The Biden-Trump Debate: Biden’s Defeat Leaves the US at Trump’s Mercy*

President Joe Biden took a gamble. By holding a televised debate with Donald Trump before the official election campaign began, he hoped to reverse unfavorable polls before the presidential election. But he merely demonstrated that he does not have the strength to hold office for a second term.

An unsteady gait. Eyes closed for an extended period, appearing as if he was dozing off. Sometimes incomprehensible answers. The first dozen or so minutes of the clash between the incumbent president and his predecessor on CNN caused panic among Democrats.

The Biden-Trump Debate: The Candidates' Health Was the Focus of the Evening

Even press that is sympathetic to Joe Biden, such as The New York Times, concluded that after this appearance, the main issue of the campaign is not who will win the November election, but whether the Democratic Party should put forward a different candidate much sooner at its convention in August. Especially since there will be no opportunity for a rematch until the next debate in early September.

Biden prepared for this face-off very carefully. He locked himself and his advisers at the Camp David presidential retreat for a week. He rehearsed all possible points on which he could attack his opponent. And there are many: from taxes to the fight against global warming, from policy on Russia to criminal indictments, and from relations with China to abortion. Trump once again presented himself to Americans as a notorious liar. If this had been a substantive fight, he would have had no chance.

However, the focus of the evening was not the future of the country but the health of the candidates. Or rather, the health of one of the candidates. For example, when the two exchanged insults about whether they are able to hit the ball and carry equipment while playing golf.

The Democratic Party Has Candidates Capable of Beating Trump, but They Should Have Been Promoted Much Earlier

Many times throughout the history of the United States, an unknown but effective politician has emerged from obscurity to win the White House within a year or two. This happened with Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Their talent, backed by tremendous amounts of money, paved the way to victory. Even today, politicians such as 57-year-old California Gov. Gavin Newsom would probably prove to effective opponents for Trump.

However, no party has ever introduced a new presidential candidate so late in an election campaign. It is not even clear what that would look like technically, since the primaries are behind us, and replacing Biden with another member of the party would call into question the credibility of the new candidate.

But the situation is so dire that on Thursday night, Democrats were considering whether the most respected political leaders, such as Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, politicians whom Biden greatly trusts, should try to convince him to retire.

This was the plan from the beginning. Biden was supposed to be a one-term president. He talked about it himself during his 2020 campaign. But then he got the notion that only he could defeat Trump. He believed that if he saved American democracy once, he could do it again. Now, however, he may go down in history as the man who surrendered the country to the most dangerous politician who ever ruled the White House.

*Editor’s note: The original Polish version of this article is available with a paid subscription.