As the political firestorm unleashed by President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance continues to spiral out of control, Democrats at the highest levels of the party establishment are openly discussing not only the merits but also the mechanics of replacing him on the ballot for November.
But against the growing cacophony of big name Democrat elected officials, institutions, and media outlets, Joe Biden remains adamant – even defiant — that he isn’t dropping out of the race.
How is that possible? How can the very highest levels of the Democratic establishment be as divided as they are on this?
It isn’t as though the New York Times editorial board just woke up one day and decided they didn’t like Biden anymore. And the list of elected Democrats calling for him to step aside as the candidate could hardly be described as a group of “Never-Bidenites.” All of those suggesting that Biden might not be up to the task – overtly, of being a candidate, and quietly, of being president again – are taking a very reasonable position based upon evidence: what they saw and heard at the debate and in the trainwreck of an abortive damage-control tour.
Again, these people aren’t crazy. And they, along with pretty much the rest of the country, want to know: What is Biden thinking that he won’t stand aside?
But that’s the wrong question. Or at least it is a secondary question. The real question that people should be asking is, “What is Biden hearing?”
The presidency is one of the most isolated and insulated jobs in the entire world. It is hard to overstate just how reliant a president is on his innermost circle of advisers to keep him in touch with reality. Most people who walk into the Oval Office are acutely aware of not wanting to upset the man sitting behind the desk. But it is absolutely necessary to a properly functioning administration to have at least one person who can walk in and tell the president what everybody else is too afraid to say.
We don’t know for sure if that is happening inside the Biden White House, but there certainly are some hints.
“Joe, you did such a great job. You answered every question, you knew all the facts!” That was first lady Jill Biden immediately after the debate. From there she moved on to asking the crowd, “Didn’t the president do a great job? Yes!…[F]our more years!”
Another data point: Late last week, the White House leaked a narrative that Biden was literally running circles around his much younger staff. And, of course, the White House press secretary has reminded everyone that the president simply had a cold the day of the debate, and was “over-prepared.”
Against that background, it isn’t hard to imagine that no one in this White House is willing to tell the president what everyone saw last week.
You can hardly blame Biden for pushing back against the efforts to oust him. After all, if everyone you knew and trusted was telling you that you “knew all the answers,” or that, if you had a bad day, it was because your staff prepped you poorly, or that the effort to remove you was an elitist plot, what would you think?
It is especially telling that Biden said he hadn’t watched the debate for himself (or at least doesn’t remember watching it). The only way that happens is if the White House staff is actively making sure he doesn’t see it. The same goes for the first lady when the president leaves the West Wing and heads back to the residence each day.
Asking, “How could anyone who saw that debate think that Biden could do the job?” is a meaningless inquiry when directed at someone who didn’t see the debate. And he won’t see it.
Presidents are ultimately responsible for their own actions and decisions. The buck does, indeed, stop with them. But in making those decisions, presidents rely heavily on their senior advisers. When the people entrusted with those roles decide that keeping the president happy is more important than speaking hard truths, really bad things can happen.
Before you can ask what Biden is thinking, you have to ask what he is hearing. And all the evidence would suggest that what he is hearing is that everything is fine.
That is a formula for disaster. And not just of the political sort.
Mick Mulvaney, a former congressman from South Carolina, is a contributor to NewsNation. He served as director of the Office of Management and Budget, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and White House chief of staff under President Donald Trump.