The European allies of the United States are calling for President Joe Biden to step down following his widely criticized performance in the recent presidential debate.
What Happened: The debate, which took place on Thursday, has raised concerns about Biden’s ability to lead the country, reported Bloomberg.
The debate was marked by Biden’s repeated stumbles and a lack of coherence, while his opponent, former President Donald Trump, made several false and exaggerated statements, leaving US allies unsettled.
Following the debate, Poland’s top diplomat, Radoslaw Sikorski, compared Biden and the last of the “five good emperors” of ancient Rome, who made a detrimental decision in his final years, leading to civil war.
"It's important to manage one's ride into the sunset," Sikorski said in a post on X.
Sikorski’s boss, Prime Minister Donald Tusk, also expressed concern over Biden’s performance, stating that it was to be expected that a direct confrontation would not be easy for the President.
"I was afraid of this, in the sense that it was to be expected that in a direct confrontation, in a debate, it would not be easy for President Biden," said Tusk in a briefing on Friday.
When asked if Democrats need to change their candidate. "They definitely have a problem," Tusk said.
"These reactions are unequivocal."
See Also: Elon Musk Says Trump-Biden Debate Was ‘Setup For A Switch:’ ‘They’re Just Talking Puppets’
European Union leaders, who were already dealing with their own election drama, were taken aback by the debate’s outcome.
The United Kingdom’s opposition Labour leader, Keir Starmer, declined to comment publicly on Biden’s performance but privately expressed alarm. The reactions from U.S. adversaries, Russia and China, were relatively muted, with some Chinese social media users mocking both candidates and the debate.
Kishore Mahbubani, a former senior official in Singapore's Foreign Ministry and former president of the United Nations Security Council, said it must have been one of the worst nights of Biden's political career. "There may be a kind of a paradoxical result from this debate — it means that Joe Biden has to step down and the younger Democratic candidate comes in…”
Why It Matters: Biden’s performance during the debate has sparked a wave of concern among Democrats, with some even questioning if it’s too late to replace the 81-year-old leader on the ticket.
This concern was further fueled by the fact that Biden’s performance improved as the debate progressed, but he failed to land any significant blows against Trump.
Despite the criticism, Vice President Kamala Harris defended Biden’s performance, calling it a “slow start” with a “strong finish.”
On the other hand, "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer thinks a second Trump presidency could be good for your portfolio and equity markets.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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