The Next Morning

Okay, I watched it. I agree with what seems to be the consensus, at least of commentators I've come across. Trump may have helped himself with a few voters by not being such a maniac but he's running out of time to correct the trajectory of this election and he didn't do that. Biden helped himself more by continuing to be more presidential, by continuing to disprove the claims that he's senile and out of it, and by simply running out the clock. This thing has already been decided — in voters' minds if not in early voting.

None of the stuff about Hunter Biden or the alleged dirty-dealing of Joe changes anything. First off, folks don't understand it. Secondly, it doesn't fit the picture that even those who don't like Joe Biden's politics have of the man himself. Thirdly, he's not the one fighting like mad to hide his personal financial information. Fourth, it's all from dubious sources and most of it came from outta nowhere just when the folks spreading it were desperate for something like this.

And fifth and most important: None of it makes Donald Trump a better president. The largest part of the Biden-Harris vote is simply people who think Trump has been very bad for this country, both in terms of honesty and competence, and that it can't endure four more years of him. Even if Biden's son is as corrupt as Trump and Giuliani insist, that doesn't make Trump a good chief exec. The voters who think he botched the COVID-19 response and has inflamed racial tensions still think he botched the COVID-19 response and has inflamed racial tensions.

Everyone's saying Trump's trying hard to replicate 2016 but it isn't 2016. Then he was running to say we needed an outsider to change the direction of this country. Now, he's saying we need the same leadership we've had for four years so as to not change the direction of this country. It pretty much comes down to that.