Happy Wednesday!

Today’s Brew comes with an extra spritz of caffeine because it looks like it’ll be another late night tonight.

Joe Biden to Address the Nation at 8 p.m. Eastern

… or as Biden calls it, “The middle of the night.”

Joe Biden will be delivering an address tonight from the Oval Office at 8 p.m. Eastern time. It’s being described as a “nonpolitical speech” in which he will explain his reasons for dropping out of the presidential race, along with “what lies ahead and how I will finish the job for the American people.”

My guess on how he’ll finish the job? From a beach chair on the lovely sands of the Delaware shore.

Will he discuss reports he suffered a medical emergency last week? Will he address his administration’s failure to protect his political rival? Will he discuss conversations he’s been having with Abe Lincoln in the Lincoln Bedroom? Stay tuned.

The Bright Side of Harris Being the Nominee Instead of Biden

Kamala Harris has now collected enough delegates to assure her the Democratic presidential nomination … without any voter ever voting for her. Though 2024 is too 2024-ish to put anything in stone just yet, she will be squaring off against Donald Trump in November.

We’ve spoken over the past couple days of the radical policy disaster that is Kamala Harris. We’ve spoken of her rivaling Cruella de Ville as a boss. We even talked about her being “brat,” as the Gen Z-ers say. But in the spirit of bipartisanship, let’s talk about the bright side of Harris being the nominee instead of Biden.

If you’re a fan of the history and festiveness of American presidential campaigns, you can at least now hope for a campaign that revives the spirit of the campaigns of old. With the ill and bitter Biden, that was not going to happen.

With Harris running around the country, trailed by all manner of vapid celebrities, and Trump being Trump, we’re looking at the likelihood of a more lively and robust fall. Let’s be real. Even hearing Kamala laugh at inappropriate times will be better for our psyches than being constantly yelled at by Joe Biden as we anxiously worry whether this will be the day he topples over.

Yes, people will be called racist and misogynistic for daring to criticize Harris. (Though in 2024 will that even work? And do they think being so condescending to Harris as to suggest she can’t handle the heat afforded any presidential candidate actually helps her?)

Yes. Substance is crucial in this campaign. At stake is the fate of America. We can’t forget that for a second. This one still will be for all the marbles.

But culturally, we may be able to experience a campaign with all the color, craziness, competitiveness, pageantry and old-school politicking of days gone by. And did I mention humor?

A Crazy Few Days at the Southern Baptist Convention: ERLC President Fired, Then Not Fired, Over Biden Post

Let’s give an example of the kind of thing that’ll get written up in the history books about the Crazy Campaign of 2024.

On Saturday night, Brent Leatherwood, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), released a statement praising Biden’s decision to drop out of the race, calling it “extraordinary” and the “right decision.” In a separate statement, Leatherwood called it “selfless.”

That caused outrage within the SBC, and on Monday, the ERLC Executive Committee announced Leatherwood had been fired.

However, former ERLC President Russell Moore took umbrage to Leatherwood being ousted and raised a stink to secular (anti-Christian) media outlets. Next thing you know, the Executive Committee did a 180, announcing Leatherwood was not fired, and instead Committee’s Chairman Kevin Smith ended up resigning. In its statement Tuesday announcing the reversal of the decision, the ERLC claimed Smith acted alone in firing Leatherwood.

According to Smith, he had been led to believe the Executive Committee backed Leatherwood’s firing. However, he admitted a formal vote was not taken.

After multiple conversations with Executive Committee members of the ERLC, I was convinced in my mind that we had a consensus to remove Brent Leatherwood as the president of the ERLC. It is a delicate matter and, in an effort to deal with it expeditiously, I acted in good faith but without a formal vote of the Executive Committee. This was an error on my part, and I accept full responsibility.

The ERLC has faced increased turmoil in recent years, as it has moved away from conservatism, including backing away from pro-life legislation, and as the Center for Baptist Leadership said, “taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from anti-Christian and politically progressive outside organizations.”

Along The Stream

Yesterday’s edition of Al’s Afternoon Tea is worth a look. It digs into confirmation that last week, a hospital in Las Vegas did receive word that Joe Biden was suffering a medical emergency and was on his way there. However, after determining the incident was not as urgent as first thought, the decision was made to race back to Delaware instead.

The Afternoon Tea also looks at how Kamala Harris’s team is embracing a British pop singer’s declaration that “Kamala is brat” … while also digging into her history of causing staff to flee in horror.

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.