Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

A week into Biden’s reign and the media’s fawning over Saint Joe has to stop. He can’t get a free pass just because he’s not Trump

A week into Biden’s reign and the media’s fawning over Saint Joe has to stop. He can’t get a free pass just because he’s not Trump

Yes, we know much of the US press couldn’t stand Donald Trump and were relieved to see him go. But their Joe Biden love-in and lack of proper scrutiny of the new president is becoming properly embarrassing.
Never mind Covid-19. Saint Joe will cure cancer, just you watch. Then he’ll fix the climate and put an end to all racism, sexism and homophobia. All within his first 100 days.

Give the new president a year or two, and there’ll be no more wars. He’ll personally disarm every nuclear missile. There’ll be no more fistfights in bars, even, just hugs and kisses and free drinks all around. Especially on St Patrick’s Day.

And, if you ask him nicely, I’m sure the old dude can probably have a quick chat with God and get the Beatles back together again. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know… two of them are dead. But this is Saint Joe we’re talking about. He can do anything!

All you have to do is watch the US TV news networks or read an American newspaper or website right now, and President Biden is the superhero for whom the country has long been waiting. The cold, hard eyes of the press no longer stare at the White House. They’re filled with love, almost tearful.

And this Biden bloke could get away with anything. He could take a naked power nap with an inflatable nurse on the South Lawn and the news networks would switch off their live feeds and pretend it wasn’t happening. Bugger the ratings boost they’d receive.

Saint Joe is now 78 years old – the oldest incumbent the Oval Office has ever seen. The Resolute Desk has an old man sitting at it who is resolutely part of the political establishment. And he has been for almost 50 years. There isn’t actually anything new to say about Saint Joe. He’s Irish, he’s Catholic, he has suffered awful personal tragedies. You know all this already.

Call me old-fashioned, but I thought the core purpose of being a journalist was to hold power to account? Even if you like the guy. It’s actually even more important if you like the guy, because those personal feelings can blind you to the facts. It’s your job.

Public relations, though, that’s an entirely different trade. Drink more cola. Pump more gas. Eat more fast food. My toothpaste is better than theirs, etc.

Almost the entire news machine in the US has become a public relations operation for President Joseph R. Biden. ‘State media’, so often lambasted as utterly fawning by the American press, would be red-faced in shame. Chairman Mao would be well pleased.

Inaugurations are, I guess, always bound to be vomit-inducing and self-aggrandising celebrations for the Americans. Fair enough. Y’all don’t have royal weddings or coronations to look forward to. But can you turn off that tap now, please? Saint Joe was anointed over a week ago.

Can the president’s press secretary, Jen Psaki, get an easier ride? It’s a surprise nobody from the White House press corps has asked her what her favourite colour is. It was left to a solitary Fox News reporter to quiz her on why it’s apparently OK not to wear a mask on federal property despite a presidential mandate if you’re the president or a member of his family.

Saint Joe takes his Catholic faith seriously. He’s a true believer. Alrighty, God almighty. Yet compare the president’s treatment by the media to that of Amy Coney Barrett, Donald Trump’s final pick for the Supreme Court. The press rifled through her connections to a slightly off-beat ‘covenant community’. She is, nevertheless, still a Catholic. And what she has actually been quoted as saying about God, whether you believe in this bearded old fella or not, isn’t so wildly different to that of Saint Joe.

And where have all the late-night talk show comedians gone? Surely Saint Joe and his doddery old-man malapropisms, his Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses, his constant losses of train of thought, his folksy way of doing things are all satire gold? Or maybe it’s impolite to take the mickey out of an old-age pensioner? OK, that’s fair enough. But this OAP is president of the most powerful country on earth, and has his hands on the nuclear codes. He might think he’s trying to change channel on the TV.

I get it. The US media, apart from Fox News and a handful of others on the right, absolutely despises Donald Trump and everything he stood for, although what, really, did Trump actually stand for? Trump stood for Trump, nothing more.

It must, surely, have been a rush – a real joy – for many journalists and commentators to see those trailer-trash morons swarm into the Capitol building. If the US democratic system didn't buckle, which – come on guys, get real – was never very likely, then Trump was toast for sure. Even if the crowds had got their hands on Mike Pence and done unspeakable things to him with the House Speaker’s lectern.

The US media should take a step back and take a deep breath. Why did Trump’s derogatory phrases such as ‘fake news’ and ‘lamestream media’ stick so easily? Why did millions of Americans find them so easy to absorb?

Trump didn’t arrive in a vacuum. These words resonated because the power players and the media seemed way, way, way too cosy and detached – especially in the Barack Obama era. Trump may no longer be centre stage, but there are still millions out there in the audience.

Over 74 million people did vote for Trump. And, just because you can’t get your heads around how that’s even possible, it’s still an absolute fact. They voted for him partly because he was resolutely not part of the status quo.

And not all that Trump did was bad. He was probably right to scream about China because, sooner or later, it will take over from the US as the world’s largest economy. And China doesn’t have to live by the rules of the game. If President Xi Jinping decrees that the country will make more microchips, there shall be more microchips. Or cheese. Or potatoes. Whatever. A command economy doesn’t play by the rules.

Consider also the World Health Organization (WHO). Yes, it was a petulant, teenage act by Trump to just quit and walk away. But the pandemic has proven that it’s absolutely not fit for purpose and should be replaced with something more effective. It’s yet another cosy club, like the United Nations itself.

To general acclaim, though, it was one of Saint Joe’s first acts to rejoin the WHO, with the whip of a pen. Fair enough. There does, surely, have to be some kind of global health organisation, now more than ever. But what? Where’s the media discussion of what it should be? All we get is applause for Biden’s decision.

Never mind the nuclear codes – the president’s pen is actually his mightiest weapon. He has so far signed more than three dozen executive orders covering issues including climate change, Covid-19 relief, race and gender identity and sexual orientation. These are all hardcore political acts, worthy of serious debate.

One thing’s for sure: more will follow, with the press cheering them – rather than providing proper analysis – all the way. That isn’t healthy. And so, America, beware: as Jimi Hendrix might have sung: ‘Hey, Joe! Where you going with that pen in your hand...’
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
×