George Clooney’s Plea to President Biden

To the Editor:

Re “I Love Joe Biden. But We Need a New Nominee,” by George Clooney (Opinion guest essay, July 11):

I was in attendance at the recent Los Angeles fund-raiser hosted by Mr. Clooney and Julia Roberts. It included a conversation featuring Jimmy Kimmel, President Biden and former President Barack Obama.

Mr. Biden had just returned from the G7 conference, and I brushed off the obvious deterioration as travel-related. Mr. Biden spoke slowly and softly, with a noticeable slurring of words.

There could not have been a more sympathetic crowd, but it was very troubling to see how much he had aged. His walk and speech were labored, and, frankly, the whole thing was just sad. Mr. Obama seemed to treat him more like an elderly man than an active candidate.

Like Mr. Clooney, I have always admired Mr. Biden, but admiration should not prevent Democrats from saving this election. I am increasingly dismayed by the behavior of Democratic sycophants, and how their behavior mirrors Donald Trump’s unyielding followers.

Mr. Clooney’s essay was honest and I imagine painful to publish, but his honesty far outpaces that of our Democratic leaders. Those of us who were at the fund-raiser can, sadly, only agree with Mr. Clooney.