If you visit a nursing home and look in the eyes of the residents, you often see a glazed look in their eyes as if they are not very sure where they are or what is going on around them.
That is the faraway look in Biden’s eyes—he is doing what he has been told to do, but he is not really sure what planet he is on...
I know what you mean. There’s this burning intensity to their gaze, like someone seeing an oasis in the distance and uncertain it’s not a mirage.