At this point, it looks to me like he's just trying to get through the day. My feeling (and I'm aware it's not yours) is that he's given a script for the day and he's to say whatever his advisers tell him to say .(At this point, he can no longer stay on script for even a day.)
As I stated below, the White House was stocked with Obama advisers, so much so that Biden's campaign people were complaining during the transition. And Obama was, once upon a time, downright thrilled with the idea of high gas prices. Probably more so now that he has $100 million and two beachfront homes.
Given Biden's condition, I believe certain advisers are running the show...and they don't care about re-election or the long term. They're trying to effect (and affect) what they can in the moment and tomorrow be damned. These people are making decisions divorced from the direct consequences of them...and Biden no longer knows or cares what the consequences may be. He's just an 80 year-old man wanting the people around him to stop bothering him.....