Former GOP consultant explains why Democrats should ‘stop panicking’ over Biden’s performance

After a debate performance by President Joe Biden failed to cement his ability to defeat former President Donald Trump in November, several newspapers and Democratic leaders called on the president to end his bid for office. re-election — but a conservative shut down those calls.

Stuart Stevens, an anti-Trump adviser to the Lincoln Project and a former Republican consultant, argued in an opinion piece published Sunday by The New York Times: “For all the talk about Mr. Biden’s night off, what’s lost is that Mr. Trump missed a great opportunity to reset his candidacy and significantly strengthen his position.”

Stevens is baffled by the inability of many Democratic leaders to “rally around a highly effective president after a bad night.”

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He writes :

Is this how Americans see themselves? When we look at the American flag carried at the Paris Olympics, should we be ashamed, rather than proud? When Ronald Reagan was president, he believed that being born in America was like winning the lottery of life. Now, in Trump’s America, are we victims, idiots, losers?

I don’t think so. Mr. Trump is having trouble expanding his base because most Americans are still proud to be Americans. Most Americans don’t wake up angry at the world, afraid to leave their homes. What are you supposed to hate more: the record high stock market or low unemployment?

The veteran GOP consultant also argues:

The Republican Party is at war with the modern world, and it’s losing. What happened when Republicans attacked Nike for its endorsement deal with Colin Kaepernick? Nike made a fortune. How can they possibly fight Disney, the happiness corporation? This party thought it was a good idea to go after Taylor Swift when it was already struggling with female voters because of the death of Roe. Seriously?

While Biden may have stumbled, Stuart points out that his opponent “unleashed virulent anti-American rhetoric,” proving that “the America he lives in is a hellscape of post-apocalyptic violence, with people ‘dying everywhere” – no longer “crazy”. Max’ rather than ‘Morning in America'”.

Stuart emphasizes: “My only plea to my new friends who are abandoning Mr. Biden is simple: suck it up and fight. This is not supposed to be easy.”

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Stuart’s full editorial is available here (subscription required).