Joe Biden appeared on 60 Minutes on Sunday evening, and it was an absolute disaster of an interview. As I type this, stories are already coming out about how he blindsided officials in his administration and how his handlers are scrambling to clean up the mess.
In fact, within an hour of the interview premiering, the first clarification had already dropped regarding comments the president made about defending Taiwan from a Chinese attack. That was the second time in the last few months that the administration has had to walk back Biden’s comments on the subject.
Things didn’t get better as the topics changed. When asked about inflation, Biden gave perhaps the worst answer imaginable.
When it comes to bad economic news, there are two ways to handle it as a president. The right way is to admit the truth and then lay out a quantifiable plan for how to improve things. Americans are very forgiving of politicians who speak plainly to them. On the other hand, the wrong way is to simply pretend like everything is actually great and that anyone who doesn’t think so is an idiot. Guess which strategy Biden has chosen?
The dismissive snark about an 8.3 inflation rate that is crushing the poor and middle-class is just astonishing to witness. His skin is so thin you can see straight through it, and while I know Biden doesn’t have to live with any of the consequences of his policies, you’d think he could at least fake it a little. Besides, his excuse doesn’t even make sense. Who cares if the rate only went up “an inch” if the overall rate is still sky-high? Core inflation continues to rise, mainly driven by food and housing (including rent) prices.
But if that exchange wasn’t bad enough, Biden decided to declare that “the pandemic is over” regarding the coronavirus.
Does that statement bother me? Not at all given that the pandemic has been over for me for years. But in regards to the administration, the president might as well have dropped a nuclear bomb in the middle of the White House. He provided no advance notice of his comments to any of his health officials, and there’s apparently a lot of chapped rear ends about it.
We aren’t done yet, though. Biden was pressed on his fitness for office, and he delivered a line that perfectly illustrates why he’s not fit for office. Honestly, it’s art.
I’m pretty sure the saying is “the proof is in the pudding.” Regardless, when the president says “watch me,” does he not realize we all have been watching him since he took office and we definitively don’t like what we see? Perhaps Biden has deluded himself to the point where he truly believes he’s done a good job, and if so, he should definitely spend a little more time outside of Delaware.
Of course, in the end, this is all your fault. You see, things are actually great and you are just psychologically incapable of being happy because of COVID-19 or something.
Somewhere, Biden’s comms staffers are busily chain-smoking in anticipation of this week’s briefings. That’s how bad it was, and I could keep going with more clips. Really, this is an interview that just doesn’t quit. Whoever greenlit it should never work in politics again.