Better late than never, President Biden

Hi friend,

Before the political train gets too far down the tracks (things are moving quickly these days), we might take a moment to express profound horror at the gross denialism within the Biden administration.

First, despite Donald Trump’s assertion that Biden is the “worst president in history,” let’s acknowledge that President Biden, just like every president before him, has had significant successes and dismal failures during his four years in office. Notable achievements include the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. Under his watch, net worth has climbed, violent crime has fallen, salary increases are outpacing inflation, and the number of uninsured Americans is at an all-time low. (Go HERE to see how the president’s performance stacks up against his predecessor by the numbers.) Also, the Biden Administration has successfully taken action to improve the lives of blue-collar workers.

There have been failures, too. Inflation is painfully high (though this is neither Biden's nor Trump's fault, ultimately), the Afghanistan withdrawal was a genuine tragedy, and, depending on whom you ask (me, for instance), President Biden’s unconditional support for Israel was a profound moral failure. Also, it is true that immigration reform is failing, though most recently this is because Republicans tanked bipartisan legislation in the Senate for reasons both substantive and political. (For the record – and this will not surprise you – I did not support the proposed legislation, which took a horrifying rightward lurch so far as I’m concerned. The human suffering that would have ensued cannot be overstated.)

In the end, the most egregious failure of the Biden Administration was the fact that it engaged in a veritable cover-up regarding the president's cognitive decline. I am angry about this, friend. We were duped, yes, but that’s not the real issue. The real issue is that it was dangerous and irresponsible in the extreme.

I understand that denial is real. I understand that President Biden himself is the least culpable of all. One cannot accurately gauge one’s own decline. But the people around him could, and they failed to acknowledge reality in ways that put our country at risk in no uncertain terms. Hours before Biden’s resignation letter was made public, top officials in his administration insisted he would run again.

In the end, President Biden did one of the most honorable things I have ever witnessed in the tirelessly self-interested world of politics: He willingly walked away from the most powerful job in the world for the good of the country. It was an act of true statesmanship that will not soon be forgotten. But neither, it must be said, will his administration's failure to face reality, nor their refusal to come clean to the American people about his condition.

We must never engage in dangerous denialism, friend. We must hold each other accountable. President Biden is experiencing serious cognitive impairment and is not fit to be President. Former President Trump invented and propagated a delusion about a stolen election and is not fit to be President.

Love,

Sara