We all know what happened last week, and we all know the conversation that has happened since. Given that debate performance, should Joe Biden step down and let a different Democrat run for president against Donald Trump?

First, at the risk of engaging in some Sturm und Drang blame-storming, Id like to get a few things off my chest. I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so . The debate was a disaster for Joe Biden. It was equally disastrous for the moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. Worse, I would say.

The microphones were muted, wrote Michael Grynbaum of The New York Times. So were the moderators.

They might as well have not been there. CNN could have just as easily provided a list of questions rather than have moderators ask them. They could have been posted by a producer in a control room and spoken by an AI voice. This is a major reason I hate the way we do debates. Moderators ask the same boring questions and allow candidates to ramble on with tired talking points, hyperboles, overstatements, ad hominem attacks and outright falsehoods. They do a complete disservice to the viewers, voters and the nation.

Before the telecast, CNN chair Mark Thompson said the moderators would act as facilitators, not participants. If I were sitting in on one of those preproduction meetings, Id have told Thompson this: If we dont change the way we do debates in here, we will fail the voters out there. You dont need moderators. You dont need facilitators. Or even need journalists. You need referees to throw the flag every time a candidate utters a lie.

There were no real-time fact-checks of Trumps baseless assertions. There were plenty afterward when no one cared because they were more obsessed with Bidens performance and what Democrats should do next. The sad fact is, for most Americans, politics is not about the art of compromise, its about the art of perception. Over 50 million people saw what they saw without ever questioning what they heard. Politifact reviewed the debate. On 15 fact-checks, Trumps statements received 12 false and three mostly false ratings. Biden got three false and one mostly false on 11 fact-checks. One rating was because Biden said $15 for insulin instead of $35.

But viewers didnt hear that. One candidate lied nearly every time he opened his mouth. The other never came close to matching that. But he also couldnt match the liars bravado, and thats all voters saw. They now seem likely to decide that an entertaining autocrat is a better choice than a decent old man. The cult, of course, saw what they hoped to see. They werent listening to what Biden said either, nor to Trumps falsehoods. They didnt care about the falsehoods. To them, the libs were owned. Thats everything to them.

So now what? Debates real ones are raging among Democrats and political analysts alike. Bidens excruciatingly painful performance has raised concerns about his electability against a blustering showman. But if Biden should step down, how does that happen, and who replaces him?

There are no good options. Every path is fraught with challenges, and right now, they all seem to lead to electoral disaster and a Trump victory. Party rules make it almost impossible to replace nominees unless they willingly step down. Biden, who controls 99% of the pledged Democratic delegates, has said he will not. He could only open the door to another candidate by ending his candidacy and then releasing his delegates. But to whom?

At that point, youd have a free-for-all among Democrats, a feeding frenzy in the media (theyre still having one about Biden stepping down), and youd create a salacious talking point for Republicans: Democrats are in chaos! How could they possibly govern when they cant even pick a candidate?

As vice president, Kamala Harris is next in line for the presidency, but that doesnt mean she automatically becomes the Democratic candidate should Biden step down. Nor can Biden make that decision. Its up to the delegates, and many in the party have doubts about her electability.

Her approval numbers are lower than Bidens, and her disapproval rating is nearly as high. She ran a poor campaign in 2020, has been unremarkable as vice president, and faces pessimism about her future role in the party from a bloc of Democrats and a far larger share of independents.

I am afraid Democrats have internalized the Hillary Clinton lesson, one insider told Politico. That a woman cant win.