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Louise Thomas
Editor
US talk show hosts have weighed in on the debate surrounding Joe Biden’s potential future presidency.
Biden, 81, was subject to widespread criticism and mockery following his TV presidential debate with former President Donald Trump. Many viewers commented on the US president appearing confused and disoriented, raising questions about his ability to lead the country for another term.
“So should he stay, should he go? Who am I to recommend,” Stephen Colbert said on the Late Show. “I don’t know what’s going on in Joe Biden‘s mind. Something I apparently have in common with Joe Biden.”
Although Colbert called Biden a “great president”, he expressed disappointment at his inability to shut down his opposition.
“All Joe had to do was allay people’s fears that he was too old. But instead Biden’s shakiness allowed Trump to get away with 90 minutes of lies, racism, and weird golf brags, which is why a lot of people are saying this is the worst debate performance of all time,” he continued.
“I don’t think that’s fair, I think Biden debated as well as Abraham Lincoln... if you dug him up right now.”
Commenting on reports that Biden would stop taking part in events after 8pm, Colbert said, “So the state dinners are all going to be early bird specials? Also, which 8 pm sir? East Coast, West Coast, Moscow? The world does not stop at 8pm. Is Kamala Harris going to have to clock in as night president?”
Meanwhile, over on the Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon addressed the fallout from the debate as he compared Biden’s performance to a firework that either “doesn’t ignite” or “the one where the bottle tips over and blows up your house”.
Fallon likened Biden to “the guy doing 30mph in the left lane and he ain’t moving for anybody”, as he defies calls to step down from the election.
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He joked that Democrats could remove the president with a plan to “tie a bunch of balloons to the White House and hope he floats away like that old guy from Up.”
Seth Meyers focused his attention on criticising Trump as he said, “A wildly dangerous criminal and pathological liar is leading a radical movement to dismantle American democracy, and he’s within striking distance of the presidency.”
He continued, “The stakes of this election could not be any higher, which is why it would be nice to have a Democratic candidate who could competently articulate those stakes to the American people, instead of whatever the hell this was.”
In response to Biden’s post-debate interview in which he said he would feel good about his performance as long as he “gave it my all”, Meyers was incredulous.
“No!” he joked. “That’s not what this is about. ‘Giving it your all’ is what salsa lessons at a retirement home is all about. This isn’t about how you feel. This is about how voters feel.”
