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“Cold-blooded, heartless and ruthless”
When Biden became vice president in 2009, Obama aides reportedly derided Biden for his lack of rhetorical style and accuracy.
“I can’t remember exactly what Joe was referring to — which is not surprising,” Obama quipped during his first news conference as president.
But after eight years as vice president, and four tumultuous years under Donald Trump in the White House, Biden’s verbal deficiencies have come to be seen as a familiar and generally harmless aspect of American politics.
“The babbling, the stumbling, the bumbling: a lot of politicians have that quality, including beloved politicians — Joe Biden is one of them,” said Robert Thompson, a professor of popular culture and media at Syracuse University.
But he told AFP: “What we saw in the debate was relentless and ruthless, and it was a marked departure from Biden’s usual shortcomings.”
During the debate, Biden was not only incoherent and vague, but also panted, chattered, and stared at everything in amazement.
Thompson said viewers have been following Biden’s every appearance since that night, ready to hear his next gaffe or illogical statement.
Political journalists in Washington were more vigilant, having been criticized for not adequately covering the effects of aging on the president ahead of the debate.
“It is simply astounding that the entire country, including the most seasoned journalists, has been shocked by the ugliness and painful reality of Biden’s debate performance,” Jill Abramson, former executive editor of The New York Times, wrote on the Semafor website.
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