Welcome back in for Al’s Afternoon Tea. Today’s serving comes with a fireworks show. 

Can Anyone Say “Like Rats Off a Sinking Ship”?

The White House has another new firestorm to try to put out. A new Politico piece out Tuesday morning not only describes how Joe Biden’s inner circle has drawn more tightly around the diminishing president to better hide his condition, but that staffers are “scared ****less” to brief Biden over fears he’ll berate them for telling him something he doesn’t want to hear. According to the report, senior officials go to great lengths to curate his briefings. 

“It’s like, ‘You can’t include that, that will set him off,’ or ‘Put that in, he likes that,’” one senior administration official told Politico. “It’s a Rorschach test, not a briefing. Because he is not a pleasant person to be around when he’s being briefed. It’s very difficult, and people are scared ****less of him.”

So much for genial Uncle Joe. So much for the commander-in-chief being given the straight scoop. It’s hard to run a country well when everyone around you has to manage your ego.

But good news. According to NBC News, Hunter Biden is now sitting in on White House meetings. More on that tomorrow.

Breaking: Trump Sentencing Delayed Until September 18 in Wake of Immunity Ruling

Immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its ruling on presidential immunity yesterday, Donald Trump’s lawyers wrote a letter asking New York State Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan to overturn his conviction of Trump and delay his July 11 sentencing. This morning, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told Merchan he’s not opposed to delaying sentencing for two weeks. 

This afternoon, Merchan announced sentencing has been delayed until September 18. In other words, after Labor Day, when the campaign is really heating up. 

Joe Biden Attacks the Supreme Court in Wake of Immunity Ruling

In the meantime, Joe Biden’s handlers decided his comeback from last Thursday’s disastrous debate showing would come at the expense of the U.S. Supreme Court. Gotta do something, anything to change the narrative — even if it means torching our system of government.

Mere weeks after attacking Trump’s response to his sham hush-money trial as “an attack on democracy,” an angry, bitter, and suspiciously orange-hued Biden tore into the Supreme Court for declaring that presidents have immunity for official acts. (He didn’t add, “Lucky me.”)

He did not even deal with the reality or text of the actual decision. Rather, he went full demagogue.

Suddenly, the entire third branch of the government is a threat to democracy. They are undermining the law. And with the justices’ 6-3 decision, they have potentially let  the Big Bad Orange Man loose to do anything he wants, if he’s reelected. (Like, what, try to imprison his chief rival? Imprison opposition voices like Steve Bannon? Give free passes to criminals and terrorists so they can rape and pillage the American citizenry with impunity?)

“I dissent,” he bellowed toward his teleprompter screen. Even throughout his rant, he was incapable of looking the American people in the eye.

Pres. Biden on Supreme Court's presidential immunity ruling: "Today's decision almost certainly means that there are virtually no limits on what a president can do." https://t.co/drI3sK7Qd7 pic.twitter.com/zXkwveXXPI

— ABC News (@ABC) July 1, 2024

Biden repeated the slander that Donald Trump let loose a violent mob to overturn the 2020 election results on January 6, 2021, when protesters took American flags and Viking helmets to the U.S. Capitol. But in his speech, Joe Biden just took a bulldozer to the Supreme Court.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson called Biden’s full-throated, ‘roid rage undermining of the Supreme Court “despicable and dangerous.”

Anything to keep power.

It’s no secret why Biden was sent out before the cameras last night. It was a desperate measure to put discussions of his clear mental and physical incapacity on the back burner and to give a political speech straight out of the Third World Dictator Playbook to revive his depressed and depleted base. After all, in the scheme of things, the Supreme Court’s Chevron decision, which dramatically cuts the power of the federal administrative bureaucracy, will have more practical impact on the country, and  is a much larger blow to liberal governance than yesterday’s decision. But there was no fire-and-brimstone speech from the Big Guy about that.

Not for nothing, but in his frantic bid to switch the narrative, Biden fully inserted himself into the ongoing Trump cases — cases which benefit him personally. Trump was impeached for far less than what Biden is doing now.  Are you listening, Speaker Johnson?

Self-Defeating

Biden was so eager to attack the Court and attack Trump that he didn’t realize the High Court had saved his own bacon. (Then again, as was clear in the debate, at this point Biden might not even remember what bacon is.) Had the Supreme Court denied immunity, red states could soon charge him personally with human smuggling, child sex trafficking, and drug trafficking for conspiring to open the border in violation of U.S. laws. As former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee points out, “He should be glad that future prosecutors don’t prosecute HIM for the murders & rapes of Americans due to his open border.”

After all, ambitious D.A.s can always concoct something. Right, Alvin Bragg? Right, Fani Willis?

State attorneys general could comb through every moment of Biden’s presidency, looking for actions that can be blown up into criminal acts. For example, ignoring his generals’ recommendations about withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan in 2021. Biden may have forgotten about the 13 heroes who lost their lives as a direct result of his actions, but we shouldn’t.

Speaking of which, do you know who slowed down military efforts to get people out of Afghanistan? And was rumored to be behind the decision to keep to an August 31, 2021 withdrawal date despite its dangers and logistical issues?

Five points if you said cover girl Jill Biden.

Jill Biden Does Vogue …

Jill Biden is on the cover of the new issue of Vogue. Really? With her fashion sense? Putting Jill Biden on the cover of a fashion magazine is like putting Jerry Nadler on the cover of Men’s Fitness. Especially when the same magazine completely ignored the First Lady who was an actual supermodel.

However, Vogue’s timing might not be the best, as more attention is focusing on the good “doctor” being not only the queen behind the throne, but the one right now urging her increasingly mentally diminished husband to continue in the presidential race.

Last week’s debate with Donald Trump raised a crucial question: Since Joe is clearly not capable of running the show, who is? Who has stepped into the vacuum? Let’s flip the question. Who was prevented from stepping up?

Yesterday, I was reflecting on this June 2021 post from Dr. Jill.

Prepping for the G7. pic.twitter.com/drPmb2vBwI

— Jill Biden (@FLOTUS) June 9, 2021

It’s been popping up again all over social media amid stories about Jill as the real president, and it reminded me of something: That post, with Jill signaling, “I’m the boss,” came out the same day Kamala Harris returned from her first overseas trip, immediately after CNN ran two stories the same day quoting White House sources trashing Harris.

I wrote about it as part of my fanciful series of “excerpts” from a tell-all written by the fired First Dog, Major. It’s a bit eerie to read now, given what we know.

That’s Dr. Jill behind the president’s desk on Air Force One — his presidential jacket hanging over her like a mantle — going over briefing manuals to prepare herself for the G7 summit. The symbolism could not be clearer, to world leaders, to those at home. To Miss Kamala. “I’m in charge. You gotta deal with me.” Master Jill was laying claim to control of the White House, and objective one was ruining the woman who, constitutionally, is supposed to be next in line. (And, not coincidentally, the one who holds the key to enacting the 25th Amendment.)

“I wasn’t ready for this,” Kamala said. I don’t know if she was referring to the job as VP or the betrayal. That only weeks into her job those inside these walls would set out to destroy her.

Did Jill and the Others Running the White House Sandbag Kamala? Tyrus Has a Fascinating Theory

Minutes after I remembered the connection between Jill’s post and Harris getting trashing by the White House, Fox News contributor Tyrus threw down a similar suggestion on Gutfeld!. Citing how the ongoing behind-the-scenes attack on Harris “isn’t coming from the right. It’s coming from the left,” he speculated that the cabal running the White House has “blackballed” and scapegoated Harris because she would be less likely to go along with what the Biden cabal would want to do.

Whether you agree or not, it’s a fascinating theory worth watching. After all, one thing is true: The same people in the White House who have been insisting that Joe is fine are the same ones ripping Harris to friendly media outlets. If the Biden cabal wants to keep power, they can’t have people see Kamala as a good alternative.

Some food for thought to go with your Afternoon Tea.

On The Stream Menu

John Zmirak hits the mark with “Joe Biden Didn’t Kill Himself.” 

Raymond Ibrahim’s new one is up: “’Christians Should Stand Up’: What the Left Fears Most, and Why We Need It So Badly.”

Plus we’ve got installment 7 of “How They Stole the 2020 Election.”  

 

Al Perrotta is The Stream’s Washington bureau chief, coauthor with John Zmirak of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration, and coauthor of the counterterrorism memoir Hostile Intent: Protecting Yourself Against Terrorism.