There's one word that best describes Democrats' reaction to President Joe Biden's performance in Thursday's debate: panic. His faltering appearance alongside former President Donald Trump has been enough to prompt calls for his swift exit from the race in favor of another candidate. It wasn't ideal, to put it mildly — but looking back at recent history, Biden's poor showing was hardly unprecedented. As the incumbent, the one who's fighting to keep the job, most sitting presidents are inherently on the defensive. It's their records over the last four years that are in the spotlight, and they are the ones making pitches to have another chance to maintain the status quo. Challengers, on the other hand, get to go on the offensive from the jump, putting their opponents on the back foot. Biden had hoped to break that trend, as NBC News reported before the debate — which clearly didn't go according to plan. This is a preview of Hayes Brown's latest article. Read the full column here. |
