With the news that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has been hospitalized with serious heart problems, what had already been a bad week for former Vice President Joe Biden has just gotten even worse.

I’ll get to the why of that in a bit, but let’s first take a look at all the other bad news.

The Polls

As I have said since the beginning, the only polls I’m going to take seriously are post-Labor Day, after summer is over and people are actually paying attention to the race. It was and still is my belief that while enjoying the summer months, Democrat voters parked their votes on tried-and-true Uncle Joe but that this could change after people started to tune in.

Well, tuning in, they are, and Biden’s slide is very real and may not have yet reached bottom.

According to the Real Clear Politics poll of polls, Biden went from a double-digit national lead ten days ago to just a two-point lead today.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is climbing, is attracting the crowds, while Slow Joe falls and can hardly attract flies.

In the all-important early primary states, Biden is losing in Iowa, is only three points up in New Hampshire (Warren leads in the two most recent polls), and only two points up in Nevada. (Warren and Biden are tied in the latest poll.)

Biden’s firewall in South Carolina remains strong — he’s up by 22 points, but if he loses New Hampshire and Iowa, he will have to make history to win the Democrat nomination.

The Picture

Last month, Joe Biden told us, “I’ve never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings.”

That is a flat-out lie.

This entire scandal revolves around Biden’s son Hunter, who made more than $50,000 a month — a month! — for sitting on the board of a Ukrainian oil company. The problem, of course, is that Hunter has no experience whatsoever in that field and that when Hunter scored that sweet gig, then-President Obama had put Joe Biden in charge of dealing with Ukraine.

What’s more, once a Ukrainian prosecutor began to look into Hunter’s company, Joe threatened to withhold crucial U.S. aid unless the prosecutor was fired — which he was.

Now, liars in the media, serial liars like Jake Tapper, are lying about this — saying the prosecutor was not looking into Hunter Biden’s company when Daddy Joe forced him out, but this very same prosecutor has signed an affidavit under penalty of perjury saying that he was.

Anyway, back to the lie…

To begin with, we know Daddy Joe spoke to Hunter about his shady, overseas business dealings because in an interview with the New Yorker, Hunter said they spoke about his shady, overseas business dealings.

But now, we have nothing less than photographic proof…

Look at this, y’all… An actual photograph of then-Vice President Joe Biden and his ne’er-do-well son out golfing with a board member of the company that hired No-Experience-Hunter.

That’s whatchoo call a clean bust.

The Pulmonary

While we all hope and pray Bernie Sanders makes a full and speedy recovery, the political reality of the matter is still the political reality of the matter.

While on the campaign trail, Bernie felt chest pains, was rushed to the hospital, and surgery was performed to implant two heart stents. Bernie is still in the hospital, his presidential campaign is suspended, as is his political advertising.

This is a serious and significant development, but not just for Bernie.

Bernie Sanders is 78-years-old.

Joe Biden will be 77 next month.

And let’s not forget that until today’s news, Bernie was by far the most robust and energetic of the two.

After all, it was Joe Biden’s eye that filled with blood on TV just a few weeks ago, and it was Joe Biden’s teeth that came loose during a national debate last month, and it has been Joe Biden taking it easy on the campaign trail, going on vacation, disappearing for days at a time, etc.

If Democrats are smart, they will remember the lesson of 2016 when an obviously frail, sickly, and weak Hillary Clinton collapsed into a van at that September 11 memorial event.

While I have always made fun of Bernie’s age, I have also always used him as an example of what a robust 78-year-old looks like, how it is possible to be virile and vibrant into your late seventies. In fact, I have used Bernie as an example to explain just how frail and old Joe Biden looks by comparison.

Nothing terrifies Democrats more than the idea of Trump’s second term, and Bernie’s health scare will probably serve as a reality check that will have them rethinking their support for these pushing-80 candidates. What they are imagining right now is what a catastrophe this would have been had Bernie won the general election.

Naturally, then, these thoughts are going to turn to Slow Joe and the fact that if this happened to Bernie, there is an even bigger chance it will happen to Joe, who was never as energetic or full of fire as Bernie.

This reality check could also hurt Warren, who is 70. If she wins the nomination, she will be 71 and the oldest presidential nominee (from either party) in history.

Sure, Warren seems spry and energetic but … so did Bernie.

Regardless, this has been a very bad week for Quid Pro Joe … and it is only Wednesday.

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.