CHRIS CRUCIAL: It's time to stop believing politicians

PLUS: Kamala's Veepstakes!

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1. BREAKING NEWS: Politicians Lie

Joe Biden and his top political aides spent the last three-plus weeks insisting that he was full speed ahead in the 2024 presidential election. They dismissed reports that Biden was reconsidering his candidacy. His staff took to Twitter to mock reporters who said that Biden could end his bid by the weekend.

And then, well, you know what happened. Biden dropped out of the race on Sunday via a statement released on social media.

Which, well, what? Like are we supposed to believe that until Sunday afternoon Joe Biden was all in on the race and then suddenly he decided not to run? Just like that?

Of course he didn’t do that! NO ONE makes a decision like that suddenly. Biden was, as the media reported, contemplating his political future for days. Maybe weeks. And yet he — and the rest of his staff — insisted that everything was good. Better than good, actually. Great!

Biden is FAR from alone in, well, not telling the truth about his future plans. I was struck Monday by this report in Crain’s Detroit Business — in which Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was asked whether she would accept the vice presidential nomination if it was offered to her.

“I’m not leaving Michigan,” Whitmer said.

So, again, you are asking me to believe that Whitmer, a term-limited governor who will be out of office in 2026, would say “no” if Kamala Harris offered her the vice presidential slot?

I mean…

No way! An ambitious pol like Whitmer would OF COURSE take the VP gig.

The simple fact is that when it comes to their own political futures, politicians lie. They believe that no one will hold them accountable for what they have said in the past. And, if anyone does, they can just say something like “The situation has changed and I have changed with it.” (See Barack Obama’s flip flop on running for president in 2008.

(Sidebar: This is different in kind from the lying that Donald Trump does. He lies about, well, everything.)

The sad thing is that we all just seem to accept the lying as the cost of doing business. Well, of course she can’t say she’s interested because if she did that it would make it less likely she would get picked, goes the thinking on Whitmer.

Which, I guess? But we actually have examples of VP wannabes doing it right!

Here’s Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro answering the VP question today: “I’m not going to engage in hypotheticals.”

Good!

And here’s North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper when asked about a conversation he had with Harris on Sunday: “It went great. We talked about winning this race.”

Also, good!

My favorite response though was from Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who is a little further down the likely VP list than Whitmer, Shapiro or Cooper:

“Look, if they if they do the polling and it turns out that they need a 49-year-old, bald and gay Jew from Boulder, Colorado, they got my number,” Polis told CNN.

😂😂😂

Look, I get it. We have now built in the fact that politicians will tell us bald-faced lies when asked about whether they are leaving a race. Or about a future candidacy.

But it doesn’t have to be this way! Ambition and indecision are part of life! Just embrace it! We can do this, people!

2. The Veepstakes, again

The biggest question in American politics today is whether Kamala Harris will be a good, bad or indifferent presidential candidate. (TBD!) The second most important question is who she will pick as her vice presidential running mate.

I tried to answer that second question today in a video for my YouTube channel. I went through the 5 most likely suspects and broke down each of their prospects.

3. Cooperstown

I am still at a baseball tournament in Cooperstown, New York. (Back tomorrow night, I think…) It has been an amazing time with my family. LOTS of baseball and beautiful scenery. I wanted to share just one picture I took on Sunday night while my son’s team was playing. Hope it brings you as much joy as it brought me.

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

“I know yesterday's news was surprising and it's hard for you to hear, but it was the right thing do… I think we made the right decision.” — President Joe Biden, calling into his former campaign HQ on Monday

ONE GOOD CHART

Democrats believe (rightly) that they now have a better chance to win the White House, according to a CBS News poll.

SONG OF THE DAY

I don’t know a ton about Orville Peck if I am being honest. But his new album is coming and it has this collaboration with Beck on it. I am intrigued…

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