The best that can be said of Joe Biden’s stumbling debate performance was that it took place in June. If he were pressed to step down as nominee there would still be two months to go before the Democratic convention. For Biden’s loyalists, who have always moved swiftly to shut down any hint of dissent about his candidacy, Thursday night was a moment of truth. For more than a year, private conversations in Washington have been dominated by the president’s ageing. But the public omerta on that topic broadly held up. That cognitive dissonance has now collapsed. The story is now about whether Biden can be persuaded to step down.
對於喬•拜登(Joe Biden)在辯論中的表現，最好的評價是：它發生在6月。如果他被迫辭去提名，那麼在民主黨大會之前還有兩個月的時間。對於一直迅速採取行動來制止任何對他的候選人資格表示異議的拜登的忠實支持者來說，週四晚上是一個真相的時刻。一年多來，華盛頓的私人對話一直被總統的衰老所主導。但是對於這個話題在很大程度上沒有在公開討論。這種認知上的不協調現在已經崩潰了。現在的問題是能否說服拜登退出。