Leland Vittert’s War Note: Biden to Bow Out?

NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight’s 7 p.m. ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here.

Editor’s note: Special thanks to “On Balance” Senior Broadcast Producer Hayley Turner for taking over War Notes this week. Our intrepid editor-in-chief Katie Oglesby is enjoying everything Southern California offers on a very well-earned weeklong vacation.

Since Hayley has a day job — keeping the show on the air — expect a slightly more condensed but no less substantive version of the email.

Setting up for Biden to Bow Out Before or After the Election

Joe Biden ran his 2020 campaign from his basement because of COVID; this time, he will run from the basement because of cognitive decline. That’s not me saying it … that’s his aides leaking to NBC. “Less is more,” they headline:

Yes, he uses the short stairs on Air Force One.
Yes, he has handlers now walk with him to Marine One so the cameras don’t focus on his increasingly difficult gate/shuffle.
Yes, he rarely faces the press for more than a shouted question.

It comes after another NBC article, “How Biden aides are trying to shield the President from protests,” noting that he won’t go to college campuses for fear of pro-Palestinian protesters disrupting events.

Thought bubble: Wow. Talk about the law of unintended consequences. Biden rode the BLM mob to the White House — now he’s getting eaten by it.

Even Jon Stewart: Longtime liberal funnyman Jon Stewart just came out and said it — “I know you know how fucking old he is, and I know you don’t want to say it because Trump is so scary, but he’s so fucking old.”

Look Forward: If the media that hates Trump more than they love Biden wanted to prepare the battlefield for Biden’s graceful exit, this IS the playbook.
Alternatively: They could just be lowering expectations.
Look back: Remember the whispers from Democrats that Biden is fit for office now, but insiders questioned whether he would be okay four years from now?
Important Question: Would the graceful exit come before or after the election?
Win and Drop out strategy? Graceful exit after the election requires winning.

White Rural Rage vs. Unhappy Black Men

Click here to watch a new ad from Trump’s super PAC appealing to Black men unhappy with Biden.

Warning bells — it’s working:

Poll: Trump and Biden are tied at 37% as Hispanic, Black and younger voters shift.

Why Biden is staying in:

The Hill offers an excellent analysis of how you can read the polls in Biden’s favor.

Watch tonight: Former Howard Dean presidential campaign manager Joe Trippi on why Biden’s notoriously leakproof White House is now leaking like the Mayflower.

The Middle East Two-Step

An Israeli general calls Hamas’ reported cease-fire agreement a “ruse.”
Slow clap: Well played by Hamas for getting a bunch of grabby TV banners reading, “Hamas accepts cease-fire” just ahead of Israel’s invasion of Rafah to free their hostages.
Analysis: Hamas agreed to a framework that includes little or nothing about the release of hostages, Israel’s No. 1 demand since the Oct 7 attacks It’s preposterous.

ICYMI: Over the weekend, Hamas fired at the main Gaza checkpoint for humanitarian aid, and somehow, all the people worried about the plight of the Palestinians overlooked that.

An Israeli Defense Forces tank drives away from the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Monday, May 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)

My take on X: Hamas shoots from a humanitarian zone at a crossing where aid is coming in, and yet America pressures Israel for a cease-fire.

Local Politics: Hamas probably knows almost better than we do the intense U.S. domestic political pressure on Biden by the campus protests.

Ole Miss Leading the Way

Ole Miss launched an investigation into protests including a fraternity brother mocking an overweight pro-Palestinian Black woman and screaming “Lizzo” at her.

Fact check: His behavior was appalling.

Read the CNN write-up here.

NBC, Yahoo and CNN seemed quite concerned.

Zoom out: For all those on the Left rightfully upset about fat shaming and racist overtones: Where is your disgust and demands for investigation at the far more rampant calling for another Holocaust?

Or the CNN stories about this video from MIT?

Seriously, click here and watch the subtitles!

Where are Black voices condemning the BLM activists who are now openly parroting pro-Hamas talking points?

As my friend Jamie Weinstein pointed out, it’s amazing how nobody cares about microaggressions anymore.

Watch tonight: Bill O’Reilly on whether the domestic protests really are helping Hamas, and Robert Sherman from the front lines.

Killing Rattlesnakes with Gov. Burgum

Republican North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum joins us tonight. As opposed to South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, this Dakota governor knows what animals you CAN kill: RATTLESNAKES.