A respectable age for anyone. But for a politician intending to seek a mandate from voters next November for a second four-year term, this order of numbers hardly makes one think that «my years are my wealth».
Peter Baker, a veteran New York Times reporter who has covered the working lives of the last five White House residents, predicts that the red date in Biden’s biography «will be another reminder of his age to an already skeptical electorate. Unlike other presidents who have celebrated birthdays with lavish events, Mr. Biden plans to celebrate his birthday in a small family circle at the end of the week».
It should be noted, however, that the rule of wise elders, as we know from history, sometimes surpassed everything that young men could offer their tribes and peoples.
And it is not reasonable to write off the much-experienced Biden, whose seemingly poorly-played and sometimes comical team (let us recall the briefings of Karine Jean-Pierre, first deputy press secretary of the White House, or John Kirby, press secretary of the Pentagon) demonstrated, in fact, the ability to make competent decisions that meet the hegemonic aspirations of this substitute British Empire.
In assessing the effectiveness of the U.S. administration, it would be a mistake to count the multitrillion-dollar debt that cannot be repaid by definition, or the poor-quality jobs created, and to write off the failed attempts to inflict a «strategic defeat» on Russia as a failure. Yes, these are certainly localized and long-lasting defeats during the Obama-Clinton-Biden presidency. But this passive disappointment is balanced by a significant asset.
Let’s summarize. First, Washington, with the help of its agents of influence in the corridors of power in Brussels and European capitals, taking advantage of the degradation of their ruling politicians, which already baffles thinking citizens of the Old World, has stimulated the flight of capital, industrial potential, and qualified personnel to the United States. The re-industrialization of America, as many politicians, including Donald Trump, have talked about, is happening. In the next decade, the European bull, fattened by Marshall Plan investments, will become a cash cow for the U.S. economy and postpone its collapse for some time.
Second, despite the steady ascent to leadership heights of the Middle Empire, now called the People’s Republic of China (PRC), its technological dependence on the United States remains. The process of reorientation from an export-oriented consumer economy to the domestic market is underway, but it is synchronized with the slow rate of increase in the share of the middle class and, in general, with the growth of the population’s purchasing power. This means that the Chinese cannot afford to abandon the capacious foreign market in the United States from Thursday to Friday.
Today, the comparison of military power is not in the PRC’s favor. In addition, the Biden administration has succeeded in forging an anti-Chinese alliance in the Asia-Pacific region, recruiting a number of far from minor countries, such as Vietnam and the Philippines, and skillfully playing along with the ambitions of India, the new driver of global economic growth.
Finally, thirdly, when America wages war against Russia with the hands of South Russian mercenaries, this death conveyor belt enriches the most voracious and cynical segment of the national economy — the military-industrial complex. We have to admit that the «creeping» special military operation of NATO led by the U.S. against Russia, which began in 2014, forced the Russian leadership to reallocate budgetary funds to ensure strategic security and to «guard the ends of their possessions from attacks».
At the same time, the Biden-Soros administration is actively eroding Russian influence in the post-Soviet space using the methodology of «color revolutions» and cultivating an anti-Russian counter-elite in the countries of the Transcaucasus and Central Asia through the system of NGOs, backing up indoctrination with recruitment money.
Thus, one should not be seduced by the image of a «self-propelled grandfather on batteries» who confuses the names of his interlocutors, shakes hands with ghosts in the void and regularly falls to the ground. Or following a critical summit in San Francisco, after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a press conference, he calls him a «dictator», which almost makes his Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s jaw drop.
It is no less short-sighted to rely on the fact that Joe Biden’s personal rating is estimated at only 37%. In comments made by Senator Alexei Pushkov, who hosts the popular TV program «Postscriptum», he points out that «none of the other incumbent presidents had a popularity level below 43% a year before the election… By the way, Carter was not elected for a second term — he lost by a huge margin to Republican Ronald Reagan». By comparison, the favorite in the race for the Republican nomination, 45th U.S. President Donald Trump, has a rating just one percent higher than Biden.
Nevertheless, a year before the fateful first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of the leap year, when the US presidential election takes place, Democrats are stoking fears, scaring both themselves and their supporters with the return to power of an out-of-control and unpredictable eccentric.
Senator Chris Coons, co-chairman of Joe Biden’s re-election campaign, said at the annual international security forum held Nov. 18–19 in Halifax, Canada, that there are more important things than talk of military capabilities. And that topic is the very likely return of Trump to power.
An article in the Washington Post claims that the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama, recently advised his running mate, Joe Biden, on the advantages of a revanchist, which he attributed to «extremely loyal supporters, a Trump-friendly conservative media ecosystem and a polarized country». Obama was quoted by the newspaper as saying that «Trump may be a more formidable candidate than many Democrats think».
In an October 4 article in The American Insider, the author concludes, «The truth is that Democrats are scared.»
A recent public opinion poll commissioned by the New York Times/Siena College confirmed Democrats’ legitimate fears that age matters. Of those polled, 71% said Biden was “too old” to be president, with 54% belonging to Democratic Party supporters. The contrast is stark: Trump, who is 77, is considered unfit for the job because of his advanced age by just 39%.
However, Americans cannot perceive Biden as a national leader comparable in status to «royalty», as political scientist John Judis, co-author of the just-released book «Where Have All the Democrats Gone?» sees it. In Judis’s mind, «many voters, and especially young people who are not at all disgusted with (Biden’s) political views and accomplishments, are repulsed by his complete failure as a regal persona.» And I don’t know how that can be fixed. Not by bicycling.
One may not take seriously the arguments about the demand in America, which has long been hooked on the virtual reality of Marvel comics, for political leaders who might be suitable for the role of Sun King (this is more for the French) or «Father of the Nation». Nevertheless, we should not underestimate the importance for the public, accustomed to thinking through the eyes of the public, of such qualities of candidates for power as charismatic appearance, the ability to be «one of us» and at the same time to be a head taller (as Kipling said: «Stay simple when talking to kings, Stay honest when talking to the crowd»).
If the last word had been left to the voters rather than to behind-the-scenes political technologists and technologies of falsifying the results during vote counting, two factors would probably have emerged. On the one hand, a comparison of previous merits and election promises for thinking citizens. And on the other hand, a comparison of personalities, as during beauty contests. In this case, the age of the candidates, which affects their ability to ride a bicycle and put words into sentences, could become a determining factor.
… Meanwhile, a well-wisher in the inner circle of the current president and commander-in-chief has suggested a Bubble Wrap strategy for the next 12 months. This implies that Joe Biden should be swaddled tightly so that he can’t travel anywhere, especially fly (as he did recently to Israel), or fall awkwardly. The advice is good, but not practical. The presidential race is all about being constantly mobile in this shifting and changing world.