The answer, of course, is: She's not there.

This is a pre-debate thread. See you in a few hours.

Update: 9:25 pm: Is this a debate or the Wizard of Oz -- Trump keeps saying "If we only had a leader". As in, if we only had a leader there would be have been no war in Ukraine and no attack on Israel. Trump says he has the biggest heart of anyone in the room. Message to Donald Trump: If you only had a brain.

Trump's second fairy tale: If only I was still the wizard, nothing bad would have happened in the world. He would have prevented all the problems that have arisen, from the war in the Ukraine, to the economy which was great under his watch and is now failing, to the improvement in opportunities for Blacks (he created "Black jobs", whatever those are.) Just another of his off-the-cuff remarks that unintentionally reveal his deeply troubling racial attitudes.

Trump's third fairy tale: On every issue, "We had the best numbers ever". As in our water was the cleanest ever under his watch.

Trump says he talked to Putin about Iran. Trump says Hamas would not have attacked Israel if Trump had been President because Trump had made Iran poor and Iran would have had no money to fund Hamas.

Observation: Trump doesn't answer the questions he is asked. He doesn't know how to move on. He starts each answer with a continuation of his response to the last question. He's Darth the Evader.

Trump says that "what has happened to the United States reputation under this man is terrible". He accuses Biden of ruining the lives of thousands of people.

Trump lives in an alternate universe. One in which our nation is now a failing nation because Joe "has done horrible things." Hes responsible for deaths at the border. He offered a billion dollars to change the prosecutor in his son's case.

Trump said people know his New York conviction is unfair and wrong. We know that because of the hundreds of millions dollars he raised in the days following verdict.

Trump claims Biden's presidency is the worst in the history of our country. He says Biden is not "equipped to be President".

Next is a question on climate change: Trump ignores it and continues to answer the last question. "We had the best numbers ever." Trump says Biden has ruined Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

As if on cue, a new question is asked and it is about Social Security running out of money and how each of them would fix it. Biden says he'd raise the tax on the wealthy. Instead of asking Trump for his answer to the question, the debate hosts ask him to respond to what Biden just said, giving Trump another chance to continue his odd stream of consciousness remarks that jump from topic to topic. Whatever his under-developed, low functioning organ of a brain is processing at that exact moment comes right out his mouth. And yes, it's more attacks on Biden. Trump says,"Our veterans are living in the streets" while migrants are living in luxury. He puts the blame on Biden.

They ask a question about education and child care, Trump answers with a response about how Biden is the worst.

They ask Trump again to answer their question about child care and education. He completely ignores them, and continues to attack Biden. Trump claims we are close to WWIII and Biden is driving us there. He says America is now a failing nation and no one respects the U.S. anymore. He claims only he can fix that. (How does this man have such little self-awareness to not believe that any drop in America's standing is due to him, his ignorance, and his under-informed, marginalized, ethnophobic base?)

Donald Trump lives in an alternate reality. Not a single thing that comes out of his mouth is true. In fact, everything he accuses Biden of is true about him. He just repeats himself over and over. Trump still claims there was big fraud in the 2020 election. He has said three times he wouldn't be running but for Biden ruining our country.

Incredibly, the CNN hosts don't interrupt Trump when he starts talking about his golf prowess. Biden, instead of ignoring it, takes the bait and falls prey. He responds with asserting his golf handicap, which Trump promptly calls a lie. Biden then brings up something about Trump lying about his weight loss. (He could have at least asked Trump this year's equivalent of the McCarthy question, "Are you now taking or have you ever taken Ozempic or Wegovy to lose weight?"

Biden says Trump is a whiner. Trump says Biden is a complainer.

10: 30 pm: Thank goodness for a commercial. I can't listen to Donald Trump evade every question and continue answering the last question. Could he not think of the answer the first time it was asked? The CNN hosts continue to give Trump multiple chances to answer the latest question asked.

It's over. The pundits on every network immediately start attacking Joe Biden's mental fitness and physical stamina to remain in office. Biden had an immediate vociferous defender (the best I saw all night)in California Governor Gavin Newsom, who while at a local political event in California, took time out to be questioned about Biden's debate performance vy Alex Wagner on MSNBC. He had what seemed like a dozen reasons as to why Biden should remain the candidate. For an off the cuff interview, he was very sharp. (He also looked really well-groomed and well-rested although his voice was a little raspy probably from talking all night).

Shorter version of Newsome's commentary: Advice to Democrats: worry less, do more. And go home with the one who brought you to the dance.

Here's the 10 minute video, it's well worth a watch if you're depressed about the Democrat's chances after Biden's debate performance.

Donald Trump is lost in his own head and his egotism. As one analyst said, "Trump was "a machine gun of lies". As Newsom has said before, "He's damaged goods".

Unfortunately, none of that helped Biden, whose message was drowned out by his poor delivery.

Update" 11:00 p.m.

The Biden camp said Joe had been sick with a cold which accounted for his low voice. But at the watch party after the debate, Biden somehow got his voice back. A totally revitalized Joe Biden. And the same for his rally Saturday.

Who is calling the shots here (pun intended)? If you ask me, it's Vitamin B-12 for both candidates. If Biden had a cold, maybe he didn't take a shot before the debate. (Trump, it seems to me, got one in his SUV/limo before right before he came on stage.)

Let's be realistic. The only octogenarians in the 21st century with the energy and stamina to "twist and shout" on stage night after night for more than a month at a time are Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood. Who just happen to be touring the U.S. this month. Every day, You Tube has new videos of their concerts from the night before, from California, Nevada, Utah, Denver, Chicago Cleveland and more. Millions of viewers see these videos, and millions of these viewers are voters. They defy logic. (Here's an example from their Denver concert last month. It's Jumping Jack Flash, and the first few minutes focus on Keith and Ronnie, while at 5:00 minutes in, you can see Mick dancing and running around the stage and down the runway and back. They talk about their age and how they keep going in this CBS Sunday Morning interview 8 months ago, when their latest album Hackney Diamond was released. Anyone who expects 80 year old politicians to match their stamina, B-12 shots notwithstanding, simply is not being realistic.

So Biden had a night where the public observed him in a semi-comatose state. He's gotten back up. He's the only person standing in the way of Donald Trump getting another four years, and the rest of having to choose to whether to live under his thumb (pun intended) or go on a search for the America we so fondly remember elsewhere. As most readers here know, I've been searching for that perfect place for the last five years and while I I can recite the pros and cons and statistics, from quality of health care to cost of living to the best cities and villages for expats for each, from South and Central America, to Europe, Iceland, Scandinavia, Turkey, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, I still haven't found it.

If I've said it once, I've said it 50 times here over the last 20 years: We get the government we elect. So let's get to work. Call your local Democratic party headquarters, or if you know them personally, your Congresspersons, and ask what you can do. Make the time. Connect with voters where you live. Democracy and justice in this country are on the line. As Lenny Bruce once said, "The only justice in the halls of justice is in the halls". The halls are where the deals are made. The same is true for votes -- you sell your candidate in the streets (either literally going door to door or on social media or creating content and marketing for either).

It's up to us whether Donald Trump, whose Manichean logic has infected millions of voters with a form of right-wing populism that embraces authoritarianism and the politics of polarization and resentment, gets another chance to bring our nation down.