Stuck in space

Astronauts and Democrats

Friends,

On June 5, Boeing sent NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station aboard its new Starliner spacecraft — the first time the Starliner had ever put humans into space. But its thrusters started to behave aberrantly. Wilmore and Williams got to the space station safely, but the planned eight-day stay has already stretched to 26 days and counting. Williams and Wilmore are, for all intents and purposes, stuck in space.

As is the Democratic Party. Its own major thruster — Joe Biden — started to behave aberrantly last Thursday evening in front of 60 million people, and since then Democrats have been twisting in the stratosphere.

Some believe Biden must step down in favor of (in all likelihood) Kamala Harris. A rising chorus of Democratic members of Congress and Democratic governors, along with major donors and the chattering class in the media, says he looks and acts too frail to have any chance of beating Trump.

A new poll released today from The New York Times and Siena College provides more grist for this view. It was done after Thursday’s debate. It shows Trump ahead of Biden among likely voters 49 percent to 43 percent, his largest lead of the race in a Times/Siena survey. It also reveals growing concerns about whether Biden is fit enough to serve as an effective president.

A new Wall Street Journal poll, also done post-debate and also released today, shows almost exactly the same. 6-point lead over Biden among voters nationally (48 percent for Trump, 42 percent for Biden) with 80 percent saying that Biden is too old to run for a second term.

Others say no, Biden won’t and shouldn’t drop out of the race. Biden’s inner circle of advisers, including his wife, are digging in.

Katie Rogers in today’s New York Times reports that Biden has told a key ally that he knows he may not be able to salvage his candidacy if he cannot convince the public in coming days that he is up for the job.

Only one thing is for sure: The uncertainty about all this, combined with a daily drip of reports that he’s being urged to drop out, is itself debilitating to Biden and the Democrats.

Trump knows this, which is why he’s been so quiet about Biden’s condition. Reportedly, his campaign wants Biden to continue to be the Democrats’ candidate. They figure Trump has a better chance against Biden than against a more vigorous opponent.

What will happen next? Biden has an interview scheduled for Friday with George Stephanopoulos of ABC News, along with campaign stops in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

My personal advice to Biden: Hold an unscripted news conference tomorrow, July 4, when the nation celebrates the birth of our democracy. Let the media and the public see how you field questions without a teleprompter. Admit what everyone knows — that in light of your debate performance, many are concerned about your age and capacity to be president for the next four years. Say you’re not concerned, but, given the intensity of those questions, you’ll release your latest medical report immediately and then be guided by the will of the people. You’ll make a final decision by Tuesday.

The Democratic National Convention is a mere seven weeks away, and early voting in several states starts in just 90 days. Ohio mandates by law that candidates are legally certified by August 7 in order to be included on the state’s ballot — that’s 35 days from now.

Being stuck in space is no place for astronauts or the Democrats to be.