In the wake of President Joe Biden’s lackluster performance in last week’s debate against former President Donald Trump, leading Democratic figures have come forward in a show of unwavering support, dismissing calls for Biden to end his campaign for re-election.
Despite the president’s visible struggle during the 90-minute televised exchange, where he faltered in completing sentences and mistakenly claimed he had dismantled Medicare, key Democrats insisted Biden remains their best hope for victory in November. This comes even as a recent CBS-YouGov poll revealed that 72% of Americans doubt Biden’s mental and cognitive fitness to serve as president, a significant drop from earlier assessments.
“The unfortunate truth is that Biden should withdraw from the race, for the good of the nation he has served so admirably for half a century,” opined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. However, top Democratic leaders have emphatically rejected this sentiment.
“Oh, absolutely not,” said Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Bad debates happen. The question is, ‘Who has Donald Trump ever shown up for other than himself and people like himself?’ I’m with Joe Biden, and it’s our assignment to make sure that he gets over the finish line come November.”
Representative Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” echoed Warnock’s defense, attributing Biden’s debate performance to “preparation overload.” Clyburn asserted, “I do not believe that Joe Biden has a problem leading for the next four years because he’s done a great job of leading for the last three-and-a-half years. The best predictor of future behavior is past performance.”
Governor Wes Moore of Maryland, in a conversation on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” acknowledged Biden’s difficult night but dismissed the notion that it should disqualify him from the race. “Joe Biden is not going to take himself out of this race, nor should he.”
Biden’s campaign, seizing the moment, issued a fundraising appeal Saturday night, warning that replacing him as the nominee would result in chaos ahead of the August national convention, potentially paving “a highway to losing” the election. Former White House communications aide Kate Bedingfield reported that the campaign had raised $33 million since the debate.
Republicans, meanwhile, were quick to seize on Biden’s performance. Reince Priebus, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, described Biden’s continued candidacy as “just all downside.” Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina added on CNN, “He’s a decent man. He’s a failed president. He is compromised. That’s the story line here. That’s what the world saw, a compromised president.”
President Biden spent the weekend at campaign events in New York and New Jersey before retreating to Camp David for a planned family gathering. Addressing supporters on Friday, Biden acknowledged his age but reaffirmed his commitment: “I know I’m not a young man. I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth!”
