'Say It Ain't So, Joe': There is surely no way that Biden can come back from these latest horror shows

12 July 2024, 13:25 | Updated: 12 July 2024, 13:53

Shoeless Joe Jackson and Joe Biden are worlds and generations apart.

One of them was a top baseball player whose involvement in the 1919 Black Sox match fixing scandal destroyed his legacy and prompted the legendary 'Say it ain't so, Joe' headline which is still deeply ingrained in American culture.

The other is Joe Biden who has just made America look like a international joke after fluffing his appearance at the close of Nato summit press conference.

It is hard to imagine how much worse it could have gone for the beleaguered president.

During the summit every world leader was asked about Mr Biden's age and mental facilities while all the time Democrat grandees on Capital Hill were openly wondering what to do about the president's health.

For Mr Biden and his allies, the best way of proving his competence for the job was by bringing the summit to a close without a hitch.

This dit not happen.

As the world's media watched on, Mr Biden prepared to introduce Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He told the packed room: “And now I want to hand it over to the President of Ukraine, who has as much courage as he has determination.”

Pausing for effect, he concluded: “Ladies and gentlemen – President Putin.”

The stunned gasps from the audience echoed around the world.

And it got worse, later Mr Biden was asked about Kamala Harris’s suitability to be president.

He replied .“I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president, if she’s not qualified to be president."

More gasps, as the penny dropped that he had mistaken his closest ally for his greatest foe.

The ridiculous errors have damaged him at the time he least needs it and the fact that America's western allies were all quizzed about him and felt the need to cover for him leaves the President and his advisors struggling to protect his battered reputation.

Today we learn that such party bigwigs as Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi have been in the discussions about his future.

Last week it was reported that a Parkinson's expert has been to the White House but Mr Biden was not being treated for the disease.

He was insistent he would not stand down, and this campaign will only end when Mr Biden decides to end it.

But if Mr Biden looked shaky at the start of this week, he now looks finished.

The quote that was once about Shoeless Joe Jackson is now coming back to Joe Biden.

'Say it ain't so Joe'...clinging on is increasingly impossible.