We've all heard the saying, "The lights are on, but nobody's home." I suspect most of us could readily come up with a list of people to whom that applies, including in politics — maybe especially in politics.
Watching our commander in chief on the world stage over the past week has made it abundantly clear that the same cannot be said of him. In Joe Biden's case, it seems that the lights aren't even on anymore.
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I don't say that to be cruel — although it can be easy to wander into bash-the-president territory. That's pretty much been an American pastime all along — by design. I say it because it's both self-evident and seriously disconcerting.
Joe was old when he took office — as my friend Andrew Malcolm would say, "Each day, Joe Biden sets a new record for oldest sitting president." But there are plenty of spry 81-year-olds out there. Joe just doesn't happen to be one of them.
We've all watched elderly loved ones decline. It's sad and, at times, outright heartbreaking. But even having great empathy for someone losing the battle with old age doesn't obliviate the reality that leadership requires lucidity and a certain degree of vigor, neither of which are in Joe's toolkit anymore.
The lights are off, nobody's home...and we're all the worse for it.
This “Moore to the Point” commentary aired on NewsTalkSTL on Monday, June 17th. Audio included below.
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