I get the impression that the dems basically gambled everything on the offensive, they built it up in the media, scavenged whatever they could, and it was supposed to get some big results and then the media would run with it. Joe would win the election riding on having defeated Russia and saved the free world.
Instead it failed in the most spectacular way possible, and they don’t really have any cards left to play now. They can’t convince Russia to freeze the conflict until after the elections, and it’s likely Russia will go on an offensive of their own come winter. So there could be a collapse in Ukraine happening as the election season heats up.
Seems like throwing Biden under the bus is the only move they have left in that situation. You all of a sudden discover that Biden has a lot of business dealings in Ukraine, that he may be compromised, and that he has a big conflict of interest running the war. Blame it all on him and hope you can distance the party from the debacle somehow.
The real question whom the dems will float as a replacement since they don’t have a single candidate that’s known or liked at this point. Perhaps they try to pump up Newsom?
While I agree that they’re hugely invested in Biden, the problem is that his mental decline appears to be progressing very rapidly. If you look at clips of him today compared to even a year ago, the difference is striking. He just might not be physically fit to go through another election campaign. Then there’s the whole impeachment inquiry which will almost certainly find some dirt, the collapse in Ukraine, the failing economy, and so on. It’s going to be a perfect shit storm right as the election cycle heats up.
That said, it’s certainly possible that they just run him anyways because they don’t have anyone else. However, given that we are seeing more and more articles coming out in liberal outlets like WSJ and NYT, I think that’s a strong indication that there is a powerful faction within the party that doesn’t want him to run.