Staff Reports
The American viewer’s skepticism turned into outright disbelief during Thursday night’s presidential debate, where President Joe Biden failed disastrously to connect with the audience. Betting markets, not known for their political leanings but their financial insights, took a sharp turn away from Biden and significantly favored Donald Trump, the leading GOP candidate.
Throughout the 90-minute verbal mess, even the liberal media couldn’t pretty up Biden’s bumbling performance. Their usual Trump-bashing took a backseat as they wrung their hands over Biden, inspiring panic among the Democratic establishment. Whether it was Biden’s scattered remarks on border security or his blank stares, Trump’s responses left viewers and bettors alike incredulous, sending Trump’s odds soaring on betting platforms like Polymarket.
BREAKING: Following the debate, the betting market shows Trump is now at a HISTORIC 67% while Joe Biden has lost 12%. No one believes Joe Biden has a shot which will make rigging the election IMPOSSIBLE pic.twitter.com/I9UiFvDwZC
— George (@BehizyTweets) June 28, 2024
Social media erupted as liberal commentators like MSNBC’s Joy Reid and CNN’s John King openly discussed the widespread panic sweeping the Democratic ranks. Biden’s fragmented and occasionally nonsensical comments painted a picture of a candidate far removed from the sharp, articulate image his supporters desperately wanted to project. Betting markets felt the tremors. Trump’s odds increased from 60% to 66%, and Biden’s crumbled from 34% to 28%.
Even more fascinating was the emerging bet on whether Biden would be the Democratic nominee by the time the Democratic National Convention rolled around. It seems the bettors, unlike the DNC, are prepared to face reality head-on. Biden’s shaky debate performance opened the floodgates for speculation that Democratic power players might be on the hunt for an alternative candidate; names like Newsom and RFK Jr. started floating with increasing frequency.
While Democrats start sweating bullets and contemplating backup plans, the betting markets reaffirm what the debate exposed: Biden’s capacity to lead is suspect, and the confidence in his renomination dwindles by the day. Honest betting markets, uninterested in political spin, provide a clear picture of the public’s dwindling faith in Biden.
In summary, if there was one takeaway from this spectacularly disastrous debate for Biden, it is this: Americans—and quite particularly the financially interested bettors—are questioning his capacity even to finish the race. This isn’t just a bad night for Biden; it’s a systematic collapse in confidence; the irony is that betting on his downfall might just be the safest bet yet.
