Nikki Fried not concerned about Joe Biden’s age, debate missteps

nikki fried
The FDP Chair dodged questions about Biden's capacity to be the nominee and ability to serve a second term.

The first debate between Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump has come and gone, and if the Chair of the Florida Democratic Party has any concerns about the President’s competence, she’s not saying.

Asked whether she had concerns about Biden’s age and cognition, whether Democrats should consider another candidate at the Democratic National Convention, and whether Democrats should have had an actual Primary in the state, Nikki Fried stayed on message and away from the premise of the question.

“The more people hear from Donald Trump, the more they remember how much they dislike him. He spent the entire debate lying about his record, bragging about overturning Roe v Wade, and refusing to answer questions about accepting election results — and a Univision focus group of undecided Latino voters left the debate almost 100% behind President Biden,” Fried said in a prepared statement.

“The choice this November is clear: giving the nuclear codes to an unhinged felon like Donald Trump, or re-electing President Biden and his clear vision to move America forward. Florida Democrats will do everything possible to make that choice clear between now and November.”

Fried, whose press office did not engage our follow-up question about whether she had concern about Biden’s capacity to be the nominee and serve a second term after Thursday night, was not worried about the President’s issues ahead of the debate either.

In a pre-debate press availability, she dismissed concerns about the President’s age and comportment, including allegations that he freezes up at events ranging from a White House Juneteenth Celebration to a fundraiser with Barack Obama. (The White House denies the latter incident happened as conservative media frames it.)

She said then that Biden was “ready,” defending the days of prep work the President had before the debate, an endeavor that didn’t pay off during a performance that included coughs, stutters, a phlegmatic voice and malapropisms.

“As somebody who has been on that debate stage, it takes time to prep. Not only to make sure that you understand that the issues that are going to come up and make sure that you are prepared to answer all of the insane attacks that we know that Trump is going to bring on to the debate stage. Prep takes time no matter who you are, no matter how many times that you’ve debated.”

A.G. Gancarski

A.G. Gancarski has been the Northeast Florida correspondent for Florida Politics since 2014. His work also can be seen in the Washington Post, the New York Post, the Washington Times, and National Review, among other publications. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski


32 comments

  • PeterH

    June 28, 2024 at 2:23 pm

    Biden has surrounded his administration with highly qualified talented advisors. Unlike the Republican Party perception of leadership……”one man only Trump knows best” the Democrats have a successful experienced pool of resources to govern. Trump’s performance last night was a complete disgrace and while Biden didn’t shine ….. Biden also didn’t lie and he didn’t deflect.

    Trump has burnt through the best Republican advisors during his miserable four years in office! Trump is left with inexperienced right wing big mouths. It’s telling that over 40 prior Trump advisors, cabinet ministers and his own Vice President Pence will not be voting for Trump in 2024!

  • My Take

    June 28, 2024 at 2:26 pm

    Almost ANYone is better than pathological-liar leaning-fascist Trump.

    • Elvis Pitts "LIFE COACH" American

      June 28, 2024 at 6:29 pm

      Good evening America,
      I’ve just been forwarded copy of this artical which my Poly-Sci Division is putting out in Monday’s News Letter. Thought now would be a good time to give you an advance peek into our Sage News Letter.
      EPA Fan Club Poly-Sci Division — As summer ramped up heading into the important home stretch to the November presidential election, an alarming new study found that 33% of Americans are dumber than a bag of hammers.

      The EPA Fan Club’s Poly-Sci Division conducted a poll asking citizens who won last night’s debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, with a shocking 33% of people responding that they suffer from advanced cognitive impairment, officially placing them at or beyond the stupidity of a box of rocks.

      “We can confirm over one-third of the country are drooling morons,” said Dr. Rick Whitaker, head of the research team conducting the poll. “While it’s always been suspected that a significant number of Americans were mindless idiots, no one ever suspected that there were this many of them. It’s fascinating and yet terrifying at the same time.”

      Experts confirmed that anyone who holds the opinion that Biden performed well enough in the debate to win could only be scientifically classified as a total imbecile. “It’s true,” Dr. Rick Whitaker confirmed. “While people are entitled to their own opinions, anyone who honestly believes Biden won the debate can be clinically classified under the technical term “Dook 4 Brains Leftists”.

      Though many people were shocked by the study’s findings, others were not taken aback whatsoever. “You’ve been out in public, right?” asked an unsurprised citizen “Michael K”. “You can’t go fill up at the gas station without running across at least a few blithering oafs. It’s not surprising at all that 33% of people in this country are as sharp as bowling balls.”

      At publishing time, results of the study also confirmed that a majority of the 33% work within the federal government in Washington, D.C.
      Thanks alot fans of Elvis Pitts American,
      EPA

      • Former Democrat Voting Trump

        June 28, 2024 at 9:21 pm

        This is what everyone in my circle of former Democrats is in agreement with.
        We all have been gas lighted by the Democrsts and we are mad as Hell,
        Elvis Pitts American

        • Elvis Pitts "THE BIG VOICE ON THE RIGHT" American

          June 28, 2024 at 9:25 pm

          Relax your Sphincters everyone,
          I am helping this former Democrat and posted on tje wrong computer.
          EPA

  • Beth Leytham

    June 28, 2024 at 2:57 pm

    Who are the cultist MAGAts going to cuck for once he dies?

    • Gabriel

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  • FSU Frat Boy

    June 28, 2024 at 3:07 pm

    Nikki, I’m getting dizzy from your spin. That was an absolute rout last night and the zombies are all out in full force trying to minimize the damage. You are either cognitively impaired like Joe or stoned if you fail to recognize that.

    • PeterH

      June 28, 2024 at 3:52 pm

      A bad Biden performance does not mean undecided voters will magically switch to the lying birther fraud convicted felon. Under no circumstances did Trump win the debate with his lies and repeatedly not answer the questions.

      • FSU Frat Boy

        June 28, 2024 at 4:08 pm

        Another spinner. Your boy got run over by the Trump bus and not even CNN, Tapper, or Bash could save him. Many of us have been saying that Joe isn’t right. Yet the controlled pres conferences, hand picked reporters, cheat sheets, teleprompters and cue cards have been hiding or attempting to hide the obvious for his entire administration.

        • PeterH

          June 28, 2024 at 5:25 pm

          Trump’s lies, disinformation and fake news propaganda swayed no one to vote for him. Trump and his MAGA clowns are not patriots they pretend to be. MAGA are drones and will vote for Trump regardless. Independent voters who outnumber Republicans decide election and are able to discern truth from fraud lies.

          • FSU Frat Boy

            June 28, 2024 at 5:52 pm

            Biden said the Border Patrol endorsed him. LIE! Biden said no Americans have died under his watch. LIE! again. All of the liberal news outlets and White House insiders said Biden is sharp as a rock. Another LIE! The independents aren’t stupid. They know what is going on with the state run media and all of the BS Propaganda it spews.

  • Paul Passarelli

    June 28, 2024 at 3:13 pm

    Nikki Fried likes her weed.

    • MH/Duuuval

      June 28, 2024 at 5:37 pm

      And, would that be a problem somehow for you?

    • SallyB

      June 29, 2024 at 9:03 pm

      And her married men and, of course, Big Sugar

      • MH/Duuuval

        June 29, 2024 at 9:08 pm

        A regular sTrumpet?

  • Phil Morton

    June 28, 2024 at 3:38 pm

    Donald Herbert Hoover Trump. Dark Brandon was on fire today.

  • MH/Duuuval

    June 28, 2024 at 5:39 pm

    There’s a term for DJT’s verbal projectile vomiting: Gish galloping. Ditto his camp followers.

  • MH/Duuuval

    June 28, 2024 at 5:58 pm

    Border agents union absolutely supported the deal Biden agreed to in the early spring, but DJT told MAGAs to stand down and, like the pitiful assemblage they are, they stood down.

    Get your lies straight, Bandolini.

    • FSU Frat Boy

      June 28, 2024 at 6:12 pm

      Biden had both the House and Senate when his reign of terror began in 2021. He did sign Executive Orders on day one of his administration killing the wall and signaling to illegals around the world to come. The Democratic controlled Government did nothing to stop the flood of illegals. Spin away MH, just like the state run media.

      • Elvis Pitts "LIFE COACH" American

        June 28, 2024 at 7:24 pm

        Sage Wisdom there FSU,
        The past 4 years of whoever has been making the decisions while Biden was pretending to be POTUS have been so bad that Our Great Nation will go thru 16 straight years minimum of Republican Rule.
        We will get the entire next 4 years out of Trump, the next 8 years it will be DeSantis at the helm, at which time I Elvis Pitts American will step up to my Sage 4 years as POTUS.
        Thanks FSU,
        Elvis Pitts American

  • Impeach Biden

    June 28, 2024 at 9:05 pm

    By the way Gancarski, you aren’t getting a date with Nikki so please stop publishing articles about her. None of us care. Registered Republican eh? Hilarious.

  • MH/Duuuval

    June 28, 2024 at 9:20 pm

    The debate rules permitted Trump to rave on and on — the rules actually favored his verbose, fire-hydrant style. He directly answered ONE question from the moderator, which was about a woman’s right to choose per Roe, which he misrepresented as allowing infanticide. (Nearly every other question he shrugged off and began instead to attack Biden, much of it ad hominem — as his acolytes do on this site.)

    We already see how the MAGA states are handling the Dobbs decsion: forced birth. This is not theory; it is contemporary history in Texas, Idaho, Iowa, and Florida. All of which is the ultimate result of Trump’s naming three far-right dissemblers on this issue to the Supreme Court.

    The rest of Trump’s debate comments focused mainly on immigration with each succeeding comment more and more vicious about 99% of folks just trying to stay alive. The entire world is having to deal with similar situations.

    There was a deal made in the early spring that would have given MAGAs much of what they wanted and funded the additional personnel to carry out the amended requirements. But, MAGAs in the Congress — like the ancient Chinese who prostrated themselves before the emperor — refused to even vote on the issue because Trump told them not to.

    BTW: Statistically, immigrants are less likely to break the law because they don’t want to be expelled. This is a fact, a number, which MAGAS ignore because facts are their biggest enemies.

    • Impeach Biden

      June 29, 2024 at 6:11 am

      The debate rules were set by the Biden administration. It was take it or leave it for Trump. Many thought he wouldn’t agree to the state run propaganda machine, CNN, or to the two moderators, Bash and Tapper that absolutely hate him. Well he did agree and the world got to see how the American People have been gaslighted by the White House and the leftist news organizations on Biden’s mental health.

  • Elvis Pitts "THE BIG VOICE ON THE RIGHT" American

    June 28, 2024 at 9:27 pm

    Thanks America

  • MH/Duuuval

    June 29, 2024 at 10:49 am

    More Gish gallop and Bandolini syndrome from the site’s multiple-personality MAGA whose pants already would have been on fire — if the childhood rhyme were true.

  • Ocean Joe

    June 29, 2024 at 11:25 am

    I do believe that Trump is a classic scumbag. That he has defrauded subcontractors all his life, cheated on his 3 wives, said that fallen American soldiers were scumbags and losers (per Gen. Kelley, his chief of staff). That his economic prowess is a mirage. That his tariffs ruined our soybean farmers. That his treatment of climate as a hoax dooms our future. That he will abandon Ukraine for purely personal reasons (Zelensky, quid pro quo, his love of Putin). That he will make another try to abolish Obamacare. That poor and middle class Americans will bear the brunt of his mistakes. That he will accidentally accomplish some good things like corralling the Iranians.

    But on the whole, he is a danger to America and the world, and Geriatric Joe is no longer capable of serving as president. And if Democrats act like Republicans and simply worship whoever is in charge, we deserve what we will get. Extreme chaos. Biden needs to step aside and take his poor choice for VP with him.

    • MH/Duuuval

      June 29, 2024 at 8:36 pm

      You have been listening too much to the serial poster here, the he/she of multiple personalities.

      Harris has held numerous elected position in CA and Washington. Being the VP is probably the crappiest job of them all, but Harris is the logical inheritor of the top job, if it comes open. (What, you got a white man you like better? Besides, Ds typically look at politics as a team sport, not some sort of TV survival drama.)

  • My Take

    June 29, 2024 at 2:12 pm

    No true American approves of Trump, a liar, felon, and traitor.
    Though far too many dregs do.
    We clearly need better American history and civics classes in our schools.

  • MH/Duuuval

    June 29, 2024 at 8:29 pm

    Who chose the rules, which actually benefitted Trump’s torrent of lies and distortions?

    From online US News & Report: “Earlier this week, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt called the moderators “biased” and the CNN debate a “hostile environment” during an interview on the network. The segment was abruptly ended after Leavitt, who was asked not to attack Bash and Tapper and speak on Trump and Biden, continued to focus on the moderators.

    “The exchange is just another example of the strained relationship between the former president and the cable news network. Trump has made his disdain for CNN well known over the past eight years, criticizing them on social media and at campaign events. In 2022, Trump filed a $475 million defamation lawsuit against CNN for calling his stolen election claims the “big lie,” which was later dismissed by the judge.

    Gee, the Great One didn’t get justice again?

  • Vicki Epstein

    June 30, 2024 at 1:20 pm

    I am a liberal Democrat who supports raising taxes on the wealthy, raising the cap on Social Security so the higher paid individuals continue to pay after they reach the current cap of $168,600, providing weapons to Ukraine to stop Putin’s aggression, providing affordable housing, etc etc. But I was horrified on Thursday night to see a man I believe in stumble. I voted for Joe. I like Joe’s platform but as a 78 year old I see what old age looks like and it isn’t pretty. It’s time for a younger candidate.
    I also believe that the candidate must be chosen quickly and with the full support of the Democratic Party if we are to avoid the presidency of a dictator and bully.
    I have NO ONE in mind but believe unfortunately that the USA will not elect a woman, or gay man, or minority in 2024. We need a sure thing in this horse race. Act today. Come together as a Democratic Party NOW.

    • MH/Duuuval

      June 30, 2024 at 5:10 pm

      “Sure thing” = rich white man?

Comments are closed.


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