Former CNN political analyst Chris Cillizza on Tuesday criticized Democrats for trying to silence concerns about President Biden following Thursday's debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
Biden spoke huskily and stuttered during the debate, prompting Americans to express concern about his age and viability, while some objected to the focus on the president's abilities rather than Trump's allegations. Autocratic Trends. Silica is YouTube Channeldenounced Democrats' efforts to stifle concerns about Biden in order to allow him to defeat President Trump and protect “democracy.” (Related article: Biden lies about no soldiers being killed under his command)
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“The Democrats' reaction to Joe Biden's debate performance was shocking to me. There's one argument I really want to denounce. No offense, but it's bullshit,” Cillizza said. “Okay, here's a response to a tweet I sent out. It was from someone called Thundercat. … 'I hope the press remembers these articles and tweets when Trump wins and you all watch from behind the bars of your cell as he tramples on the freedom of the press. The courts have shown they're willing to follow his lead. This is sure to be a great story. Good luck.'”
“First of all, do I think Donald Trump has authoritarian tendencies? I do. Do I think he prefers authoritarianism to democracy? I do. Do I think he can destroy democracy in four years and turn our country into a dictatorship? I don't,” Cirica said. “If you look at other countries where authoritarianism is going on, like Turkey, it's a long process… That doesn't mean he won't undermine press freedom and things like that. But the idea that if Donald Trump wins, democracy will end and everyone will go to jail seems far-fetched to me.”
Cillizza suggested that given Biden's current performance based on the debates, nominating him as the nominee would be a “huge risk to democracy.”
“I would argue that it's really important to write about that and the possibility that he may need to step down or be replaced,” he added, “because if you go forward knowing what we know about Joe Biden, you're taking a really big risk if you're a Democrat, because you're saying to people, 'Yeah, I know you think he's too old, and yeah, he's shown to some extent that he might just be too old, but it doesn't matter because Donald Trump is the other candidate.'”
“If beating Donald Trump is so important, shouldn't we be fighting about whether Joe Biden is the best person to beat Donald Trump right now?” the former CNN analyst asked. “So we just accept that he's the best person and that we can't say anything negative about Joe Biden because Donald Trump is the Republican nominee? If it's so important, then these are the people who should be most willing to say, 'We need to reexamine this, right? It's crucial that we beat Trump because democracy is ending.' And if democracy is ending, then we need to nominate the person who is most likely to beat Trump and preserve democracy, right?”
Cillizza said it was “insane” to try to thwart people who say Biden is not the ideal candidate to challenge Trump.
“It doesn't make sense that even if people think Biden is too old and he has demonstrated that publicly, they should implicitly accept that Biden is the nominee,” he said. “I think that seems insane and it's not at all what people want. They want the best person they can find who they believe can beat Donald Trump.”
After the debate, The New York Times editorial board advocated for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. Efforts to find a replacement Democratic nominee will likely face practical, political and legal obstacles.
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