He was surprisingly good at creating devastating nicknames for people that would cut them down to a single flaw. A lot of his path wasn’t to be the best candidate, but to ruin everyone else’s reputations.
But now when he’s falling asleep in his criminal trial on almost a daily basis, it’s hard for quips like “Sleepy Joe” to have the same effect. Or when he’s asking for Biden to be drug tested before the debate when he’s the one with the White House that was referred to as being “awash in speed”. It’s always been projection, but he isn’t able to distract everyone fast enough anymore.