examine the underlying premise - is he actually walking awkwardly? Only if you agree with the premise do you move on to the second, "why" part of the question. Don't simply accept the premise, use your own judgment.

rehajm said...

I dislike both candidates.

You'll have other options before it matters.

Michael K said...

I think we are beginning to see the end of "cruel neutrality."

tds said...

If we had video of other guests, walking effortlessly in the normal way down the ramp, but Trump descending in a slightly weird way, this would be the best argument that Trump's physical abilities are not on par.

Yet, we are not shown how other guests made it. Why is that?

Dust Bunny Queen said...

I've visualized him taking the off ramp from the presidency and letting Pence go forward into the election.

That is not going to happen....ever. Pence is a nice guy. Vanilla and unobjectionable. Bland and uninspiring. There is no compelling reason to vote for him. 80% of Trump supporters would just throw up their hands in disgust and not vote for anyone.

Anyone who thinks that Biden is a viable choice for the office of President is delusional. It wouldn't even BE Biden acting as President. He is just a hand puppet for the extreme left right now. Un-elected, unknown persons and globalist organizations will be in charge.

Vote for Biden is a vote for CHAZ and the gulags. America, might as well stick a fork in it. We are done.

Jeff Brokaw said...

Watching that video and then thinking “infirmity” is 100% confirmation bias.

Jamie said...

Are we going to say that if a president or candidate had, say, an essential tremor, it would be equivalent to signs of cognitive decline? How are these things alike?

What is required for the job? You can dislike Trump all you please, Professor, but I'd be astonished to learn that you believe his physical fitness is of the same importance as Biden's mental fitness.

rehajm said...

your.

Fat thumbs and Autofill. I'm okay with it but for the persnickety...

tds said...

So I've done the work and found one (1) person other than Trump (and the general) descending the ramp. One (1) in the whole 3hrs long video, lol!

Here's the link to this moment.

Birches said...

Honestly, I've watched that video a few times and don't really understand what the big deal is. He looks like he's being careful, but he's not really moving slowly. He's in his 70s. Seems normal. Am I really supposed to compare it to Hillary being handled as a side of beef or clutching her detail to walk stairs? Or Nancy not being able to get up without help? Or Biden's obvious cognitive decline?

Rory said...

I guess the answer is to see which dodderer campaigns, and which stays home.

Limited blogger said...

Trump plays golf. Which doesn't require any great stamina nor vitality, but is is something mildly athletic. It certainly requires pretty decent hand-eye coordination.

What type of physical activity does Biden participate in?

Will we see Joe break out something like Kerry's wind surfboard?

Jeff Brokaw said...

Video or no, the last thing Biden wants is to start a mental and physical fitness contest with the guy who can do three rallies in three cities in one day, routinely, unscripted, and seems to never run out of energy.

Whoever thought up that loser tactic is not thinking clearly.

jaydub said...

What has this nonsense got to do with Black Lives Matter or systemic racism? Who's going to riot, burn buildings and assault police officers over someone walking down a ramp? Stay on message FFS!

Jeff Brokaw said...

Dress shoes are slippery on some surfaces. That’s really all you need to know to put that video to bed forever.

Birkel said...

You dislike them both but you will cheer the control one side will exercise while you barely mention the deregulation of the other.

You know, as all sentient people do, that Biden was part of an Administration that spied on reporters, judges, congresscritters, and presidential candidates but you will vote for Biden anyway (if Biden remains the candidate).

We get it.

jeff said...

#Bloggerinfirmity

doctrev said...

Saint Croix said...

And Rogan says, "Joe Biden to me feels like a schoolhouse in a third world country that's going to collapse and kill all the kids."

Ouch.

6/16/20, 7:17 AM

That particular schoolhouse would probably grope the kids first.

You don't have to be in marathon-running condition to be a good President, and it shouldn't be a pre-req for the job. What's utterly bizarre is people who can't keep up with Donald Trump's current lifestyle at their own age, never mind what'd they'd be capable of at 78, pretending they're some kind of cruelly neutral and objective judge of physical performance. Such people should go make pies for their menfolk, as it might be closer to their speed. Might be: many feminists are often terrible cooks, which has led to the rise of the Uber economy.

Darkisland said...

I wonder how many 50 year olds, wearing extra upper body weight (armor) and dress shoes could navigate a ramp like that, with no handrails, without looking a bit slow? I know I could not have 20 years ago, certainly not today.

ARM claimed the other day that Biden would have been more elegant. Perhaps he will share video of Biden?

And what does the way he or anyone comes down a ramp have to do with mental fitness? It may have something to do with physical fitness. But mental fitness? C'mon, man. That's a lot of malarky.

There are plenty of people who would have loved to see PDJT take a pratfall. Had he done so, it would have run 24/7 on all the media. I wonder if the ramp was a setup by someone hoping that would happen?

Yeah, that sounds like conspiracy nuttiness. Right in line with tapping his phones, entrapping his NSA, spying on him and all the other stuff that would not have been believable in a work of fiction 5 years ago.

John Henry

David-2 said...

I, like Trump, walk down ramps carefully (in my case, the hill leading down from my apartment) because I, possibly like Trump, am a bit heavier than I should be, and my center of gravity pulls me forward when walking downhill and makes me feel just a bit unstable.

Also my wife has tripped twice in recent years and each time broken an elbow - on each side now - and her recoveries were not easy and her elbows are now permanently impaired. I'd like to avoid that for myself.

But other than walking downhill I, at age 60+ have absolutely no other physical issues walking around, climbing/descending stairs and ladders, running (short distances!), reaching for things above my head, etc. etc. Care walking downhill is not a sign of general debility.

This baseless attack on Trump has obvious reasons and goals, and it isn't concern about Trump's physical or mental fitness.

rehajm said...

That wheelchair President guy who supposedly not at all in a wheelchair according to the press- ramp no problem!

Darrell said...

Ann is reliving her Summer of Love. Comrade Ann reporting for duty.

Darkisland said...

Blogger Mary Beth (the commenter) said...

How many people have registered for the weekend rally so far?

Over a million as of last night.

Including me. I'll be flying to North Carolina while it is going on but I did want to be counted among those present at least in spirit.

John Henry

Birkel said...

Another observation:
Althouse sees the violence coming from the Leftist Collectivists. She knows history. She can tell the slope is indeed slippery. And she can tell the pathologies are building toward destruction.

But I have my doubts that she will look. Those pieces won't be connected. A certain deniability and all of those things will recede to the back of her mind.

And then she'll wonder how Uncle Joe Biden could let all these terrible things happen. She'll just know that if Uncle Joe Biden knew what was happening he would put a stop to it.

Dude1394 said...

And if he had slipped, like Hillary collapsing, the democrat media would have just said oops. Anyone comparing Trump to Biden and seeing Trump as the infirm one is really exercising their TDS.

Ann Althouse said...

"Yeah, but who do you dislike the most? Like the rest of us, in November we'll have to make a choice..."

I'll decide in November. We'll see what condition the ancient men are in at that time. But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around. I picture either or both Trump and Biden withdrawing or getting withdrawn.

Darkisland said...

I don't have problems with ramps so much but if you looked at a video of me doing stairs, any time in the past 40 or so years since I started wearing glasses, you might well mock me.

I have found that my glasses sometimes betray my dept of vision, especially going downstairs. So I long ago learned to keep my head down, focus my vision on the stairs and keep a hand on the rail.

If familiar stairs, like in my house, I look straight ahead and go by feel.

And escalators! No problem when they are running but I just can't see the steps when they are stopped. They cause me a lot of angst, especially going down.

John Henry

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

Althouse said...
Presidential visits are carefully set up, with the safety of the President meticulously attended to. How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense.


Healthy individuals checked everything and found nothing a healthy individual might have trouble with. The ramp was not steep.

Darkisland said...

So who would be a better choice than Trump for the GOP, Ann?

Who do you think could do a better job at presidenting?

John Henry

Dave Begley said...

Biden will withdraw after he accepts the nomination. Or maybe he declines the nomination and asks the convention - in a dramatic moment - to nominate Kamala Harris by voice vote.


Trump won't withdraw. Unthinkable.

I saw all the Dem candidates in person. Totally unimpressive. But they are the best and the brightest of today's Democrat party.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

O'er the ramp parts we watched
As the videos were streaming

Big Mike said...

I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden.

Why not? Our choice in 2016 was the untested, unproven blowhard Donald Trump, and and a corrupt woman whose two most notable accomplishments were marrying a gifted politician and starting a totally unnecessary war (Oops! “Kinetic military action”) in the Middle East to enrich people who had bribed her. Now Donald Trump is far from unproven and Biden is nearly as corrupt but even less accomplished than Hillary Clinton. Choice is easy.

Francisco D said...

MayBee said...I think being in your 70s and physically challenged to go down a ramp is very different than being in your 70s and mentally challenged to complete a thought.

I am 67 and exercise regularly. I could lose 10 pounds, but that is mostly vanity.

The other day I was putting lights up over the kitchen cabinet with a step ladder. I was amazed at how awkward it was to step off the counter onto the step ladder. At this age, the impetuousness of youth is gone. If I fell it would be a big deal. I was very slow and careful.

If Trump fell or tripped down that ramp, it would be a big deal in the media, but it would be a bigger deal for a 74 year old man who is not in the best of shape. This is smart, normal behavior.

The Left (apparently the side our cruel neutral hostess cannot divorce) will try to equate normal behavior with dementia, but thinking people will know better.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Darkisland said:And what does the way he or anyone comes down a ramp have to do with mental fitness?

Yes. By all means. Let's have some videos of Roosevelt(FDR) walking down a ramp and decide if he is qualified to be President. How you are able to walk is the key factor in deciding who gets to lead the Country.

Louie the Looper said...

Do you remember Hilary falling down the stairs and breaking her foot? Here is the video

https://youtu.be/5SaVJcP19jU

tcrosse said...

Well, we did have a President in a wheelchair, although by the time he was Trump's age he'd been dead for 11 years.

Known Unknown said...

At least Trump is not in a wheelchair. That might cause him to put people in camps.

Sebastian said...

"I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden."

I can believe you "can't believe" it. It makes it harder to rationalize a Dem vote this time.

With Barry it was, he's so "pragmatic." With Hill it was, gotta avoid "chaos."

What'll it be this time? Bring the country together with Biden, or make the Dems take responsibility for structural racism and settle down BLM? Some such thing.

"I'll decide in November." And that's the tell, isn't it. Dems sabotage Trump and stage a coup--but I'll decide in November. There's nothing they can do so outrageous that is loses Althouse and the Althouses. Which Dems know, so they they keep at it. Which leads to more Althousian it's-so-sad laments, maintaining the Althouses' moral self-regard as the outrages pile up.

Browndog said...

From "that ramp is slippery" to "Trump is unfit for office" in the blink of an eye is...

...unsurprising.

rehajm said...

Now now- I for one respect and appreciate Ann for expressing her thoughts and opinions about her vote, no matter how daft, daffy and demented her thinking appears to be...

We're all used to it by now. Politics isn't a la carte. The arduous process works to give us the choice between rubber chicken and stinky fish. Every time.

madAsHell said...

How can you dislike Biden? There’s no there there.

Bruce Hayden said...

Apparently, the number of people applying to get tickets to his upcoming Tulsa campaign rally broke a million. In the middle of the BLM/AntiFA riots. Any connection? Besides what would have happened if Trump had moved down tecramp faster and had crashed?

rehajm said...

Isolation has made dates less relevant but it dawned on me it's getting late in the game. The political 'strategists' are trying to make this ramp thing into a Dukakis tank moment- the thing that 'sinks' the candidate.

It happens every cycle...

Candid comment into a hot mic up next...

Tom said...

I know don’t like to write about stuff you’re not interested in and I respect that.

So, I’ll simply bring Jo Jorgensen to your attention as someone you may wish to express interest.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Trump v. Unknown. Stop pretending Democrats are going to run Biden. Nobody believes that lie. He is a placeholder until the convention. Why keep up this front Althouse? Face the facts. The DNC is always ready to change horses or laws or rules whatever to engineer a win. They cheated last time. Something you have studiously ignored, passed no judgement upon. They cheated. Trump still won fair and square. IMAO he ought to get a do-over and serve a third term since he got cheated out of a functioning NatSec staff, AG, and other normal accoutrements of the office.

RichAndSceptical said...

Trump walked down the ramp exactly as I would have walked down a slippery ramp, hill, etc - small steps, feet barely clearing the ground.

Linda said...

ALTHOUSE: "But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around."

I was just coming back to this post to comment and I see your comment at 8:13.
I so agree - like Trump or not - he is the incumbent, so unless he withdraws we are stuck with him on the ballot - but seriously - there isn't anybody better than Biden on the Democrat side?

Sadly, at least at this time, these are our choices.

I do like your little bit of optimism that you will decide in November . . . as we can all attest, things can certainly change in 4 months.

jaydub said...

tds's link of the ceremony at 7:41 should cut this nonsensical conversation off at the knees. It shows Trump’s participation in the ceremony totaled approximately 2 hours and ten minutes, during which he left the headquarters building with the superintendent, descended four steps (both he and the superintendent looked down at the steps before descending them normally,) then walked briskly across the width of the parade ground, climbed the stairs without issue, addressed the cadets while standing for 28 minutes, then immediately stood at attention for one hour and four minutes while saluting every graduate, then descended the stairs without problem and walked back the way he came.
Only someone who has never participated in a lengthy military ceremony while sitting or standing in the sun wearing a suit and tie, rising and sitting numerous times, and then standing at attention for over an hour would criticize Trump’s stamina during this ceremony. And unlike slow Joe hiding in his basement while being tossed softballs by an adoring press, he didn’t need his wife sitting at his side to help him get through it. Nor did he need aides and the secret service to toss him into a SUV when he was done like Hillary did.
This controversy is 100% manufactured out of TDS and the professor is a willing participant. Cruel neutrality has apparently been replaced by bullshit.

robother said...

Now, now, Ann. Weren't you taught to have respect for your elders? 70 is the new, ummm, 40. Seriously, though, you have a point.

Trump in 2016 was an anomaly, a 70 year old who seemed more energetic and innovative than his younger Republican rivals. But I cannot explain to my 30-something daughter how for 2 election cycles in a row, not a single person under 70 had any chance at the Democrat nomination.

NC William said...

Ann is "outraged" that a political party is "allowing" the incumbent President to run for reelection?

Big Mike said...

Presidential visits are carefully set up, with the safety of the President meticulously attended to. How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense.

You haven't dealt much with the federal government -- and its employees -- have you? Liberalism doesn't work -- can't work -- unless the government employees are at least minimally competent. Ergo, liberalism will never work in the United States.

Inga said...

It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden. If we have to have a senile president I choose Biden. Biden will have better people around him and he doesn’t seem to have the megalomaniac tendencies that Trump does, so he would be more amenable to listening to his advisors.

I'm Not Sure said...

Watched the video. Are you #&*$% kidding me? Is *this* sort of shit the best the left and the media (but I repeat myself) can come up with? Look up "nothingburger" in the dictionary and you'll find a link to this video. I truly can't believe *anybody* is reading *anything* into it. Unless, of course, that *anybody* is grasping at straws for a reason to choose Biden (recognizing his obviously compromised mental condition) over Trump. But hey, that's just me.

Rhetorical question- The democrats once ran a guy for president who was in a wheelchair. Four times. Why was that okay, but ZOMG! Trump on a ramp???!!!

Yancey Ward said...

So, it was a ramp and not stairs. I also hadn't noticed the officer going down with Trump did the same cautious walk down. This ramp business is just the Democrats projecting- they know Biden is unfit to be President.

I am not convinced Pence would run better than Trump, regardless of how the election turns out. In fact, if Trump stepped aside, it would likely lead the Democrats to also choose another, more capable candidate.

Inga said...

“I've noticed gifs of the ramp that cut off just as he reaches the bottom. It makes the anti-Trump people look desperate. Sad! How many people have registered for the weekend rally so far?“

And agreeing to the ‘Covid Waiver’, ha ya can’t make this stuff up. Makes Trumpists look obsessed.

daskol said...

Compared to Biden, an undistinguished except by corruption political hack who's been around politics forever, Trump, with his success in every field of endeavor he's dabbled, is a colossus. It's just silly to compare them because they're both old white guys. Maybe even a little racist.

Michael McNeil said...

I'm 70 myself at present, and I too find it desirable and necessary to go down ramps and even stairs with considerably more care than I bothered with when I was younger.

It occurs to me, though, that young people (kids especially, a goodly number of them) actually practice their balance (practice balancing themselves) — i.e., they actually enjoy (e.g.) teetering down a narrow board on occasion — and it's no surprise as a result that they get better and are more agile at doing not only that, but also lots of other things that involve balance.

As a result of this thought, I make a point these days of practicing balance — for instance, balancing walking on an upraised curb for a few hundred feet during my daily power-walk(s). I can definitely feel the difference, not only while doing that in particular (I seldom have to step down due to a balancing error these days, and I can take it pretty fast) — but also in performing tasks as mundane as, say, standing on one leg while putting the other in a pair of trousers with greater surety. I recommend practice!

traditionalguy said...

Pompeo will succeed DJT. It’s the brain power, stupid.

jrem said...

Don't forget the underlying "medical" conditions that enabled these two to avoid service.
Bone spurs and asthma. worked well in the 60's.

Inga said...

“I think being in your 70s and physically challenged to go down a ramp is very different than being in your 70s and mentally challenged to complete a thought.”

Because a Trump is known for his clear, concise, completion of thoughts, where he contradicts himself in the same sentence.

Gk1 said...

"The implication that the mental states of Trump and Biden are somehow equivalent seems like a distortion, to put it mildly"

Hear, hear. Dementia Joe can't even string a cogent thought together even under the most favorable & controlled media exposure and its being compared to Trump navigating a slippery, temporary, metal ramp after a drizzle.

I'd love to see Biden deal with a hostile media the way Trump has for just 5 minutes and try to keep his wits about him. Yeah, it would be nice to get a president in the sweet spot of mental acuity at say 52-55 years but that's not what we got.

Robert Marshall said...

A ramp that long, with a significant drop-off height at the high end, without a handrail on either side, is a bad idea, if not a code violation in itself. Bad planning. But apparently good enough for government work.

stever said...

We saw that HRC was not up to the task of appearing fit so Trump was helped by that, this time around they could do no better than Joe, who has always been compromised mentally in spite of physical health. Joe Biden The democrats are counting on the MSM to take Trump down, not actually putting forth a viable candidate.

JML said...

"But I am outraged ..."

Are you gonna go burn down some buildings on State Street over this outrage?

mikee said...

If that careful sip of water and careful descent of a ramp is the worst you've got on Trump, I'll start enjoying Trump's second term now.

Biden has dementia. In a year he'll have worse dementia.

Robert Cook said...

Neither Trump nor Biden are fit for any office, and not just because of their ages and possible physical and mental infirmities.

Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt. Both serve the interests of the military/corporate/financial complex, not those of the people. To each party, the people are the enemy, a rabble to be manipulated, pandered to, and tolerated, but, ultimately, disregarded.

Tom T. said...

It's going to be fascinating to watch how Biden's appearances in public will be tightly controlled. I think we have to assume that the Biden camp will not agree to any debates. Media interviews will be conditioned on confidential pre-broadcast review and editing rights. Will he be trusted to give an acceptance speech at the convention? Can they get through an entire campaign without letting him speak for more than 30 seconds?

madAsHell said...

How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense.

Two words: Russian Collusion.

minnesota farm guy said...

All you have to do is look at the ease with which he exits the ramp onto level ground to see he was being extra cautious. Ann, you have about 5 more years before you start feeling balance loss and concomitant caution when going up and down slopes. Always surprises me when I get up on the roof to clean gutters, or the chimney how uncertain I feel about moving around, when 30 years ago I would never have given it a second thought.

NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...

Mary Beth (the commenter) said...

They're both walking cautiously down the ramp and Trump takes long comfortable strides once he's at the bottom. It's like the Left thinks that Hillary lost because she was tossed into the van like a side of beef and they're trying to create something similar to use against Trump.

And everyone seems to be ignoring the fact that the Army officer accompanying him seems to have nearly as much trouble negotiating the ramp as Trump does.

I've noticed gifs of the ramp that cut off just as he reaches the bottom. It makes the anti-Trump people look desperate.

They are desperate. Especially after Suave Joe's most recent performance.

Nichevo said...

Ann Althouse said...
"Yeah, but who do you dislike the most? Like the rest of us, in November we'll have to make a choice..."

I'll decide in November. We'll see what condition the ancient men are in at that time. But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around. I picture either or both Trump and Biden withdrawing or getting withdrawn.


You're a maniac. The country is blessed to have Donald Trump as President. It's one thing for you to like what is bad; it's another that you can't tell good from bad. Let me help you: Donald Trump is good, Joe Biden is bad. Whoever replaces Biden will be worse.

Wince said...

Philippe Reines, a former top Clinton adviser... publicly pleaded... 'PLEASE force the TRUTH about donald trump’s physical & cognitive health into the open... BEFORE his LIES about YOUR health harden any further.'

Yes, Joe Biden, do whatever Philippe Reines tells you to do.

Drago said...

Althouse: "But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around."

You still dont get it and at this point not getting it really isn't excusable.

"The parties" did not come up with both of these choices.

Only the democrat party hacked its own primaries in 2016 and 2020 to ensure the Party choice was in place.

The republican base voters REJECTED the candidates their party was desperately pushing to nominate Trump and the republican party establishment, to this very day, still opposes Trump.

Drago said...

Russia Collusion Truther Inga: "Because a Trump is known for his clear, concise, completion of thoughts, where he contradicts himself in the same sentence."

Tell us more about how anti-lockdown protests are bad but lefty riots are ok in terms of virus spread.

Also: Carter Page, russian spy or no?

Kyzer SoSay said...

"I think we are beginning to see the end of the laughable facade of "cruel neutrality.""

FTFY

Drago said...

Inga: "And agreeing to the ‘Covid Waiver’, ha ya can’t make this stuff up. Makes Trumpists look obsessed."

No waivers offered at lefty riots for "attendees".

Not even for those around the "mostly peaceful" molotov cocktail throwing would be killers of cops.

Looks like Inga is going to continue to push the Virus Knows Not To Infect Lefties line all the way thru to Nov.

Similar to Howard deciding his earlier lies about the Park Police using tear gas will simply have to continue.

Francisco D said...

Inga said... It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden.

That statement is evidence of severe cognitive deficits exacerbated by TDS delusions.

Take the red pill, sweetheart.

hombre said...

I’m a septuagenarian whose doc just declared to be in excellent health. I am very cautious going down stairs and ramps because I know the consequences of a broken hip at my age. We watched Hillary stumble a few times and the media ignored any implications.

This is just more of the same TDS. The mediaswine are not pulling out the stops. They have no stops any more.

Dude1394 said...

Trump is a great president and just what we need. Listening to what supposedly passes as “debate” in the democrat propaganda media bubble and the weaponization of the irs/doj/fbi/cia that Barack Hussein Obama instituted, he has been one of the greatest presidents in modern history.

rhhardin said...

But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice

Nobody cares what a woman thinks if they don't have to live with them. It's about what she feels, and that affects only her degree of nagging and affection.

A structural argument might have more than local importance though. You could talk to guys that way.

tcrosse said...

Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt. Both serve the interests of the military/corporate/financial complex, not those of the people.

When Cook is right, he's right.

RMc said...

I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden.

It's like choosing between a spicy dish that'll probably make you sick in the middle of the night, versus a couple of cold potatoes. (And no butter or sour cream for you, racist! #whitepotatoesmatter)

tim d said...

I think it's one of those "ramps" that is actually very shallow, wide stairs. They are too far apart for him to comfortably (safely?) take with one step each--especially with no railing--so he has to stand on each one between stepping. He steps with the left then brings up the right to briefly stand. With the short wall blocking his feet from view, it looks awkward but you can see well enough from his lower legs what's happening. And you know public figures of all stripes, when descending stairs etc., are thinking don't fall, don't fall, don't fall. Or they should be.

rhhardin said...

[A]s new classes of girls mature ... you can always get a new one, if you are willing to overlook certain weaknesses in the departments of thought and feeling. But if it is thought and feeling you want, you can always read a book, or see a film, or have an interior monologue. But of course with the spread of literacy you now tend to get girls who have thought and feeling too, in some measure, and some of them will probably belong to the Royal Philological Society or something, or in any case have their own "thing," which must be respected, and catered to, and nattered about, just as if you gave a shit about all this blague.

- Barthelme, Snow White

Bruce Hayden said...

ALTHOUSE: "But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around."

Who else in the country could the Republicans get to run who could get a million people applying for 20k tickets to see them live?

Trump has done exactly what a lot of constituents wanted him to do - to take on the statute, internationalists and the Deep State. To take on our self appointed elite. As a retired law professor from a decently ranked LS, living in the capital city of WI, who still reads that class’ lead spin outlet (the NYT), it is not surprising that you really don’t understand this the way that many here do. You may see it intellectually, but I doubt if you feel it emotionally.

A member in good standing of the clerisy that you would probably approve of, like Romney, would not have undertaken this fight. Their position is to just be less loathsome, less corrupt, less bought and paid for, than their Dem colleagues, in order to give the appearance of a choice.

So, no, most of us don’t want someone besides Trump.

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

Trump walked just fine once he got off the ramp.

narciso said...

Phillip 'reset' raines, that's who I rely on for an authority,

Kyzer SoSay said...

"It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden."

I read this and wonder why anyone believes you were a nurse. Assuming you were, I feel so bad for your patients.

Ice Nine said...

>>Inga said...
It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden.<<

Talk about cognitive deficits!

Inga said...

Drago to Althouse...

“You still dont get it and at this point not getting it really isn't excusable.”

In other words, Drago tells Althouse she hasn’t been paying enough attention to his endless onslaught of propaganda and internalizing it.

narciso said...

well most of the top men is going along with the protesters, but soft pedaling any objection, to this rioting, only meekly defending law enforcement,

Drago said...

The Very Forgetful Inga: "It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden"

Inga spent months and months denying there was anything wrong with Biden in terms of cognitive ability.

She kept that up for as long as she could before abandoning that latest "Nobody Knows What Mueller Knows"-type idiocy followed immediately with transferring Biden's issues to Trump.

Hilariously predictable!

The race to be the biggest transfer-er of democrat maladies and democrat policy failures onto republicans remains a highly competitive contest between Inga and Howard.

Only time will tell which one will emerge "victorious".

Drago said...

Meanwhile, Raz, the self-annointed Warlord of CHAZ/CHOP, has decided now would be a good time to distribute AR-15's to young guys.

So, lefties handing AR-15's to other guys out of the trunk of their cars is now perfectly legal in lefty land......if you are a lefty.

Number of Inga complaints about this latest action on the part of Howard's Heroes, after weeks of unending complaints about lawful gun owners lawfully carrying their weapons, remains at a healthy......zero.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Jr0ILcX9hY&feature=youtu.be

And not even a waiver was required!

TheOne Who Is Not Obeyed said...

Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt. Both serve the interests of the military/corporate/financial complex, not those of the people.

Close - the list of those whom the parties serve is: government and themselves/liberal corporations/financial/military.

And of course, the media and entertainment industries (including most sports leagues) serve as propaganda machines for the government union party.

The GOP, being in the throes of a populist revolt against the establishment Republicans (now known as 'Never Trump') is much closer to serving the "people" than the Dems who serve no one but themselves and their corporate and academic masters.

SensibleCitizen said...

Trump seems sharp to me. He speaks in an odd short hand, as if he can't be bothered to finish a sentence after the thought itself is more or less complete. It really is a verbal shorthand.

But he's always done that. I don't see deterioration and his work habits are impressive. I've been impressed by how many balls he always has in the air -- even as hundreds of government officials inside and outside his administration are try to take him down by any diabolical method imaginable.

And in the photo, the ramp looks steep.

Ralph L said...

He went down the ramp after he'd stood and saluted over 500 times in the sun.

Mary Beth said...

Video or no, the last thing Biden wants is to start a mental and physical fitness contest

Maybe not against Trump, but he seems to want to challenge everyone else to a push-up contest or ask them to "step outside" (slap fight?).

Jamie said...

"Inga said... It’s been evident for a long time that Trump has cognitive deficits as severe as or probably more so than Biden."

Really. That's... a take, to be sure. Our host regularly features Trump tweets and quotes from his press conferences and so forth; she - who is disgusted that both Trump and Biden are the only real candidates on offer this year - interprets Trump's verbal meanderings as deliberate humor on his part, his tweet misspellings as trivial or occasionally unintentionally humorous AND trivial, and Biden's inability to complete a thought on its way out of his mouth as troubling.

Can you point to a Trump appearance in which he came across as confused? One in which he lost his train of thought so thoroughly that he had to cover for it by saying he was getting bored with his own speech? One in which he stared blankly at a camera until physically prompted to speak?

Or are you just talking about the fact that Trump speaks fluidly and very colloquially off the cuff in front of recording devices all the time, and you like Obama's speechwriters and careful preparation better than Trump's spontaneous verbalization of ideas? If so, sure, I get it. A matter of preference.

Mary Beth said...

Makes Trumpists look obsessed.

Oh, sweetie.

steve uhr said...

"I dislike both candidates. Maybe you've noticed."

Not really. You are constantly fawning over Trump, almost always giving him the benefit of the doubt, and rarely say anything favorable about Biden. I would estimate that about 80 percent of your Trump posts over the past year have been positive, and about 20 percent of your Biden posts. Too late for cruel neutrality.

Kevin said...

I picture either or both Trump and Biden withdrawing or getting withdrawn.

I picture the Democrats nominating a steaming pile of crap and demanding you vote for it or out yourself as a white supremacist.

And I find their attitude far more dangerous to the nation than who they actually nominate.

bagoh20 said...

"I can't believe we're left with the choice of Trump or Biden."

If Biden was not so clearly disabled you would see him as clearly better, and that is why you are such a disappointment Ms. Althouse. A man who has had little success other than getting a majority of his own state to vote for him as a near guaranteed incumbent, and then to extract wealth from the position for friends and family. That's his life accomplishment, just like many others you would vote for over Trump. The unaccomplished, the corrupt, the incompetent can get your vote every time. You have never been truely objective enough to challenge your own preconceptions that you have held since childhood. So many in education like you have produced the mindless, uneducated, and self-destructive youth we see today. They know little that is true, and like yourself believe much that is nothing more than emotional fantasy. Many of those fantasies repeatedly tested with disasterous results over the last 100 years. A period you should know better than any other. Stop ignoring the huge mistakes and failures of those who make them.

Your fellow Americans who actually produce the prosperity you take for granted and who your preferred rulers live off of cannot continue to produce that foundation under an unlimited barrage of lies and the destructive laws and policies that result from them. Some are killing your well-behaved golden geese, and you are complicit in more ways than one.

I appreciate many of the voices on this blog, but while I find your own writing sometimes insightful, I'm often disappointed in the rigor given to reason and logic.

BLM: Be Less Mindless

Kevin said...

I'll decide in November.

Biden's latest ad opens with the "fine people" hoax.

You said that was a deal-breaker for you when he announced his candidacy.

Michael K said...

Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt. Both serve the interests of the military/corporate/financial complex, not those of the people. To each party, the people are the enemy, a rabble to be manipulated, pandered to, and tolerated, but, ultimately, disregarded.

Cook, I agree. That's why we elected Trump. That's the part you can't understand. Too much Marxism.

Matt Sablan said...

It is like they forget that Obama cut an ad making fun of McCain's age.

MD Greene said...

Cook is right: "Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt."

Nothing in the Constitution says we must have only two parties. The reason these two endure is not because they are relevant, which they certainly are not, but because their leaders rise within the parties and live to pass control down to a next generation that presumably will not prosecute former officials. This makes for decades-long chains of corrupt governance in cities (Chicago, say) and in states like those of the integration-fighting Democratic South in the first two thirds of the last century. Retraining control is prioritized over responsiveness to citizen concerns.

If we had a few other truly national parties, maybe my friends would stop telling me I need to vote for the "less bad" candidate every few years.

Kevin said...

Here is Biden on June 11 repeating the "fine people" lie.

He's not going to stop.

WWIII Joe Biden, Husk-Puppet + America's Putin said...

Inga will happy with deep state puppet Biden.
His chi-com handlers and deep state money whores will do just fine!

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Good God, how many times have we attended this dance? Here's how it will play out for those of you who are new to America-

-The Left questions Trump's health/fitness.
-Biden emerges from his basement and spews some incoherent, dementia-driven, insane rant that goes viral on the internet and is seen by the entire country.
-The Left memory holes the issue and pretends like it never mattered.

Remember, these are the people that invented the social-distanced riot.

cubanbob said...

I'll decide in November. We'll see what condition the ancient men are in at that time. But I am outraged that the 2 parties came up with this terrible choice and hoping somehow we'll have some other choice when election day roles around. I picture either or both Trump and Biden withdrawing or getting withdrawn."

Each of them won millions of votes in their respective primaries. Enough so that they were elected by the voters in each party's election to make them the nominee. There is no other choice. Another choice and totally undemocratic would be the Army running the country. To run and then quit to have someone else take their place is even less legitimate than the military running the country. At least with a formal coup, there wouldn't be any delusions of voter choice. And at least the military takes it's oath to defend the countries from its enemies more seriously than the Democrats so they have that going for them.

Anymore expressions of elitism?

daskol said...

Nobody cares what a woman thinks if they don't have to live with them.


Shouldn't it b: "nobody cares what a woman thinks if he doesn't have to live with her"? Or are we commenting on gender and sex here?

daskol said...

Nobody is singular. A woman can live with a man or another woman, so he or she, but proper pronouns matter.

Owen said...

Agree with those who saw nothing untoward in the video of Trump on the ramp. I am guessing it was a descent of 8-10 feet and if you fell badly you could sprain or break something: not helpful in the middle of a campaign. When you are 74, things break more easily: imagine breaking a hip! And any fall at all, or even an awkward slip-and-save, would be replayed endlessly: remember Jerry Ford’s stumble? So there is zero upside to an aggressive descent.

As others have noted, the general beside Trump is walking in almost precisely the same cautious/measured way. And both of them visibly relax as they leave the ramp: the body language is clear, with their heads coming up and their shoulders back, their stride lengthening.

So yeah, I call BS. The desperation of the move is pretty obvious, and its obvious failure will only make them more desperate.

Pass the popcorn!

Readering said...

I posted earlier that I wished people would not make fun of a guy walking down a ramp in leather soled shoes over the age of 65. If they did not have carpet that would be malfeasance. A much younger Clinton badly injured himself in a fall walking down the front steps at Greg Norman's home. [And of course that paragon of ivestigative restraint Ken Starr issued subpoenas to see if Lewinsky was somehow involved!]

But as usual Trump comes up with ridiculous responses, and he and his defenders turn a one day story into a 4 day story.

Jim at said...

Again, anybody got a video of him being tossed into a van like a sack of spuds?
Thanks, in advance.

Operaman said...

I have believed since the President was elected that he would not serve out his term and would leave under his own steam. If the polls continue to favor Biden (and even suggest that the Senate will flip), he will find a way to leave. Nothing is more important to him than winning other than, perhaps, his business, which is suffering during Covid19, and his family, many of whom have to be tired of the spotlight and relentless criticism. With Covid, BLM and a sorely tested economy, along with the possibility of a Democratic House and Senate, a second term can’t be very appealing.

A health issue would be the perfect opportunity for the President to resign and declare victory. He can set himself up as a martyr to the left and the press and look forward to more golf, more rallies and all the, um, ladies that he might desire. As one who spends most of his time trying to control the narrative about himself, this approach would allow him to craft his future instead of being subject to events like Covid or to enemies who seem to be gaining on him.

Big Mike said...

Stop pretending Democrats are going to run Biden. Nobody believes that lie. He is a placeholder until the convention.

Joe Biden's job was to stop Bernie's momentum. With the help of Jim Clyburn in South Carolina, he succeeded, much to the evident relief of people like James ("The Talking Skull") Carville and the probable relief of Bernie Sanders himself. The reason why I think MJB Wolf is right is the dog that is not barking -- if Carville thought Bernie was bad for the Democrat brand and candidates further down the ticket, why isn't he positively petrified at the thought of Joe Biden atop the ticket, given Joe's baggage: personal corruption, getting handsy in public with young girls, and and inability to focus his already weak brain? Carville et. al., should be crapping their pants in public, but they aren't. Why not? At this point the most likely answer is that they know he isn't going to be the nominee.

TheOne Who Is Not Obeyed said...

Is it odd that a government-built ramp isn't ADA compliant? ADA requires a hand rail.

Oh, duh. Government. Laws are for citizens, gummint gets a pass.

Tom T. said...

"If the polls continue to favor Biden, he will find a way to leave."

Operaman, that wasn't true in 2016. Why would it be different in 2020?

Michael K said...

But as usual Trump comes up with ridiculous responses, and he and his defenders turn a one day story into a 4 day story.

I was agreeing with you but, as usual, you have to get that TDS spite in there.

Andrew said...

I can't wait till The Donald rat fucks the Dems again in November. You think they're bat shit crazy now, just wait.

TheOne Who Is Not Obeyed said...

But as usual Trump comes up with ridiculous responses, and he and his defenders turn a one day story into a 4 day story.

Wrong agents - the media controls the narrative arc and the length of the story being top of page. "Trump and his defenders" have nothing to do with it. See also: Trump's tweets on the finding that the FBI and CIA knew that the Steele dossier was Russian disinformation, paid for by the Clinton campaign, and that knowledge was hidden from the FISA court intentionally on the warrant applications. If "Trump and his defenders" had any ability to make something into multi-day news cycle, that would be it.

And what is in the news? Crickets and lies. Just crickets and lies.

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

Compare each of the two men between 2016 and now. Trump doesn’t look much different. You may consider him either crazy, sly or somewhere in between but he doesn’t appear to have changed much in the last 4 years. Biden is a different story. There is a huge difference both cognitively and physically in how he presents himself compared to 2016. This is where the whataboutism falls apart. If you’ve had a loved one with dementia, it’s hard not to see the telltale signs in Biden. The next 4 years will not be kind to Joe.

effinayright said...

Dust Bunny Queen said...
Darkisland said:And what does the way he or anyone comes down a ramp have to do with mental fitness?

Yes. By all means. Let's have some videos of Roosevelt(FDR) walking down a ramp and decide if he is qualified to be President. How you are able to walk is the key factor in deciding who gets to lead the Country.
********

Threadwinner

Nichevo said...


Kevin said...
I'll decide in November.

Biden's latest ad opens with the "fine people" hoax.

You said that was a deal-breaker for you when he announced his candidacy.



Not only that but dig this - Althouse has said on this very blog that she doesn't lie! A-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

stlcdr said...

As someone may have said...."Trumps too unfit to become president!"...oh, wait.

So, I see the reasoning that they can dismiss Biden's continuing gaffes and infirmities by saying that Trump made it, so why can't Biden?

tcrosse said...

Big Mike @2:06:

Bada Bing, Bada Boom!

Kay said...

wholelottasplainin' said...
Dust Bunny Queen said...
Darkisland said:And what does the way he or anyone comes down a ramp have to do with mental fitness?

Yes. By all means. Let's have some videos of Roosevelt(FDR) walking down a ramp and decide if he is qualified to be President. How you are able to walk is the key factor in deciding who gets to lead the Country.
********

Threadwinner
6/16/20, 3:22 PM


I guess I agree but people do tend to cast their votes based on these seemingly trivial things. Why else do you think FDR kept his infirmaries hidden from the public? You can even make the argument that a lot of people voted for the Donald over Rubio based on his ability to drink water.

rcocean said...

So Trump is working 24/7, having press conferences, signing bills, making speeches and soon to be having rallies where he speaks off the cuff for 60-90 minutes.

Meanwhile, "Slow Joe" is at home, in the basement, in a mask, talking to a few carefully screened people, giving brief pre-written remarks, and popping out for the occasional funeral/pander-fest. Even then, the chances of a Biden gaffe are 50/50.

But now - to Althouse - they're equally infirm old men! Judas Priest, just vote for Slow Joe already. If you can vote for Hillary, that amoral corrupt-o-crat, you can vote for Slow Joe and whoever will be the REAL president.

Readering said...

The FDR comparison is apt. FDR died in office at 63. What would have been less than a month into his final term, but for the start date having been moved up from March to January after his first term.

rcocean said...

I'm not even sure Biden will be the nominee at this point. Can he make it till September? Wouldn't it be best for the D's to appoint Harris as VP, then have Biden "Bow out" in early September for "Health reasons"?

Didn't Biden only get in the race to stop Bernie? Well, mission accomplished. And the great thing about the Democrats is their base are all Left-wing sheep. They'll go along with ANYTHING. They don't even care who gets nominated. Just defeat those fucking Republicans - that's all they "think". I'm looking for the ol' switcheroo to happen no later than September.

rcocean said...

People seem to forget that Trump has a "Thing" with stairs. Remember when Teresa May had to help him down a couple steps? Or when he'd hold the hand of Melanie when coming down the Airforce 1 staircase? This was 2017.

Its not old age, some people just have trouble with stairs. Its a vision/balance thing. Or somewhat akin to being afraid of heights.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

Better a candidate with caution on a decline
...than one with cognitive decline

Biden's Replacement#1

Biden's Replacement#2

daskol said...

He's pudgy and orange and has ridiculous hair, but he's the only president in my lifetime who doesn't look like he's aged hard on the job. This nonsense of comparing his supposed infirmities with Biden's is so bad for Biden that it makes me wonder if Trump people aren't the ones pushing this nonsense about the ramp.

Drago said...

The Historical Ignoramus Readering: "And of course that paragon of ivestigative restraint Ken Starr issued subpoenas to see if Lewinsky was somehow involved!]"

Every facet of the Starr investigations were established, reviewed and approved by Janet Reno.

Every. Single. One.

Drago said...

Li'l Stevie Uhr: "You are constantly fawning over Trump, almost always giving him the benefit of the doubt, and rarely say anything favorable about Biden."

Translation: You refuse to accept all the democrat's transparent lies about Trump and advance the democrat's daily lie-based narratives.

DavidD said...

“How Donald Trump lost me:”

“Ever since Trump's West Point ramp descent...”

David in Cal said...

I am more worried about either Trump of Biden over 4 years from now. Dementia seems not unlikely. Some loss of mental acuity seems a certainty.

Michael K said...

Rick Wilson, well known anti_Trumper, well maybe not so well known, anyway did a Chuck today.

Kayleigh Mcenany, when she was in college, tweeted a compliment to Domino's Pizza. That was 2012. She is now Trump's press spokesperson so Wilson somehow found that tweet and wants to cancel Domino's. Delicious.

tcrosse said...

That must be the slippery slope we're always warned about.

Inga said...

“Makes Trumpists look obsessed.”

“Oh, sweetie.”

Explain how going to an indoor event with thousands of people in close seating, while wearing no mask in most cases, and having to sign a waiver if one gets Covid is not obsession with Trump? If it quacks like a duck, waddles like Trump going down a ramp, and has orange feathers, it’s Trump Obsession Syndrome.

sunsong said...

Lincoln Project has a good ad: "Trump Is Not Well" :

Trump Is Not Well

Michael K said...

This nonsense of comparing his supposed infirmities with Biden's is so bad for Biden that it makes me wonder if Trump people aren't the ones pushing this nonsense about the ramp.

This same reasoning has me wondering if U Haul is funding Black Lives Matter.

Michael K said...

Its not old age, some people just have trouble with stairs. Its a vision/balance thing. Or somewhat akin to being afraid of heights.

It's common in people with vestibular trouble but he plays golf and has shown no signs of vertigo.

n.n said...

16 trimesters of witch hunts, warlock trials (e.g. protests), drugs, disease, and NOW the kitchen sink. #BabyLivesMatter

Drago said...

sunsong: "Lincoln Project has a good ad: "Trump Is Not Well" :"

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

The same 10 guys who have been exposed as FakeCons and are explicitly pro-democrat and are funded by lefty billionaire Omidyar put out another anti-Trump ad?

Say it ain't so!

Drago said...

Michael K: "Rick Wilson, well known anti_Trumper, well maybe not so well known, anyway did a Chuck today."

Oh, its even BETTER than that!

Some folks took a peek at stuff NeverTrumper/FakeCon Wilson had been tweeting and instagramming about for the last several years, and guess what they came up with?

Yep. Rick Wilson has a Confederate Flag cooler with the phrase: "The South Will Rise Again" emblazoned across the top!!

Absolutely pitch perfect for a fake, Inga-like self-styled More Moral Than Thou fella.

Drago said...

daskol: "He's pudgy and orange and has ridiculous hair, but he's the only president in my lifetime who doesn't look like he's aged hard on the job. This nonsense of comparing his supposed infirmities with Biden's is so bad for Biden that it makes me wonder if Trump people aren't the ones pushing this nonsense about the ramp."

Its going to go so badly for Biden before they pull him from the ticket, and they will, that Inga will be claiming its russian-controlled hawaiian shirt wearing instigators making Slow Rapey Gropey Joe look bad.

Guaranteed.

The best part about Biden's impending implosion?

Inga will be arguing that Biden is running rings around Trump...right up until the moment Joe gets yanked out, at which time Inga will immediately claim she called it early, knew all along it was going to happen and Biden's departure only signals great things for the democrats!

LOL

Recall how she reacted to the Mueller hoax collusion outcome? That will be nothing compared to this.

HMuns said...

"Presidential visits are carefully set up, with the safety of the President meticulously attended to. How could they have provided him with a long, steep, slippery ramp?! That makes no sense."

That's the difference between you and me Mrs. Althouse. You believe the government is competent.

Robert Cook said...

"If we had a few other truly national parties, maybe my friends would stop telling me I need to vote for the 'less bad' candidate every few years."

I don't care what others tell me...I vote third party every four years, and have done for 24 years. I will not vote for a terrible candidate on the fiction that he or she may be marginally less wretched than the other. "Lesser evilism" voting has merely brought us worse and worse candidates and presidents. And really, the presidents are merely the focal point of our failed political system as a whole, with both parties captured by the financial elites, our owners, who use the system to enhance their own wealth and power.

Robert Cook said...

"'Both parties, as institutions, are decrepit and corrupt. Both serve the interests of the military/corporate/financial complex, not those of the people. To each party, the people are the enemy, a rabble to be manipulated, pandered to, and tolerated, but, ultimately, disregarded.'

"Cook, I agree. That's why we elected Trump. That's the part you can't understand."


I understand why many voted for Trump, but those who continue to support him are dupes, admiring his adolescent insults and crudities as "telling it like it is" and believing his lies and boasts and accepting them as real. Trump is a terrible human being and certainly a bad and incompetent president, but I don't think he is the worst president we've ever had or can have. In just recent history, Bush/Cheney were worse in their criminal wars of aggression and implementation of torture as official policy. Obama was as bad, continuing the criminal wars, (as Trump does), choosing not to prosecute the war criminals who preceded him, and serving the interests of the financial elites as his predecessors did and as Trump does. He is merely the Dorian Gray of our political system: he shows all the rot and corruption that was already there, hidden by the more palatable, "professional" appearance of Obama and even Bush/Cheney. He could not have been nominated, much less elected, if so many were not so alienated from our terminal system.

Big Mike said...

@Cookie, Trump is a fine person struggling against terrible odds to do good for the working men and women, including small business owners. YOU are the terrible person. No one will miss you when you’re gone.