In a new interview with The Spectator , Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson weighed in on a variety of pressing issues defining the current political moment in the United States, including President Donald Trump’s re-election bid.
According to Carlson, although the coronavirus pandemic is likely to influence the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, whether Trump wins or not depends on who the Democratic Party nominates for president. Joe Biden — who is all but certain to win the nomination, having racked up a sizable delegate lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont — will not be the nominee, according to Carlson.
Democratic Party insiders will reject Biden not because they disagree with him on policy, but because they believe the former vice president cannot beat Trump. Biden, Carlson opined, is experiencing cognitive decline. And according to the controversial Fox News host, sources close to Biden are aware of this.
“I know Joe Biden and I’ve known him for a long time. I’m from Washington where he’s spent the last 50 years and he’s very gregarious and very charming,” Carlson began. “But everyone around him will tell you, some have said it in public, that Joe Biden is in cognitive decline and he has some form of recognizable dementia.”
“And I hate even to say that out loud because it’s poignant and sad,” he added, arguing that the Democratic Party’s plan all along was to have Biden win the primary and compete against Trump with a strong vice presidential nominee. According to the alleged plan, Biden would serve one term and then step down, letting his vice president take over.
“That’s what they thought was going to happen. But in a moment of crisis, voters will not vote for someone they perceive as weak,” Carlson said, suggesting that voters will reject a candidate they perceive to be weak because of the raging coronavirus pandemic and the looming economic crisis the pandemic is causing.
Carlson also speculated that the Democrats will not let Biden win the nomination — they will simply replace him with somebody else. One of the possible replacements, according to Carlson, is New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo who is currently being praised for his strong leadership amid the coronavirus crisis.
It remains to be seen whether Carlson is correct about Democratic Party insiders having doubts about Biden, but voters do not appear to share the alleged concerns, according to polling. In general election matchups, Biden has consistently polled ahead of Trump.
For instance, according to the latest Fox News poll , Biden has a nine-point advantage over the commander-in-chief. Biden has a crucial lead in swing states and has a 25-point advantage over Trump in key counties where 2016 Democratic Party nominee Hillary Clinton underperformed.