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Secretary of State Antony Blinken has defended President Biden’s appearance on the world stage after criticism from some that his debate performance has projected weakness to US adversaries like China and Russia.
Secretary Blinken argued that Biden’s policies over the past three and a half years have strengthened global confidence in American leadership. During an event at the Brookings Institute, Blinken said, “They’ve seen a president who’s reinvested America, reinvested America in the world, reinvested in these alliances, in these partnerships in ways that they seek and want. If you look at surveys around the world, for what they’re worth, you see it again and again and again, that confidence in American leadership has gone up dramatically over the last 3-1/2 years.”
Blinken continued, “That doesn’t just happen. … It’s the product of policies that we pursue, it’s the product of our engagement. And they see President Biden having led the way in all of those different areas, and in ways that are bringing people together and focused in the same way on the challenges that we have before us and that are common to so many other countries.”
Reactions from international media:
Various international media outlets have criticized President Biden’s debate performance, with Russian state-controlled news outlets and pundits likening it to a “corpse.” A French news outlet said Biden’s debate was a disaster.
Another view:
Despite Blinken’s comments, some notable former US officials have raised concerns. Notably, Mark Esper, the former defense secretary under Trump, said, “I mean, it’s very, very serious. I mean, if you’re a foreigner, an ally or a partner, you’re looking at this and you start questioning … does he have the stamina to go another four years? And look, you can’t help but answer and say, no.” Esper continued, “We know what he’s wrestling with … we see it unfortunately, in our parents or grandparents and every day, every week, he’s going get a little bit worse. And the question is, at a time when the world needs America’s leadership in the era of great power competition, where the autocracies of Russia and Iran and North Korea are lining up against the Western democracy, American leadership matters. … The commander in chief of the United States is also important.”
