After last week’s presidential debate, many Democrats are likely feeling the same way I felt as a new, young Democrat, back in 1998. Deceived.

You can hear the disappointment, grief and shock coming from all quarters: during live coverage on MSNBC, from the editorial boardroom of the New York Times, in the halls of Congress. The truth laid bare is that President Joe Biden is unfit for another four years in office.

But why the shock?

Watching the first debate of 2024 between Biden and former President Donald Trump, I actually thought Biden did pretty well — for Biden. The president walked to the right podium, stood for 90 minutes and took questions.  As the First Lady told her husband after the debate, he answered them all, too.

The president’s condition didn’t surprise Republicans because we have been sending each other memes for years — Biden lost on stage and falling off a bike; Biden being led away by the Easter Bunny or coached by Jill; Biden falling up Air Force One’s stairs or toppling over at the Air Force Academy graduation.

The president’s infirmities, mumbles and rambling at the debate seemed no worse than usual.

But to Democrats?  The uncut, unvarnished, unscripted Joe Biden was a disaster.

It would seem they believed senior Democrats like Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who promised in February: “He’s fine. All this right-wing propaganda that his mental acuity has declined is wrong.” Or Nancy Pelosi: “[H]e’s very sharp.”

Even in the wake of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s assessment that Biden is an “elderly man with a poor memory,” the White House press corps seemed to look the other way. When videos popped up of the president wandering off or getting lost, they were mostly ignored by the corps, who embraced the White House spin of “cheap fakes.”

Then Americans saw the genuine article. According to a post-debate poll from the Wall Street Journal, 80 percent of the country now believes the president is too old for the job.

That number may grow in the coming weeks.

We detest lies and liars because they make us question ourselves. To be taken in by a lie leaves that sinking feeling in the gut: How did I allow myself to be played?

I learned that lesson 26 years ago as a young man when I believed President Bill Clinton’s lie, “I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me, and I’m going to say it again: I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky.”

Not only did I believe the president, but I sincerely defended him to my Republican friends and family: “He’s the president of the United States!”

In wagging his finger at America and flat-out lying, Clinton embarrassed not just himself, his family and the office, but worse, he made fools of those, like me, who supported him the most.

So, when the truth came out, I was shocked, followed by stunned disbelief. Then anger settled in. Eventually, Clinton’s lie led me to abandon the Democratic Party and become a Republican.

Last week four years of lies collapsed in 90 minutes. It may well lead to a generation of new Republicans.

Morgan Murphy is a former DoD press secretary, national security adviser in the U.S. Senate, a veteran of Afghanistan.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Featured Image Credit: Flickr/Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz