Biden is simply not up to being president

OPINION:

In my 10th decade of life, I have seen many things, but the disastrous performance by President Biden in his debate with former President Donald Trump on  was a first — watching the leader of the free world fall apart before our eyes. We all know the president has been declining, but there is now no denying his capability. Mr. Biden is simply not up to the job of being president.

Last year, I predicted Mr. Biden would not be on the ballot when we got to November. After the disastrous debate, many important national Democrats echo my comments.

Brilliant Democratic strategists such as Ron Klain, John Podesta, Eric Holder, Marc Elias, former President Barack Obama, James Carville and David Axelrod are not going to allow the train wreck they saw coming down the track to destroy their methodic grab for more power.

That is the reason these strategists arranged such an early debate, so they have enough time to come up with Plan B.

It gives me no pleasure as a 90-year-old to suggest a man nine years younger is no longer capable of running the country. I have seen many family members and friends succumb to the frailties of aging, which is a difficult part of life.

Thankfully, I have been blessed with good health, am energetic and active, and am still helping run my 59-year-old company six days a week. I even wrote a book about my health tips for living a long and healthy life.

Shame on Mr. Biden’s White House aides, campaign consultants and above all his wife for putting America in this dangerous situation. But it is extremely difficult to give up power, and those around the president have no doubt been busy getting the national pundits back in line.

The three leading contenders if Mr. Biden is replaced, Vice President Kamala Harris, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, are downright radicals. These Democratic operatives likely believe they can make one of these look like a moderate, as they did Mr. Biden, to win the November election.

Yet their policies are the farthest from moderate or mainstream. 

Americans need to understand that almost every national issue that upsets, frustrates or angers them can be blamed on the Democrats and their elected and nonelected officials in government. The lengthy list includes inflation, illegal immigration, over 100,000 deaths a year from drugs such as fentanyl coming from China through our southern border, crime, the double standard of justice, an embarrassing and disastrous foreign policy and no limits on when an abortion can be performed, including minutes before birth.

The Democrats’ policies do not align with the views of Americans, but no matter the candidate on their ticket, they will try to convince them that they do.

Mr. Trump rightly focused on the border and the economy in the debate and the disastrous foreign policy blunders of this administration. I have no confidence any Democrat who is on the ballot will be any better but will be much worse.

But Mr. Trump seldom identified America’s problems as being caused by Democrats, no matter who is on the ticket.

Meanwhile, they are still trying to put Mr. Trump in prison and transform our elections, using every lever to retain power.

Over the last several months, I have advised clients and political candidates to attack, criticize and blame Democrats, not Mr. Biden or liberals, for the ills facing our country. Even if Mr. Biden remains the Democratic presidential nominee, words like liberal, leftist, progressive, “woke,” socialist and Marxist will not be on the ballot.

Most candidates for public office, including city council, state legislature, U.S. House, U.S. Senate and the presidency, will be identified with a D or an R next to their name.

But suppose we brand all Democratic politicians and the Democratic Party and their policies, programs and projects as the cause of our country’s problems. In that case, we’ll be in good shape regardless of who the Democratic candidate for president is.

All the panic expressed by national Democrats on June 27 seems to be giving way to the strategists making the case for Mr. Biden staying on the ticket. That means they’ve done the math. The polling data and focus group information must be telling them their B team is not up to the task.

The drama in their party will be interesting to watch. Still, our constitutional republic will be lost if any of the Democratic nominees is allowed to continue Mr. Biden’s disastrous policies.

• Richard A. Viguerie is the pioneer of political direct marketing, chairman of American Target Advertising and ConservativeHQ.com, and author of seven books, including “How Conservatives Can Outlive Liberals.”