The American media and the nation’s voters weren’t the only people to notice that Thursday’s presidential debate revealed we have a shell of a human acting as our commander-in-chief. While major newspapers like The New York Timesand the Atlanta Journal-Constitution have now called for the president to leave the race “for the good of the country,” the international press has been skewering Biden as well.
Russia, China, Iran and others weighed in after Biden's faltering performance left viewers stunned. Media outlets in those countries, many of which are government-run, seized on the debate debacle to criticize the U.S.
"Every outlet, big and small, carries a piece describing what happened," Rebekah Koffler, a strategic military intelligence analyst and author of "Putin’s Playbook," told Fox News Digital. "Some have more than one. Most of them, if not all, are derogatory of both candidates and mocking America."
Take a look at some of these headlines:
Lots of embarrassing headlines across the globe...One in France says, "Biden appeared diminished by age, facing an opponent in full possession of his faculties." pic.twitter.com/S2KsavSxBQ
— Politics, Policies & Pop Culture 🇺🇸🌎 (@out2sea90210) June 28, 2024
The British press can always be counted on for some eye-catching headlines, and they didn’t disappoint:
International Headlines: V Putin sleeps through US Presidential Debate with Trump and Biden. All three catch up later when they are awake. The Sun was brutal. 😶 pic.twitter.com/0D3NfZdU2D
— Silent Messenger (@MeganSauriol007) June 29, 2024
Click on the above tweet to see more headlines; they're pretty good.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was reportedly licking his lips and enjoying what he sees as American chaos (although he didn’t bother to actually watch):
"What [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is seeing is that the American Society is deeply fractured and consumed by its own problems," Koffler said. "Putin likely believes that Russia wins either way, no matter who wins, because he expects the U.S. to plunge into chaos in the aftermath of the elections, because the country is so divided and polarized."
"Bottom line, Moscow feels confident that the societal crisis that has engulfed the U.S. is good for Russia," she added.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed that Putin "was too bored to wake up and watch the U.S. debate," but that "we have seen media reports about these debates."
Russian press outlets were ruthless in their assessment:
"This is how Joe Biden appeared before an audience of millions," Russian state TV New York bureau chief Valentin Bogdanov said on Kremlin-backed RT.
The news report especially focused on the reaction from CNN, calling the anchors "powerless" and the Democratic Party in the throes of a "deep panic," according to East2West.
Meanwhile, Chinese state media called the event "the most chaotic presidential debate ever" and "like a reality show." Beijing News hit both Biden and Trump, calling the former "habitually confused" and the latter someone who spreads "rumors."
Polish Foriegn Minister Radosław Sikorski didn’t hold back, implying Biden should get off the stage and ride into the sunset:
Marcus Aurelius was a great emperor but he screwed up his succession by passing the baton to his feckless son Commodus (He, from the Gladiator).
— Radosław Sikorski 🇵🇱🇪🇺 (@sikorskiradek) June 28, 2024
Whose disastrous rule started Rome's decline.
It's important to manage one's ride into the sunset.
Other European outlets also weighed in with negative reviews:
French news outlet Le Monde described that debate as a "terrible storm" and bemoaned Biden’s obsession with trying to "push his opponent off his hinges" by mocking Trump’s answers to questions, the BBC reported.
German outlet Der Spiegel meanwhile compared the debate to "a car accident."
Although both candidates and the event itself were criticized overseas, it was Joe Biden who seemed to be the focus because of his listless, spacey performance.
Our enemies saw a weakened leader, and that is very dangerous indeed.