Forget Hunter. Joe Biden’s painful decline is far more important.

I’m a Republican, and I don’t care about Hunter Biden, his laptop or the fact that he was found guilty of federal gun charges. I don’t need to. His father, President Joe Biden, is bad enough.
Plus, Joe is the one running for president again, not Hunter. Republicans pinning their election hopes on Hunter’s conviction are misguided. Stick with the president − he’s disappointing enough.
Don’t get me wrong. Hunter Biden has always been a joke. Despite going to rehab, Hunter could not get his relationships, finances or vices under control. (We all have flaws.) Despite having all the powers of nepotism available to him, Hunter, a fugly Kennedy on his best day, could not evade gun charges. See? The system isn’t rigged. (I never thought it was.)
The people don’t care either. A new Emerson College poll found that 64% of registered voters said Hunter Biden’s trial would in no way inform how they vote this presidential election. Only 24% said it makes them less likely to support President Biden.
Hunter Biden is guilty, just like Trump.But Joe Biden’s biggest threat is still himself.
There is of course the ongoing story that within Hunter Biden’s laptop there lies an entire world of unethical connections supposedly stringing his father to Ukraine and bribery. But there’s no need for Republicans to hinge their hopes on marring this presidency with even those connections, not when President Biden is doing a bang-up job of looking like a fool all by himself.
In short, Hunter Biden’s guilty conviction will not persuade Republicans to vote against Joe Biden. Joe Biden will persuade Republicans − and, I’ll bet you, some Democrats − not to vote for him.
On and off camera, Biden appears to be mentally and physically unwell. Like a malfunctioning robot or a zombie glitching during the apocalypse, he’s often unable to string coherent sentences together, doesn’t seem to know where and how to stand, or where to walk when he’s on a platform or in a crowd.
Biden’s declining cognitive capacity seems undeniable, and yet, the White House has gone to great lengths to hide it from the public. That is understandable perhaps from a political strategy point of view, but from the purview of the American public, unforgivable.
A recent Wall Street Journal headline aptly read, “Behind closed doors, Biden shows signs of slipping.” I laughed. Behind closed doors? You mean in front of them, too, or outside of them, as the case may be.
At Monday’s event to commemorate Juneteenth at the White House, Biden appeared to freeze as guests around him danced and sang during the concert. This just isn’t normal and signals that he’s not processing information well. During his speech about the holiday, at one point, Biden said, “She know long! She knew suhlongasuhijeruhhnied our freedom can never be secured.” Is that a new language? Gibberish?
For even accomplished public speakers, it’s normal to get tongue-tied or say a word incorrectly here and there. Except there are dozens of recorded instances of the president appearing to be confused, fumbling for words, slurring entire sentences or unsure of what he is supposed to be doing.
During a D-Day commemoration last week, cameras caught Biden fumbling for his seat as other dignitaries remained standing. If you watch, you can see first lady Jill Biden hold her hand over her mouth and attempt to communicate that he should stand.
In February, special counsel Robert Hur said he wouldn’t bring criminal charges against Biden after a 15-month investigation of how he handled classified documents. Not necessarily because Biden didn’t mishandle the documents, but because he’d be difficult to convict. Hur’s report described the president as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
When the report was released, Biden argued his memory was fine.
I don’t fault Biden. At 81, most people start slipping, if they’re still living. I’ll be lucky if I’m stringing sentences together at 81, too. But I also won’t be running for president.
Biden has served his country. He’s done his bit. But the jig is up. The White House should hear this loud and clear.
I’m not judging Biden for being old and slowly declining as almost all elderly people do.
I’m judging Biden and his administration for continuing to pretend like nothing is wrong when we can see the opposite happening with our own eyes.
Why do Republicans still support Trump?You can call Trump’s trial a sham while admitting he’s a horrible choice for president. I do.
Biden is not asking America to qualify him to a nice nursing home. He’s asking Americans to give him the access to the nuclear codes again. He’s asking Americans to decide out of two incompetent men − one a liar and a fraud, the other incompetent and incoherent − who would be the least incompetent. If only neither was truly an option (it is, but you get my point).
This might sound harsh, unusually partisan or even mean. But I’ve called out Donald Trump for other things, including childish ranting, arrogance, narcissism and being a fraudulent, smarmy bully who’s now a convicted felon.
It’s not mean to point out Biden’s obvious cognitive decline; it’s mean to continue to force him to pretend like he’s strong and healthy when he’s clearly struggling.
It’s irresponsible of the White House to force this charade and act like Biden’s in fantastic health when he clearly needs help walking or speaking. For the White House to continue to act like Biden isn’t in serious decline is not just disingenuous, but also unethical and pathetic.
It’s our election after all, and our republic. Should we be able to keep it. We deserve to have all the most accurate information about each candidate before us.
Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.