There’s no doubt about it. Last week’s presidential debate was one of the worst in modern history.

The reasons for the failures are many: Joe Biden stumbled. Donald Trump lied. Debate moderators might as well have gone home. In the end, no one won, and the American people were definitely the biggest losers.

Some have asked why the media has focused on President Biden’s blunders more than former President Trump’s. It’s a fair question with a simple answer: Expectations.

Everyone expected Trump to perform poorly, and he did just that. He’s a loser by every definition of the word, and Republicans have made it clear they will not disavow him no matter what. This renders his performance on Thursday essentially unremarkable, mostly because he was exactly the obnoxious, lying, 34-time convicted felon everyone expected him to be.

Biden, on the other hand, is not a loser. He’s had a lifetime of performing well, and many Americans were hoping for a feel-good option in the Trump-Biden rematch. Instead, we got a horror show. Where once stood a strong and sharp man, Biden now appears diminished, struggling to finish his thoughts and mistaking words and ideas.

Even taking into account his lifelong stutter, there’s simply no avoiding the harsh reality that is his aging mind, and it’s this dramatic blow to our expectations of the current president that makes his story more newsworthy.

Yet for all the concerns about Biden’s capabilities, the fact remains that he and Trump are still light years apart, even if the overall bar has been lowered. Biden and his administration could never be worse than whatever rat pack Trump pulls together, so even if Biden flunked the debate, Trump already flunked the war.

Not all hope is lost — yet. Flopping the debate is not the first challenge Biden has faced in his 81 years, and if anyone can still right the ship, it’s him. He has had a tremendous career and continues to serve in the highest office in the land. He has helped usher in countless policies that will influence people’s lives for decades to come. This is not a legacy to be taken lightly or underestimated. 

Perhaps the easiest way for Biden to save face is to admit his shortcomings and drop out. As of Friday afternoon, this seems unlikely. In the wake of defeat, Biden instead chose to give a rousing speech to supporters forgoing calls to voluntarily step aside.

In it, he jokingly admitted he’s old and not as good at speaking or debating as he once was. He also forcefully declared that despite these stumbles he knows how to speak the truth, and that he plans to get back up and win this election. It’s a powerful message, but is it enough to win and avoid tarnishing his legacy? I’m not so sure.

If Biden proceeds to run and wins, the answer is yes. Democrats could use a comeback-kid against Trump, not to mention Biden’s well-established name for voting and fundraising.

But if Biden proceeds to run and loses after such blunders and calls to step down, the stakes are huge. Our nation is unlikely to fare well with a second Trump presidency, and in this event Biden risks coming to be remembered much like the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A person who marred their own incredible history of putting others first by committing the ultimate sins of stubbornness and ego late in life. Still, he doesn’t seem deterred. 

For now, we can only speculate as to what will happen next for Biden. But no matter the outcome, Americans should be on edge. We know what we witnessed, and it wasn’t good. The race for commander-in-chief shouldn’t be a race to the bottom. In a nation of over 300 million people, is this really the best our major political parties can offer?

For all our sakes, I hope not. 

Trish Zornio is a scientist, lecturer and writer who has worked at some of the nation’s top universities and hospitals. She’s an avid rock climber and was a 2020 candidate for the U.S. Senate in Colorado. Trish can be found on Twitter @trish_zornio

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