Did he do it for the memes?

  • Sterile_Technique@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    Even if he goes full and permanent vegetable, he’s still not Trump. Top priority is stopping Orange Hitler from taking control again, so please for the love of human rights, vote for whoever has the the best shot at beating him - if that’s Biden, cool. If it’s Harris, cool. If it’s a literal ham sandwich, fucking fine - all three are orders of magnitude more qualified to do the job then Trump.

    • Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.works
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      2 months ago

      Yeah, I’ll vote blue… But get this fucker off the ticket. I’d much rather it be Kamala, or like… Nearly anyone really.

      • zarkanian@sh.itjust.works
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        2 months ago

        Yeah, the question isn’t who Democrats will vote for. It’s who independents will vote for. And there are a lot of independents.

        Relying on the “Never Trump” vote to win this election feels like a terrible risk.

        • OpenStars@discuss.online
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          2 months ago

          We don’t have democracy anymore.

          First, the SCOTUS ruling did away with that last week, but let’s ignore that for now…

          We have a fascist authoritarian in charge who refuses to even consider stepping down until he dies - certainly he is not going to let the people decide who gets to be the Democratic nominee - vs. someone who will become a dictator for life and do the same, but somehow much, MUCH worse.

          I hope that many people vote Blue No Matter Who… yet I fear that many independents won’t.

        • FatCrab@lemmy.one
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          2 months ago

          The question is who will turn out to vote. The number of “independents” who don’t overwhelmingly vote republican or democratic is vanishingly small. This is found time and time again. Ultimately it’s a question of which electorate turns out and which is demotivated enough not to.

        • scarabic@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          Anyone supposedly independent or undecided at this point is and idgit voter who will either stay home or vote for Trump.

      • fine_sandy_bottom@discuss.tchncs.de
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        2 months ago

        I’ve been trying to be positive about him but he’s really indefensible at this point.

        His hubris is very likely going to fuck things up for everyone.

        Any other candidate will wipe the floor with trump.

      • Jax@sh.itjust.works
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        2 months ago

        I think Kamala would be one of the single worst candidates we could put forth, but what do I know? I only worked for the dumpster fire of a DoJ she was partly responsible for.

        • mPony@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          hey now, the US has a long and storied history of loving the fuck out of female presidential candidates.

      • Xanis@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Maybe. Though I say we just come together, get his ass in, and then in the first year also get his ass out and let the VP or Speaker step in. Like it or not, changing now IS risky and it is arguable whether it’s the better choice. I’ll go with what the majority chooses because fighting against Trump and the GOP is what’s important.

        Let me repeat: We are in the game where we must do what the Republicans do and come together against a common enemy. So I recommend everyone agree on a candidate then shut up and checkmark that box. We can go back to verbally juxtaposing our positions through digital larping, or whatever it is we do when most of us forget politics exist for four years.

    • ChillPenguin@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      I will take weekend at Bernie’s in the White House with people who actually understand policies over fascist bat shit crazy any day. Not even a discussion for me.

    • Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works
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      2 months ago

      I think this is a dangerous attitude. He’s made some gaffs recently but overall has not been a terrible person or leader. Supporting the possibility of dropping a candidate this late in the game especially when there are no super star saviors waiting in the wings is the kind of party weakness the GOP would eat up and is a recipe for failure. You don’t have to love him at this point, but it’s too late to start over, just suck it up make a donation to his campaign and vow to become more involved in political change at earlier levels so hopefully we are not in this mess again.

      • VintageTech@sh.itjust.works
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        2 months ago

        I’m voting Joe because he is still the only qualified candidate for the job. The package he brings is a Vice President who could do the job if he were to step down due to health/age concerns to guarantee a female President as his dream come true. She then gets to pick her Vice President which should absolutely be AOC. The opposition has no convincing argument to draw this out in a court as they would need to present their arguments to AOC for rebuttal,

        It’s just so batshit crazy it can’t fail.

        • wewbull@feddit.uk
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          2 months ago

          I’m voting Joe because he is still the only qualified candidate for the job.

          There’s a couple of hundred million other qualified candidates in the US. If you’re looking for politicial experience, there’s several hundred in Washington alone.

          Dems have totally failed to bring through the next two or three generations of candidates. That the party feels that he’s their only choice is shameful.

        • lightnsfw@reddthat.com
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          2 months ago

          Since when has the opposition needed convincing arguments to drag things out? They’ll come up with whatever bullshit they want just to keep stuff from moving forward until they get the ball again.

      • Asifall@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        He has been a terrible candidate though. If the polling is accurate and trump has a slight lead in popular vote, Biden has less than a 5% chance of winning the election (according to Nate Silver’s models). Unfortunately, this is probably optimistic as polling has overestimated the democratic vote in the last 2 presidential elections including the one that included these same two candidates.

    • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      That’s just not flying with the ~100,000 people who are actually going to decide this election. They aren’t going to vote Biden. Polling is making this very clear over the last week or so.

    • scarabic@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Since literally anyone will be Not Trump then can we have someone actually good? That way we’d have “not Trump” and “actually good” both working for us! Win win!

    • Avialle@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Going into survival mode forever, where either party can do whatever the frick they want, because they others mustn’t win! Nice system you got there, where it’s like 50\50 every time!

      They present you a Trump and therefore they can even kill your kids, as long as Trump doesn’t win. It’s a scam… both parties are in it. But they divided you all so perfectly fine, you stopped thinking a long time ago.

      Looking forward to your comments, telling me about NO BOth SIdeS!

      • Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works
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        2 months ago

        Not sure why the downvotes. The American duopoly is a scam, you are very right. If there is any hope for change it needs to start lower down the food chain. Support the forward party, get involved in local politics, rally against gerrymandering as a hard as possible.

      • 9tr6gyp3@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Its truly an absolute shit system and it keeps itself propped up this way. What will it even take to see blue and red completely removed? Theyre both terrible options for the future of our world, but when November comes around, they’re still on the ballot.

        Until a revamped Constitution is written by people of all genders, colors, faith, wealth, and education, this will never end.

        We can do better than this and it needs to happen now. Its already too late, but we can help slow the damage to our planet if we act quickly.

        Tired of these popularity contests when we’re literally living in a mass extinction.

        • RaoulDook@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          The US Constitution is not responsible for the 2-party duopoly. It actually grants us the freedom to have all the political parties we want, and corporate oligarchy has entrenched the current 2 parties. What we really need is corporate money banned from politics, starting with a reversal of Citizens United decision.

          • 9tr6gyp3@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            The Constitution was written in part by white men who owned slaves/supported slavery. It does not reflect what America is today.

            The two-party system has held American with a tight grip since the early 1800s. It has done nothing but cause arguments about how much power the federal government should have or not. That argument will continue (and probably get worse) until the USA can embrace having the full support of all of its people. Elected officials are not the answer to this. At the moment, they are people who have time/money to participate in political activities. They generally aren’t aware of what this country is really going through. They only focus on a certain set of issues that they have the passion for. Rarely are they able to properly address other issues, so they end up taking their own party’s stance.

            America was never designed to have parties. In fact, it was said that we should avoid having them at all.

            • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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              2 months ago

              We also are no longer constrained by horses and written mail. We have significantly changed how communication works and idk why we can’t have a direct democracy nowadays.

  • sploosh@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    The funny thing is that Biden’s had gaffes like this his whole career and could have laughed it off under other circumstances, but with the eyes of the entire world on him watching for him to have another senior moment this is another nail in the coffin.

    • resin85@lemmy.ca
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      2 months ago

      Trump at a rally this week: “Mothers will never again be forced to watch their children overdosing & hosp–lee. We will never allow mothers to watch their child hopelessly dying in their arms, screaming, ‘What can I do? Help me God, what can I do?’ We are a nation whose once revered airports are a dirty, crowded mess.”

      Has any media covered that word vomit?

      • roboto@feddit.orgOP
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        2 months ago

        Trump’s brain is also absolutely cooked. He just doesn’t look as confused as Biden I think that helps him. Plus that his voters don’t care about facts, I’m guessing they might have actually had some bleach.

      • Hubi@feddit.org
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        2 months ago

        No, because with Trump it has been normalized for years and his base couldn’t care less about these things.

    • hark@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Biden has been dogshit in general for his entire career. Not sure why the party pushed so hard for him in 2020.

  • EnderMB@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    I remember when Biden was picked as Obama’s VP, and everyone laughed because he’s known to make gaffes like this.

    Obviously, there’s a lot of scrutiny on him, but let’s not pretend it’s all because he’s too old. It’s just Biden being Biden, and while he’s probably too old for the job, that’s what happens when you don’t impose upper age limits…

    • Yawweee877h444@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      It’s not just “biden being biden” by a longshot. He is 81 and significantly worse.

      We are rightly worried he’s going to lose against trump.

          • otp@sh.itjust.works
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            2 months ago

            If those people are fine with Trump being president, then that’s on them. Sitting out instead of voting against Trump is helping Trump win.

              • otp@sh.itjust.works
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                2 months ago

                support for genocide

                The same genocide that Trump supports, likely more than Biden?

                If the genocide in Palestine was someone’s single issue, they’d be pretty disappointed if Trump were making decisions about the Palestine…

              • rekorse@lemmy.world
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                2 months ago

                “Excuse excuse excuse, I feel bad voting for Biden so I won’t”

                Very inspiring. What other emotions do you have trouble dealing with?

        • jol@discuss.tchncs.de
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          2 months ago

          It’s impossible to dintinguish when Trump makes mistakes from when he’s genuinely lieing or confidently incorrect.

        • Asifall@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          True, but I feel like people have been talking past each other about this.

          On the one hand, you have people saying Biden’s cabinet would do a better job than Trump, which is true. On the other hand, you have people saying Biden is going to lose to trump unless he somehow makes a dramatic turnaround in the next couple months, which is also true according to all available data.

          The real question isn’t whether Biden is better than trump, it’s whether Biden would serve the country better by stepping down.

            • OpenStars@discuss.online
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              2 months ago

              Nobody is going to see Biden and then vote for Trump,

              I am not so certain of that. Granted the numbers would be low, but given how the Electoral College works, the entire election may hinge upon precisely that.

              We’ve been down this road before, in both of the previous elections.

          • OpenStars@discuss.online
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            2 months ago

            Except that’s not the real question, bc he’s already said that God Himself could not cause Biden to step down (I’m being literal here). He’s doubling, tripling, and whatever more down, digging his heels in and refusing to even consider that option, regardless of who asks.

            At this point he is either removed by force - which won’t happen - or it’s already over.

            And either way, the SCOTUS ruling holds firm.

            I wish him luck, but I don’t expect good things to come. Even if he wins, heck even if he like rigged the election at this point and gave himself a large majority of numbers in the process, the other side won’t believe it and there’s a goodly chance of an actual civil war, or something along those lines (bad riots or such). Or maybe I’m full of shit, but it bothers me so much that everything that I say sounds “fatalistic” to my own inner ear - except that word means closing your eyes to the truth and choosing to believe only the worst, whereas this is my attempt to be realistic with eyes wide open!? I am saying that it does not bode well that this seems a realistic possibility rather than hyperbolic exaggeration of words for like comedic effect:-(.

            Once again, there’s like ~11% of the country who is die-hard Trump red maga, another ~11% Biden blue maga, and the LARGE majority of us in the middle don’t matter in the slightest as we get caught between these two extremes (Russian oligarchy encroachment vs. American oligarchy establishment, tbf the latter cares far more about the common folk, but is really bad at showing that).

        • pyre@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          as Jon Stewart also pointed out, but that’s not the issue here. the issue is expected performance. people expect want one of them to be a crazy loon. the other not so much. so when he acts like he’s not all there people are concerned whether he can perform well enough at the election to defeat the fascist. the polls aren’t optimistic.

    • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      “Um… let me be clear. My former VP pick has always sucked. He’s not old. He’s simply got a head full of busted marbles and wasn’t employable anywhere outside of the US Senate. That’s why I endorsed him to run in 2020. You people disgust me. You deserve what you get.”

    • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      So I should be able to look at 2020 debate footage and compare it to 2024 debate footage without a problem right?

      Right?!?

      This isn’t just gaffes. The man is getting to an age where this stuff get harder every year. There’s a reason the military has a mandatory retirement age of 62, even if you have a desk job.

    • nekandro@lemmy.ml
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      2 months ago

      It’s a concern because Putin, Xi, Khamenei, Kim… They’re all well-spoken. They’re all quick-witted.

      What kind of message does that send would-be American allies in Asia, in the Middle East, in Africa, in South America?

  • Gsus4@programming.dev
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    2 months ago

    Guys, I’m not american, but at least today answering the press questions (no teleprompter) Biden was dishing out wisdom about economics and geopolitics and very thoughtful…he is just not very good with the whole “slick reality show clown president to distract the cattle while you rob them” part :/

      • Plopp@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Or is it what media outlets want, for sensationalism and clicks, which in turn makes it all the voters focus on because there is nothing else?

        Edit: Eh, writing this I apparently thought they wrote more/other things than they did. Ah well, I’ll keep the comment up as a piece of history from my past.

      • Gsus4@programming.dev
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        2 months ago

        Brawndo bleach, it’s what the voters crave. It’s got electrolytes :/

    • EnderWiggin@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Yeah Biden has always said stupid shit too, but you’re not going to convince most people of that. They will assume it’s due to senility. I’d say that’s certainly part of it, but it’s also par for the course for Biden.

  • HappycamperNZ@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    Im sorry, im just not getting this.

    You’re worried about someone who says some dumb things when the other choice is a convicted felon, known sexual abuser, who’s actively fighting the democracy you stand for and first act as non-president was to try overthrow your government.

    Trump should be in prison or hung, and you’re comparing him to someone who says dumb things. TRUMP IS A THREAT TO HUMAN RIGHTS, GLOBAL STABILITY AND THE FUTURE OF FUCKING HUMANITY.

    • rsuri@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Which is exactly why it’s really important to have an opponent to Trump who doesn’t say dumb things.

      • snaggen@programming.dev
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        2 months ago

        Have he said something even close to the stupidity of Trump? Like suggesting bleach against Covid? Why should all Trump opponents be measured with a different scale then Trump. Could you imagine the number of headlines required if Trump would get a headline every time he does anything on this scale?

        • rsuri@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          We can say the media is being unfair to Biden, and it probably is. But it doesn’t matter. Biden is clearly terrible at getting positive coverage - whether that’s his fault or the media’s (and I think we can all recognize it’s at least partly his fault). If the goal is to stop Trump, we need someone who can get better coverage.

          • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            We can say the media is being unfair to Biden, and it probably is. But it doesn’t matter.

            Exactly, because the media would be just as unfair to any candidate. Trying to find a candidate that the media would treat properly is a fool’s errand.

      • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Bullshit. If the media scrutinizes your hypothetical candidate for not having cured cancer, do we need to find someone who cured cancer so we can run them? Fuck those disingenuous bastards, they would talk shit about Christ himself if he ran as a Democrat.

        • rsuri@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          Just recognize reality. Trump has spent his life in media. He’s skilled at crafting a narrative that appeals to the dumbest 51%. His wide variety of horrible characteristics works against that, but you need a candidate who can take advantage of those horrible characteristics. Rather than doing that, Biden has played into Trump’s narratives, despite tons of time to prepare. If we would let ourselves see it, we’d recognize it’s a binary choice. Go with Biden and make Trump president, or go with anyone else and stop him.

    • Aecosthedark@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Thanks dude, im an Australian, living in Australia but this whole “the non rapist, non fascist, non criminal guy who has a raspy voice, stutter, forgets a name guy is equal or worst to the Fascist, Rapist Paedophile Destroy the World cunt” is fucking nuts. America, grow the fuck up.

      • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Is it not painfully obvious to everyone including in other nations that we are being uno-reverso’d the classic CIA destabilization plot? Down to supporting right wing movements and fascists? Like our country is under attack. “Grow up” - this is a war being fought online, with weapons we’ve never dealt with before as a society: AI, algorithms, data mining, bot armies

        And truly it’s a sophisticated way to attack the US. We can’t be fought economically or with actual arms; we will win those battles most likely. So if we just attack ourselves and take ourselves out, even if we are just wounded from the devastation to our education system or slowed down from implementing technology/infrastructure, it still massively helps other countries catch up and even pass us in some regards.

        • barsoap@lemm.ee
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          2 months ago

          Is it not painfully obvious to everyone including in other nations that we are being uno-reverso’d the classic CIA destabilization plot?

          You misspelt FSB. The CIA has no interest in destabilising the US.

          • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            I didn’t state the CIA was the one orchestrating this attempt. Rather, what is being done is what the CIA have done to many countries for decades. Another country (or maybe a few) just stole the recipe from the CIA, adapted it to modern times, and now we’re living the hell we invented and benefited from.

    • morphballganon@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      You’re conflating all Americans.

      We smart ones get it. The problem is the idiots don’t mind rapists or terrorists. They mind “loser” qualities.

      • kautau@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        The same reason Reagan was so popular while he gutted the federal government to give to the rich, he was a literal celebrity and actor, and many Americans base their entire judgement of someone on their screen presence

        • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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          2 months ago

          And he was already suffering from dementia during his last term. It was just easier to hide back then.

        • BossDj@lemm.ee
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          2 months ago

          To be fair he only gutted social programs and only gave some of it to the wealthy. The rest went to the military budget. Federal spending ballooned under Reagan!

          • kautau@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            Right, should have specified “federal social programs and regulatory oversight”

    • OffColor@sh.itjust.works
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      It’s not about what people here believe. Lemmy trends HEAVILY left wing. It’s about people already saying both candidates suck and don’t want to vote or centrists who lean left electing not to vote.

      Unfortunately, republicans tends heavily toward the elderly who always vote. Any vote not cast is a vote for fascism. People who care are scared. I am scared. We need someone who will get people in boothes.

      • HappycamperNZ@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Oh, both candidates do suck. But I’d rather have the wrong name on my coffee than someone who gives me a wrong order, tells me I clearly ordered a tea, beats up my wife and destroys my kids future then says how great they are.

        Fully agree your need more in booths - unfortunately if the threat of Trump isn’t big enough i don’t know what you could bring to the table that is.

    • OpenStars@discuss.online
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      2 months ago

      TRUMP IS A…

      Then it’s a good thing he’s decided not to run for President. Oh wait, he is running? Then we’re screwed, if we rely on people voting for their best interests, just like in 2016, rather than just throwing their vote into the ring in order to watch the world burn.

      Like it or not, some people aren’t going to vote for Biden. We can acknowledge that now, or acknowledge it later. Btw, I really hope I’m wrong, especially since it looks like we’re going with the latter.:-( I definitely was wrong in 2016, thinking that there was no way that Trump would win against Hillary.

    • intensely_human@lemm.ee
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      Do you not realize that saying the wrong things is a manifestation of mental processes that aren’t connecting right?

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        Who gives a fuck? Even if that’s the case (which it’s not), it’s better than fascism. This is a pointless line of thinking when it comes to the election.

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    2 months ago

    He was just asked about his confidence in Kamala to be able to beat Trump, should he be succeeded(sp?)… and he referred to Trump as his VP and then meandered into some vague talking points.

    • ClamDrinker@lemmy.world
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      I thought you were trolling, like in a “you have to double check if I’m bullshitting you now” kind of way. But it’s actually true… and unlike his Putin remark he didn’t seem to even notice he said it.

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        2 months ago

        Its only been getting worse as this post conference pressser has gone on.

        He has forgotten entirely to respond to parts of a multipart question, meandered into basically ‘I sat down with Golda Meir and Yitsak Rabin and we accomplished peace!’, just keeps repeating things he did (some of which are legitimate accomplishments) that have little to do with the questions asked…

        … “You said your presidency would be a bridge to younger candidates, what happened to that?”

        Rambles about being in the Senate a really long time

        … at one point he actually said, outloud, ‘How do I not make this seem self centered?’ before answering a ‘Considering the stakes, do you really think you should run?’ type of question.

        In the time I have been typing this he has basically barked in anger after a short response to a question that was followed by the reporter asking ‘thats all?’.

        He also keeps doing the sort of asshole loud whisper sarcasm voice.

        He is coming off as a sundowning angry old man who doesn’t want his car keys taken away.

        • ClamDrinker@lemmy.world
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          Yes and it’s really getting to the point where it undoubtedly impacts his ability to perform without an aide basically at his side at all times. Imagine him telling another world leader something insane and the translator having to jump in correct him. Or worse, how can you be sure something he did mean to say was actually something he meant to say and not just another mistake? That kind of communication failure is very dangerous at the highest level.

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            2 months ago

            Man, imagine being the White House translator the next four years. Whoever wins, you’ll be stuck there looking apologetically at the guests going “sorry dude, IDK either”.

          • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            Yes, I spoke with someone earlier today about how communication is VITAL to being president. If he can’t communicate, he can’t do his job.

        • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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          Yes, his emotional regulation is pretty bad now too. He was always a seemingly calm, nice old man and now he’s gotten petty, blames his staff for errors (very unlike him), and in general is acting really off.

      • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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        Yes, I think the people here claiming Biden is as sharp now as 4 years ago, that he’s always made these “gaffes,” must either 1) not have watched him actually make these errors to see how bad they were 2) do not remember how sharp he was comparatively 4 years ago and/or 3) have never been around someone with cognitive decline and don’t recognize how serious it is.

        And the Putin remark - he caught himself, but still couldn’t remember Zelensky’s name. And he’s met Zelenksy a few times, he should know him.

      • Mobilityfuture@lemmy.world
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        I mean… it was pretty bad but also clearly a slip of tongue as it didn’t confuse the sentence or message - not great though , fuck the DNC

    • DarkCloud@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      He immediately caught and corrected himself on the Putin gaffe, saying his enemies have been on his mind lately… Didn’t do so with the Trump gaffe.

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          Apparently he’s always struggled with speech issues, and grew up being mocked for his stuttering, which he learned to cover with his own techniques/efforts.

          Here’s a video of him discussing this in a TV interview from 15 years ago.

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUFA6JUaAPY

          So it doesn’t appear to be anything new for him.

          • Melatonin@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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            Let’s stop equating this stuff to stuttering. It’s not stuttering. I wish it were stuttering.

            Head in the sand mentality is just going to get us a dictatorship in the presidency. I don’t know what it takes for us to realize that we have to do something about this problem. It isn’t going to be enough to just say

            “Well, maybe he’ll get elected anyway.”

            • DarkCloud@lemmy.world
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              2 months ago

              Biden’s reputation for gaffes is something you clearly weren’t aware of:

              The remark revived Biden’s reputation for gaffes.[227][221][228]

              Those sources are from 2009.

              Journalist and TV anchor Wolf Blitzer has called Biden loquacious;[692] journalist Mark Bowden has said that he is famous for “talking too much”, leaning in close “like an old pal with something urgent to tell you”.[298] He often deviates from prepared remarks[693] and sometimes “puts his foot in his mouth”.[169][694][695] Biden has a reputation for being prone to gaffes[696] and in 2018 called himself “a gaffe machine”.[697][698] The New York Times wrote that Biden’s “weak filters make him capable of blurting out pretty much anything.”[169]

              Now you do.

              • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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                No we are aware. We’re not kids. This is not the same man we voted for in 2008, 2012, and 2020.

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                Fantastic quality for a man in his 80s running for President.

                And it’s worse. This is not normal. We won’t win pretending it’s normal.

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        Didn’t it take like a good five seconds before he corrected himself? I wouldn’t say that was “immediately”.

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          All the same, according to his Wikipedia page, he’s been known for such gaffes his whole career, the first mention of such is from 2009, as VP for Obama. So it’s not a new phenomenon for him.

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    A saddening phenomenon that’s likely to happen if this continues … is people opening up about how they saw the decline way before the debate but presumed it was a “one off” or “bad night”. I think it’s already started somewhat.

    But the picture that could emerge with pretty high clarity is that “the issue” was covered by an inner group and ignored by those peripherally exposed to it … all instead of the party preparing for it, preparing new potential candidates, and taking seriously the notion from Biden in 2020 that he wouldn’t run in 2024.

    Losing to Trump a second time by sticking to a party elder is going to be a big deal (if it happens of course). It will probably look more like the Dems losing than trump winning, and it prob will look like the Dems allowing it all to happen out of hubris and stupidity, not unlike the RBG fuck up. Could seriously shake the party up?

    • OpenStars@discuss.online
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      And also the entire Hillary fiasco, where she barely campaigned in midwestern states. I wonder if they are truly so wealthy and disconnected as to literally not realize what is going on - for them, the economy is “fine” and so everything is hunky-dory, so if they plan on losing rather than put in someone that they don’t feel that they have as much control over as Biden, then… that might be the end of democracy. Heck, that SCOTUS ruling is already in the past now - maybe they are ready to end the fiction that our votes matter any longer?

      • maegul (he/they)@lemmy.ml
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        Yea, that the term “Blue MAGA” has arisen out of this is kinda telling. Once you see it in the “Biden is our president, if you’re not voting for him you’re part of the problem” types, you can’t unsee it.

        • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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          Isn’t it funny how the Dem talking points often actively discourage people from voting for them? Reminds me of how church groups force people to proselytize, specifically to piss off those people, so they can come back to the church and be told ‘See? All those other people are bad, mean, and stupid. You belong here with us.’

          Except the Dems are doing it to feed their personal moral or intellectual narcissism. It was never about getting votes for that type in the first place - they just wanna feel superior. Which is also why their talking points usually involve guilt trips or other sophistry/bad faith arguments - because they are using this as a proxy to enact narcissistic abuse. If Dems were forced to argue a real position, they would have to become leftists through that honest argumentation (reality has a leftwing bias). There’s a reason none of them are leftists (Dems are centrists). There are talking points from the 70s and 60s they could be picking up, progressive ideas like child care for all (which used to be something Republicans favored)- the point is to prevent progress while being as narcisstically proud of that as possible.

          And truly, narcissism and moral degradation have really really really fucked up our country. And by moral degradation, I mean we’ve become a disrespectful country, almost no community (because we sold it for capital), abusive, and PROUD of that abuse. That’s the only way a man with 34 felonies, who’s raped numerous adult women AND CHILDREN INCLUDING A 12 YEAR OLD, could be a candidate for president.

          It disgusts me.

        • phdepressed@sh.itjust.works
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          If you’re not voting for “not Trump” then you are part of the problem. Lesser perhaps than the party refusing to replace an old man and the old man refusing to step down but the problem is and will remain conservatives(i.e. american “moderates”)and facism.

          That “not Trump” doesn’t (and shouldn’t) have to be Biden. But in this shitty system we have that’s your choices. Sebile old man slowly degrading democracy or demented old man’s facist dictatorship. The democracy is always the better choice.

          • OpenStars@discuss.online
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            2 months ago

            (1) the election isn’t for SEVERAL months from now, right now we cannot vote for anyone at all.

            (2) part of the problem or not, it is a plain fact that many people won’t vote for Biden. Some of those likely will vote for Trump no matter what, while others may vote for someone else who is younger. The more Biden declines between now vs. the next few months, the more people will fall into this category. Especially if the worst should come to pass and he dies.

            (3) the SCOTUS ruling is already in the past - we are already no longer a democracy, whatever name we use to describe the situation. Henceforth we have elected kings that are no longer bound by the collective Will of the People (after being elected), while Congress sells itself to the highest bidder in our plutocracy, thereby again ignoring the Will of the People, and since the Supreme Court also ignores the Will of the People, the fiction that we are a “democracy” is wearing thinner by the hour.

            But we cannot control others, only ourselves, which is why it is important to do the right thing and put our absolute best foot forward. If you think Biden is doing that, like if he just has a cold and he’ll get over it soon (fingers crossed!) then great. Many others do not think that though, and again some subset of those will not vote for him, but who might otherwise vote for a Democratic candidate. Perhaps I’m wrong - we’ll see.

          • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            Democrats are conservative as well, just not as regressive or conservative as Republicans. Dems are right of center, especially if you compare left/right parties globally

      • TheFriar@lemm.ee
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        2 months ago

        I mean, I don’t think this old babbling windbag should be the candidate either.

        But my thing is, who do the democrats even have to run in place of him? Kamala would lose in a landslide because this is the US and she’s a woman of color (not to mention a cop, so you lose both the left and the “centrist” closeted racist dems and anyone that was still somehow weighing a trump vote (they exist, somehow)), and everyone else in the party has limited appeal. Not to mention the incumbent advantage.

        We shouldn’t be in this position, no matter what. But we are. And we have to face facts that giving up the standard white guy, which is the only kind of candidate that has ever won (except that one time, but that’s seeming more and more like a fluke) with the power of incumbency at his back is a massive gamble. We can’t afford Biden fucking this up as bad as he is. But I don’t know if we can afford a wildcard either, which is exactly what a totally different candidate would be.

        • OpenStars@discuss.online
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          Four years ago, his age was already a factor. We’ve had four years to build someone else up. Someone who is not even connected to the Gaza situation. Even as a backup option, just in case Biden were to have died, let’s say already by now. Four years. Four summers, four winters, four springs, four falls.

          The conservatives tried and failed miserably, with Desantis, and Nikki Haley, etc. but the liberals… I don’t recall even so much as trying?

          But we could - AOC, Buttigieg, Newsom - there are many to choose from (edit: we could even let them compete - a “debate” if you will - and then pick the best one!). Instead, it looks an awful lot like we are choosing either Trump, or even if Biden barely pulled it off, the numbers would not be convincing to the election deniers.

          Just like in 2016, except somehow doubled down even more so, we choose to stick our heads in the sand and hope for the best, while putting forth zero effort to try to bring about a less-worse outcome? FAAFO I guess, bc we gotta keep going through this same scenario over and over again, until we either learn, or democracy itself gets taken from us by the grown-ups (meaning those willing to expend effort towards reaching their goals, though not necessarily the good guys, and to be clear in this case they are very very evil ones).

          • TheFriar@lemm.ee
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            Their plan was Kamala. She was their backup option. She is young and the entire discussion when she was chosen was how she would be there when Biden steps down or backs out after four years like he said he was going to do. I’m not saying she was at all a good choice. She has too much baggage and nowhere near broad appeal. Is it pathetic that some of that has to do with her being a woman? And a woman of color at that? Of fucking course. But I don’t think the democrats even really acknowledge that out of fear of it ever being leaked that it was discussed and the news cycle being weeks of “dems racist.” Its performative bullshit. I think they desperately want to be the party to elect the first woman, and they were willing to back door her via Biden. But that’s a stupid plan that doesn’t get to the heart of the issue of our lack of diversity in executive politics.

            But here we are, just like we had with Ginsberg. She was too stubborn to step down when she was clearly dying. And we got a lifetime appointment in Barrett. Now, Biden is refusing to step down and we’re about to get a lifetime sentence of emperor trump.

            • OpenStars@discuss.online
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              The trutly heart-breaking fact of all of this is that the election is breaking down along the lines of which flavor of fascism you want? Both sides also represent neoliberalism - one being the American form and the other being the more Russian variant.

              I am starting to see the Yin & Yang of it all, and like Trump lies to people’s faces, yet in doing so he more honestly gives his particular base what they want (they are mean, vindictive, and crass, so taunting “Baby Killer!” is what they enjoy), while in contrast Biden at least tried to tell the truth, yet as you suggested in a manner as to selectively hide certain other inconvenient truths, but in so doing he failed to play to his own base. Biden from 20 years ago would have done amazing at this, it seems like. Whereas now… well, “he has a cold” (that will not end anytime in the next 5 years).

              Dems are nowhere close to being “liberal”, but they really will lead the country better than the Russian transplanted culture that some are trying (successfully) to import. That is, if they can get elected, which the Blue Magas - like their red counterparts - are flat-out ignoring, seems less likely by the day.

              Oh well, “We the People” have no say in any of this. Or at least, that is the story that we are being told, across all forms of social media, including, sadly, the Fediverse as well (I am surprised that your and my comment does not have tens of downvotes already - it seems like the brigade is getting fatigued and not willing to chase down every comment that expresses the slightest doubt about Biden and pounce upon it). So just like with RBG, and even more like Hillary 2016, we will see what happens, I guess!? Those who refuse to learn from their history are doomed to repeat it, “but I’m sure that everything will work out fine this time!” (/s, though genuinely would be true if interpreted as a statement of hope rather than certainty as it says)

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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      2 months ago

      Clooney said Biden isn’t the same man from 2020. Whatever is going on … never mind his age … is getting worse/more difficult to handle.

      It’s time for him to recognise that.

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      Not just the RBG fuckup, but also them backing Hillary and openly saying they don’t have to hold fair primary elections re: Bernie, and they kinda fucked up with Gore too

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      The all-anti-Trump voters reasoning is that a 2 yo pot smoking chimpance would do better off. So they elect it.

      I feel sorry for u americans, u’r truly fucked up anyways.

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    The aged president with a stutter says something wrong in public again.

    Whatever

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      I know and then he carried on with the rest of the press conference pretty damn eloquently when it came to unscripted questions.

      Get all the media wants to focus on is a train of thought fuck up.

      I do this shit all the goddamn time, does this mean I am old and decrepit? Senile? No it just means that I fuck up words periodically.

      Unfortunately American voters only want one thing, red or blue, and that’s drama. Which is asinine.

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    2 months ago

    Heck, 15 years ago, way back in 2009, Obama said, “During the second hundred days, I will learn to go off the teleprompter and Joe Biden will learn to stay on the teleprompter.”

    The dude hasn’t been able to keep his words straight for a while…

    But the timing is… very poor to say the least…

    • Reyali@lemm.ee
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      I didn’t know that so I looked it up. Source

      “In the next hundred days, I will learn to go off the prompter and Joe Biden will learn to stay on the prompter.”

      That’s good to know!

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    Biden: Refuses to step down after a dismal electoral debate performance that makes people think he should be in a care home and not in the White House.

    Also Biden: Wrongly introduces Zelenskyy with the same name as the Jasper Carrott looking dictator who invaded his country two years ago.

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    2 months ago

    Damn, I sort of feel like saying “Thank fuck he isn’t president of MY country”, but then I remember how even my local covidiots felt validated by the giant cheese puff, and how Trump is offering carte blanche to companies, for them to pillage and destroy the living conditions of the whole world.

    All I can do is shake my head, hope for the best and prepare for the worst.