Attention to all: Harris lost in 2024 for the same reason McGovern lost in 1972

[jmowreader]

"Don't change horses in the middle of a stream"

In the first presidential debate of the 2024 campaign season, President Biden didn't do well. We all remember that. The same thing happened when President Obama debated Mitt Romney the first time; the second debate went much better and when the third debate talked about foreign policy President Obama absolutely spanked Romney.

What did we do to President Biden? The same thing we did to Thomas Eagleton when he ran as George McGovern's vice president. When it came out that Senator Eagleton had been hospitalized three times for depression, McGovern bowed to pressure to replace him on the ticket. The November result was devastating to the Democratic Party: McGovern carried only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. Not even his home state of South Dakota broke for him. In 2024 we didn't get stomped quite that bad but it doesn't matter: we still got a guy who makes the late Nigerian strongman Sani Abacha look honest.

[lame54]

1. Doge?

[Prairie Gates]

2. Presidential debates never came that early in the past

Biden and his people fell into an obvious trap by agreeing to a Presidential debate that early in the cycle.

They should have told Trump to pound sand and wait until September like everybody else.

[everyonematters]

3. I disagree for one main reason:

Biden was first incumbent who had serious questions about is ability to carry out the job because of his age. A strong majority believed that to be the fact. On top of that, he had an approval rating of 38%. The debate performance wasn't just bad; it was jaw dropping. Eagleton wasn't the only reason McGovern lost. We need to be honest with ourselves.

[Intractable]

4. Biden's debate with Trump was a total train wreck. It was much worse than Obama's failed debate.

Obama lost to Romney in that first debate because he didn't think he had to prepare.

Obama got kind of smug around that time. That first debate was a wake-up call to him.

This video is Obama in 2012 campaign season. If he had talked like this in during the 2008 primary, Hillary would have been president!

[BannonsLiver]

5. That comparison was where I rolled my eyes and stopped reading.

[Intractable]

7. Biden rendered himself unelectable in that debate.

Maybe you and I still wanted him for the job, but swing voters, not so much.

[BannonsLiver]

8. Totally agree.

[WarGamer]

6. Add in a dose of racism and sexism... jus sayin'

[Tetrachloride]

9. Gaza

[fujiyamasan]

10. His poll numbers were bad before the debate

The debate reinforced preconceived weaknesses about his age.

Remember it was the Biden campaign that wanted the debate early to change perceptions. Some posters confidently claimed Trump wouldn’t show up.

Aside from his age and the trainwreck of a debate there were a few more issues:

Immigration/border (perceived to be Trump’s ‘strongest’ issue throughout the campaign)
Inflation (rate was decreasing but still higher than before he started his term)
Gaza (nothing to be said here)

[mackdaddy]

11. They were both running against Insane Lying Gangster Crooks.

Lying Crooks too often win against Truth, Justice and the American way.