On aging

The media frenzy around Joe Biden inspired me to update (and trim) the News Sources page. It’s humbling to admit (on my 1,625th post) that it’s not necessary for me to have an opinion about everything, including whether Biden should stay in the race. I addressed the debate in the June 29 and July 1 posts. The media’s concern has caused me to examine my approach to aging.

In 2020, a Wisconsin friend said, “Joe will be a good, transitional, one term president.” With enormous gratitude for Biden’s win in 2020, I hoped he would announce at his Inauguration that he would not run in 2024. I was unrealistically naive. After all his years of public service, it would be hard for Biden not to run. Theodore Roosevelt regretted his pledge not to run again after he won his first full term in 1904.

My hat is off to those who lead well in their 70s and 80s. I began serving as a pastor as a college sophomore. After 40 years, at 59, I decided it’s better to leave a year too soon than to stay a day too long. But, we age at different speeds. Biden wants to press on. For me, “Let’s Go, Brandon!” is “Let’s Trust Biden.” In gratitude for his leadership, I would happily vote for him in November.

If the Democrats nominate someone else for President, I’ll vote for her or him. I’m comfortable letting Biden and the party work it out. As long as Trump or Trumpism controls the Republican Party, I’m a Democrat. Why? Check out these posts by Heather Cox Richardson and Joyce Vance about Trump, the Heritage Foundation, Project 25 and their Hungarian connection. Here’s a “Room Rater” opportunity:

Former Republican Representative Dave Brat, now Dean of the Liberty University School of Business, hosted the imprisoned Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast. Brat spoke with Kevin Roberts, President of the Heritage Foundation. The 3-minute video segment and transcript, “Heritage Foundation president celebrates Supreme Court immunity decision: ‘We are in the process of the second American Revolution,'” are available from Media Matters, July 2, 2024.

Better than me

Joe Biden is a better man than me. In my view, Donald Trump’s actions before, during and after 1/6/2021 disqualify him from an invitation to any debate for electoral office. However, Biden respects the electoral process, which in recent years has included face-to-face debates.

Biden respects the formal and informal institutions of democracy. After the debate, Trump walked off stage in silence, alone. Jill Biden went on stage to embrace her husband, who then walked to the moderators’ desk and greeted Dana Bash and Jake Tapper.

Trump showed great disrespect for the moderators, those who watched the debate on television and the electoral process by repeatedly, intentionally not answering questions, even after the moderators repeated the question in order that he might address it in his remaining time.

Like a playground bully, Trump sought to dominate the airwaves by saying what he wanted to say rather than addressing important issues of concern among the electorate. He polluted the atmosphere that was honorably extended to him.

In every way that one measures wholeness, Biden stood tall. Our son Rob shared Mark Russell’s Bluesky comment: Tonight’s debate is pretty much exclusively for suburbanites still trying to decide whether fascism will knock thirty cents off the price of eggs.

The best comments of important events are often by Robert B. Hubbell and Heather Cox Richardson.

From Biden’s speech on Friday in North Carolina (accessible through the Hubbell link above). Biden said, in part: I know I’m not a young man. I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t talk as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but i know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. And I know how to do this job, I know how to get things done. And I know what millions of Americans know: When you get knocked down, you get back up.