George Stephanopoulos gets blunt after Biden interview: ‘I don’t think he can serve four more years’
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On July 5, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin, President Joe Biden speaks with anchor George Stephanopoulos of “This Week.” On July 9, Stephanopoulos was caught on video saying that he doesn’t think Biden can stay in office for another four years.
On Tuesday, George Stephanopoulos was walking through the streets of New York City in a T-shirt, shorts, Paul Mescal Battles Pedro Pascal & a Rhino in First ‘Gladiator II’ Trailer and over-the-ear headphones when a stranger approached him and asked him about President Joe Biden’s fitness for office.
George Stephanopoulos gets blunt after Biden interview: ‘I don’t think he can serve four more years’: The ABC News anchor, who had just sat down with Biden a few days earlier for his first on-camera television interview following the CNN presidential debate, candidly responded, “I don’t think he can serve four more years.”
The dull comment from Stephanopoulos — video of which advanced toward TMZ — filled in as the most recent illustration of the news media turning on Biden, communicating solid worries about whether he has the backbone to overcome Donald Trump in November and afterward serve an extra term in office.
Through a spokesperson, Stephanopoulos said on Tuesday night that he was sorry for his candid comment, “Earlier today I responded to a question from a passerby.”Joe Bonsall, Longtime Member of The Oak Ridge Boys, Dies at 76 I ought not to have. Notably, Stephanopoulos did not retract his position; rather, he simply stated that he shouldn’t have.) Stephanopoulos “expressed his own point of view and not the position of ABC News,” according to a separate statement from ABC News. Nonetheless, the comment has already caused any harm.
It should come as no surprise that Stephanopoulos is not the only member of the news media to hold that opinion. The reality is that Biden has, at this point, lost a significant portion of the press corps, whether fair or unfair (and I do believe you could argue that some of the coverage over the past two weeks has been over the top and irresponsible). The narrative that Biden, his campaign, and the White House are promoting simply does not resonate with many journalists.
The New York Times editorial board titled a scathing piece last week, “To Serve His Country, President Biden Should Leave the Race,” while a number of other prominent individuals urged him to resign.
As Biden tries to persuade the American public that he is up to the difficult task at hand, he faces a significant obstacle in the form of this loss of trust. It’s never a good sign for a political candidate when everything Biden does and says is scrutinized. Even worse for Biden is the fact that he is no longer getting the benefit of the doubt. Actually, the opposite is true.
George Stephanopoulos gets blunt after Biden interview: ‘I don’t think he can serve four more years’: The president said for the current week that he couldn’t care less about what “the elites” contemplate his appointment. However, he is well aware, given his decades in politics, that it is not a winning strategy to alienate the media and engage in conflict with them. Millions of Americans’ perceptions of his fitness for office are influenced, whether he likes it or not, by the way the media reports on his campaign. Additionally, the recent coverage that has slammed Biden’s campaign poses a grave threat to the campaign’s ability to survive, given how close the 2024 race was prior to the CNN debate.
It remains to be seen how Biden will emerge from the media storm that is threatening to consume his candidacy. Can he? Biden’s efforts to regain public trust have so far failed to achieve their intended goal. That is demonstrated most clearly in the interview with Stephanopoulos. Rather than assisting him with pushing ahead, conceding the meeting has successfully misfired, with Biden neglecting to try and persuade Stephanopoulos with his message.
It is not good news for the president’s campaign that he was unable to convince the interviewer his campaign selected for his first post-debate sit-down of his ability to lead the country for the next four years.
