By Ray Cardello for April 28, 2024, Season 26 / Post 8

I was never a fan of Howard Stern or any “shock-jock,” for that matter, but at one time, Stern was considered an effective interviewer. That was years ago when Stern still had a fastball. Today, it is purely slow-pitch softball for Howard. He was one of the heavy hitters who jumped from terrestrial radio to satellite in 2006 when he was 52 and in his prime. Like our President, Howard’s prime is in his rearview mirror. That is conceding Biden had a prime.

While Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican candidate, is mired in a courtroom, the victim of Biden’s DOJ attack on a free election, Biden sat down with Howard Stern for a fully orchestrated interview. As we learned from ESPN, the questions and answers for both parties are provided, and there are no deviations or follow-ups. In Biden’s world, the interviewer is irrelevant and simply a tool in the President’s effort to secure reelection. This is one of Biden’s series of fluff interviews. We will know he is serious when he sits down with FOX News or, even better, SKY News. That has been brutally honest in their assessment of Joe Biden.

One of the only new points of interest is Biden saying he would debate Trump at some point if Trump could behave. Whatever does that mean? I think it would be beneficial to have immediate fact-checkers handing out Pinocchios, especially when Biden starts talking about his uncle being eaten by cannibals in New Guinea.

There is no way Biden’s minions will allow Biden to get up on a debate stage with Trump or Kennedy. It would not be pretty, and Trump would clean Biden’s clock. The better debate might be between Kamala Harris and whoever is Trump’s VP pick. With this being an election for a one-term President, there is keen interest in the person who would be the next Chief Executive. That is why I believe Trump must name his choice quickly. The chosen person must contrast greatly with Kamala and start hammering Harris on her failures that have been integral to the worst Presidency in our history.

There are several ways to ascertain a debate performance’s impact on the race, but first, Biden’s committing to a debate is meaningless. Biden says many things, and his staff either negates or modifies Biden’s statements. There is also the John Fetterman debate from the 2020 Pennsylvania Senate race. Fetterman was recovering from a stroke, was incoherent, and gave no indication he could perform the tasks of office. He won. Sometimes, the result is baked in, and actions and debates have little impact.

Biden is on the campaign trail daily,  producing at least one gaffe per event. Then Karine Jean-Pierre tries in vain to backtrack. Often, she makes the initial faux pais worse. We are all to blame for this horrific situation involving a Presidential election. We do not vet candidates. We allow incumbents to skate to reelection regardless of performance. We need to do a better job of voting before we critique the field of candidates. Shame on us if we let Biden/Harris spend four more years in Washington. There is not a single aspect of their policy portfolio that has not or will not do long-lasting harm to America.