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CNN
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Which Joe Biden will Americans see over the next eight months?
Was it the energetic, smiling president who tangled with Republicans in real time during the tightrope of a nationally televised speech on Thursday?
Or is it the “well-intentioned elderly man with a poor memory” who will be described in testimony this week, whom the special counsel deemed too sympathetic to indict on charges of mishandling classified data?
The feisty grandfather is taking a State of the Union figure on a month-long tour of battleground states in hopes of encouraging Democrats to participate in the election. First, rallies will be held in the Philadelphia area on Friday and in the Atlanta area on Saturday, urban centers in states that Biden narrowly won in 2020. The Biden campaign is also launching an ad campaign targeting Black and Hispanic viewers, as well as March Madness viewers.
Meanwhile, Special Counsel Robert Hur testified on Capitol Hill about his impressions of Biden’s memory loss during an investigation into classified materials (mainly handwritten notes) found in Biden’s garage and other locations in Delaware. I plan to.
Another recent example of a powerful moment for Biden came after Mr. Hun released a report in February that pardoned the president for his crimes, but also came at the same time that investigators found during interrogation that his “memory was significantly impaired.” The report also noted that Biden could not remember when he spoke. His son died. Biden delivered a harsh rebuke at a hastily convened White House press conference.
It is difficult to reconcile the vastly different impressions imposed on voters.
► If State of the Union Biden is the real deal, why didn’t his advisers do more to stop the creeping old man’s perception from deteriorating?
► If he can respond to hecklers in real time during the State of the Union, why doesn’t he do more interviews? For example, he passed up an opportunity to do a nationally televised interview before the Super Bowl and instead received potato chips. and released a video on social media about the price of ice cream.
► If he can be happy on the House floor long after the speech is over, why hasn’t he been more visible on the campaign trail? Candidate Biden I recently sat down with late-night host Seth Meyers in New York City to get ice cream and discuss the possibility of a ceasefire in Gaza.
► If he can issue effective warnings about former President Donald Trump in the House, why does he say these things more often off camera at high-stakes fundraisers?
Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday did not promise that Biden would participate in a debate with former President Donald Trump, the likely Republican nominee. He told ABC News that the administration “will get there” and instead implement the policy proposals Biden laid out in Thursday’s speech: protecting democracy, lowering prescription drug costs and increasing the minimum wage. , cited guaranteed paid family leave.
“I think that’s an important point for the American people in this moment when we’re looking at split screen and the fact that Donald Trump is on the other side,” she said.
Biden said the purpose of his speech was to “wake up Congress.” His more important accomplishment may be to prove to the nation that he is truly awake and capable.
The unexpected effect of his energetic State of the Union performance also allowed some interesting comments to slip by that might have otherwise received more attention.
Biden used the derogatory and dehumanizing word “illegal” to describe the man accused of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. Ms Riley was found dead last month and her case has been pursued by conservatives, many of whom were wearing pins with her name on them during a speech.
“(Laken) Riley was an innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal alien,” Biden said while calling on Republicans to pass a bipartisan border agreement. Note: Jose Ibarra, the Venezuelan man who police say crossed the border illegally, has been charged but not convicted of the crime.
His attempts to triangulate with Republicans on the signature border issue have antagonized some Democrats.
“The rhetoric that President Biden used tonight is a dangerous echo of Donald Trump’s words about targeting the backs of Latinos around the world,” Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas said on TV’s “X.” It was pretty close,” he said.
The Biden administration has announced that it will officially discontinue the use of the term “illegal alien” in official U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement communications.
After his speech, Biden could not be heard over the microphone on the House floor, but he was approached by Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, who urged him to keep up the pressure on Israel to allow humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Biden said he intended to have a “come to Jesus meeting” with Bibi, the nickname of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but this does not imply any type of meeting with the leader of the Jewish state. That’s an expression I can’t express. Moreover, while such candor may be the sentiment many Democrats concerned about the Palestinians want to hear about Israel, it is a far cry from what Biden is willing to say publicly.
Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Biden declined to elaborate on his hot mic moment.
“I didn’t say that in my speech,” he said, adding: “You’re eavesdropping.”
Mr. Biden’s desire to maintain some discipline in his public messages stands in contrast to Mr. Trump, who is keen to say shocking things in public, whether at campaign rallies or outside the courtroom. be.
The conundrum that Biden and his team will have to solve is how to maintain the momentum of a speech that will be largely forgotten in the coming weeks.
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