OPINION

When Biden Does Think Clearly, He’s the Most Partisan President of All Time

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Americans know that President Biden’s best days are behind him. They’ve known it for years now.

On the 2020 campaign trail, most American voters—including 56 percent of independents—believed that Biden was in the early stages of dementia. And that was two years ago: Today, nearly 60 percent of Americans are concerned about the president’s mental health. His “mental sharpness” is similarly in question, especially when he is discussing complicated international issues with much sharper foreign adversaries.

No matter how much Democrats try (and fail) to cover it up, the job is simply too big for Biden, who can’t get out of his own way whenever he’s forced to appear in public. From incoherent press conferences and meandering speeches to unforced errors and gaffes, Biden’s mental faculties come and go in a way that puts America at risk, in terms of both domestic and foreign policy. Heck, even left-leaning news outlets are turning on Biden, pointing out his various stumbles after years of ignoring them for political reasons.

When 2024 is at stake, it seems that even the liberal media will call a spade a spade.

But that’s only one side of the Biden coin. The other, perhaps even more troubling side is his administration’s blatant and hostile partisanship. When Biden does happen to think clearly on a given day, he immediately turns to vilifying and scapegoating Republicans like they are enemies of the state and not just fellow Americans. Biden’s fleeting moments of lucidity merely serve to score political points with his left-wing base, treating the Republican Party like it’s some rogue state or terrorist group.

If you check the record, Biden’s rhetoric is deeply disturbing in a way that even his mental decline could never be. It is vitriolic and hateful, dividing a nation that he claimed to be unifying. Lest we forget: Biden’s inauguration address referenced “unity” nearly 10 times, and yet he’s governing as a divider of political parties. Even Barack Obama was less divisive.

On Republicans, Biden claims “they refuse to accept the will of the people.” In his words: “They threaten our very democracy.” While Democrats may counter that he’s simply referring to MAGA Republicans, where exactly is the line drawn? Last I checked, there are more than 74 million MAGA Republicans in American, so are they all evil or just some?

Then there’s immigration, once again a hot-button issue after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis instructedsanctuary” cities and states to be, well, sanctuaries for illegal immigrants. Biden refers to DeSantis and his supporters as “not rational,” while Vice President Kamala Harris routinely denounces the policies of DeSantis and other Republicans as “un-American.” Biden officials are also more than happy to use “cruel,” “inhumane,” and other unifying adjectives.

But the problem isn’t just divisive rhetoric. Biden’s style of governance—again, when he’s lucid—has a real and adverse impact on public policy. After Hurricane Ian hit Florida, Biden waited hours to even give DeSantis a phone call, opting instead to dial Democratic mayors in the state. Only after the mainstream media pressured Biden into reaching out across the aisle did he find time to do it. Biden’s cue to lead in any way had to come from the newsroom, rather than his own heart or mind.

That’s exactly the problem: President Biden was never a leader, and he isn’t one now. From Afghanistan and inflation to the U.S.-Mexico border crisis and natural disasters, the Biden administration has consistently abandoned its duties and responsibilities, playing politics instead of unifying America. Biden is America’s divider-in-chief, taking Obama politics to a whole other level—when he’s mentally sharp, that is.

Throw in the mental decline, and Biden is hardly a president at all. He’s just a gaffe and GIF machine. America deserves much, much better.

Ted Harvey serves as chairman of the Committee to Defeat the President.