Analysis: US President Joe Biden was fighting for his political future while hosting a NATO summit this week - and two things became quite clear, writes 1News US correspondent Logan Church.
Standing within a few dozen metres of Joe Biden at NATO's North Atlantic Council meeting today, I came to a couple of conclusions.
Firstly, that he deeply cares about his job and the responsibilities of being US President. His heart is in the right place. To steal a phrase from John Campbell, he gives a damn.
But secondly, it was painfully apparent that Biden is an old man.
Ignoring the stage makeup caked on his face (I know about these things from failed thespian dreams), it took a long time for him to walk across the room to his seat. Yes, he was surrounded by people. But it was awkward. Watching him sitting down just made me want to vault over the barrier keeping media away and help him with his boardroom-style chair.
NATO summits are typically very dull. This one was the total opposite.
Not only is the alliance on the brink of war with Russia, which would lead to the biggest global conflict since World War II, or perhaps in modern history, but all of this collided with Biden, the president of the most powerful country in NATO, fighting for his political career.
Not because he’s in the middle of a scandal or a bad policy had been announced. But because an increasing number of Americans simply believe he is too old and needs to retire.
It's kind of sad.
And to make it worse, the NATO summit, which is hosted somewhere different each year, was in Washington DC this time.
In a heatwave.
Not quite, I would suggest, a recipe for success.
Biden held a 'host party' press conference at the end of the summit this evening, which lasted almost an hour and saw him fielding questions from multiple journalists.
His performance was fine. Unfortunately, fine will not cut it with the American voters, especially given just a few hours earlier he stood on stage and awkwardly confused the Ukrainian president (who was standing next to him) with the Russian president (who is a sworn enemy). Volodymyr Zelensky cancelled a planned press conference afterwards with no reason given.
Then, in the aforementioned press conference, Biden referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as "Vice President Trump".
Whoops.
International repercussions
You have to ask, what's next? Spoiler alert: no one has the foggiest.
But many are keeping options open - including our Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon.
Other than NATO business, Luxon kept busy meeting both Democrat and Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill this week.
Aside from getting his US politics fix (I haven't met a New Zealand PM that hasn't been an objective fan of US politics), he was clearly laying the groundwork ahead of what could be a seismic shift in America if Donald Trump becomes president again.
Today, Luxon met one of the most influential politicians on his itinerary - Republican senator from Texas, Ted Cruz.
Cruz rose to international prominence ahead of the 2016 election when he vied for the Republican nomination. That was, obviously, unsuccessful, and he has since turned into a Trump supporter.
Shortly before that meeting, I took the minute or so I had with Cruz to ask him why he supported Donald Trump, and why, in his view, he would be a good American President for New Zealand and the Indo-Pacific.
"I think President Trump is going to be re-elected in November,” he said. “I think he was a strong president, the world was safer, I think we had prosperity and we had security across the globe and I think unfortunately in the last three and a half years, US foreign policy has gone in the wrong direction."
A few seconds later, Luxon walked in and the talks were on.
It's important to note the press pack have repeatedly asked Luxon about his thoughts on Biden's future, and ability to be president.
Other than describing his interactions with Biden at a White House dinner and at part of the Indo-Pacific Four meeting today in positive terms ("my interactions with him were very sharp and very engaging") he said over and over that he will not comment on internal US politics.
He is right to take that position - no one would dispute that.
But what's not clear is what will happen in the US in the next few months - or even the next couple of days. And that is of concern for New Zealand.
Because, for better or for worse, the politics of America are the politics of the world.
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