Sarah Longwell: “If I took a drink every time someone in one of my focus groups used the phrase ‘the lesser of two evils’ to describe how they make their vote choice, I would die of alcohol poisoning.”
“But there’s another thread that’s emerging: voters comparing Joe Biden to their aging relatives who won’t give up their car keys. That’s not an analogy you want to hear with democracy on the line. On Wednesday, these comparisons were more common than ever among the voters I talked to—a group made up of those who cast ballots for Clinton in 2016 and Biden in 2020 but were now undecided.”
Said one focus group participant: “I’ve seen firsthand how difficult it is to get, you know, mom’s driver’s license or aging parents’ license away from them. What does that look like when it’s the president of the United States?”
“This is fundamental to understanding voters’ fears about Biden’s age. They are disinclined to give him the benefit of the doubt because many have seen this all before. They don’t want their octogenarian father (or grandfather) running the country, let alone driving a car.”
