I’m going to be fighting harder,’ tells donors after disastrous debate: A reappraisal of a campaign attempt by Biden
The Biden campaign had been looking to shake up the race with the debate, which the president spent a week prepping for at Camp David. They wanted to show a contrast between Biden and Trump on issues like abortion and democracy, and they wanted to put to rest any concerns about Biden’s age.
Instead he spent the weekend trying to convince his party that he is still up to the job, after he had a bad time in the debate. There was a call for him to end his campaign after his weak performance.
“I understand the concern after the debate. I get it,” Biden told a group of supporters gathered at the home of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Saturday night. “I didn’t have a great night. But I’m going to be fighting harder and going to need you with me to get it done.”
Less than 24 hours after the debate, Biden was back on stage for a rally in Raleigh, N.C., this time with a stronger voice and more energetic presence.
“I know how to do this job. I know how to finish things. And I know like millions of Americans know — when you get knocked down, you get back up,” he said to a cheering crowd.
Biden debuted new talking points addressing his weak performance — something he would go on to repeat at several different campaign receptions on Friday and Saturday in New York and New Jersey.
The walk is not as easy as it used to be. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to,” he said. I know how to tell the truth, that is what I know. I know what I’m talking about.
Source: ‘I’m going to be fighting harder,’ Biden tells donors after disastrous debate
What have you learned about Donald J. Biden and the First Lady of New York during the 2016 Democratic Debate? An interview with Lizanne Rosenstein and David Tyler
Since the debate, Biden and his allies have been trying to convince people who watched or have seen clips online that it was just one bad night and not representative of who he is as a candidate and president.
The president and first lady stopped at an Atlanta watch party just after the debate. The first lady praised her husband for “answering every question” and saying that Trump “lied.”
During a political function in New York on Friday, the couple highlighted some of the false statements Donald Trump made during the debate. On Saturday, they visited the East Hampton home of hedge fund manager Barry Rosenstein and his wife Lizanne Rosenstein.
Greeting the motorcade along the path into the residential neighborhood was a small group holding up signs: “We love you, but it’s time,” “Step down for democracy,” “Please drop out for U.S.,” and “Thank you, next.”
Lizanne Rosenstein told the crowd gathered on her lawn, which included former Trump White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci, that “we can waste time comparing debate nights, but you know what? It is more meaningful to compare presidencies.
Asked how Biden will prepare differently for the second debate, Tyler said: “Listen, we’ll talk more about the second debate as we get closer to the second debate. We are focused on getting out on the stump, communicating directly with the voters who are going to decide the election in the states.
The debate raised $33 million for Biden and his campaign, and they are adamant that the debate has not changed the race.
According to Molly Murphy, who is a pollster with the Biden campaign, singular moments don’t correlate with the outcome of a race. She said that focus groups showed that voters didn’t like the answers Trump gave during the debate.
There was a discussion on the Sunday political talk shows on whether to replace Biden as the Democratic nominee.
“Absolutely not,” said Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., onNBC’s “Meet the Press.” He said the Democratic party wouldn’t be a party of Democrats if they weren’t engaged in hand-wringing.
The national co-chair of Biden’s campaign, Chris Coons, toldABC’s “This Week” that Biden is the only Democrats who can beat Donald Trump.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries thinks the performance of Biden on the ticket on Thursday was a set back for Democrats, but he still thinks that they can win back the House.
Source: ‘I’m going to be fighting harder,’ Biden tells donors after disastrous debate
Golden Biden: A Keynote Address to the 2016 White House Convention and Implications for House Republicans and Senate Minority Whistlers
“Whether he’s the candidate or someone else is the candidate, he’s going to be the keynote speaker at our convention. He will be the figure that we rally around to move forward.
In key Senate contests, Democratic incumbent have performed better than the president in polls for weeks. If dramatic changes in public and internal polls emerge in the next few days, House Democrats in many swing districts could see the same dynamic, but more calls could come from lawmakers.
“Americans remember House Democrats were complicit in covering up and gaslighting the public about the president’s condition, and voters are primed to punish them in November,” Pandol said.
“The cowards in the Democratic caucus have spent every day after the debate in witness protection, too afraid to say what they’re all thinking,” said Jack Pandol, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Most Democrats kept their opinion of Biden mostly to themselves, which was criticized by the House GOP’s campaign arm.
Golden went further than any other Democrat and wrote an op-ed for the Bangor Daily News stating that Trump would win in four years. He did not agree with the argument from fellow Democrats that democracy could be in danger if Trump is elected president again.
A decision by him affects who will serve in the White House in the next four years, as well as who will serve in the Senate, and it will have implications for decades to come.
Doggett, who represents a safe Democratic district, said that Biden was trailing Trump in most polls. “I had hoped that the debate would provide some momentum to change that. It did not,” he said in a statement.
Biden, 81, badly stumbled in the debate, seeming at times to lose his train of thought, and struggled to defend his record. Despite calls by some Democrats to step back and let someone else run, he insists that he will stay in the race and come back.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that he had a right to his opinion. “It is a big-tent party,” she said. The Biden campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden would speak this week with Hill leaders and with Democratic governors. According to a source familiar with the information, the governors were invited to the meeting via private email and told if they were able to attend in person or by Zoom, they could.
Source: Rep. Doggett calls on Biden to withdraw. He’s the first Democrat in Congress to do so
A Conversation with Nancy Pelosi and Jim Clyburn after the Biden Recuperation Decree on Tuesday at the LEP2 Summit
Immediately following the debate, most House Democrats struggled with how to respond, with many acknowledging the president’s poor performance, but none publicly saying he needed to step aside. A new CNN poll shows that most voters think Democrats have a better chance with another nominee, and that there are some willing to break with the White House.
Top congressional Democrats like former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn, who helped Biden get the 2020 nomination, took to the airwaves over the weekend to defend Biden and pledge support.
But on Tuesday, Pelosi’s tone appeared to shift, and she opened the door to other Democrats to raise concerns about the president’s ability to continue.
“I think it’s a legitimate question to say, is this an episode – or is this a condition?” Pelosi said that in an interview. It is completely legitimate to ask that question of both candidates.
Asked about Pelosi’s comments, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it was a “legitimate question” but also said, “He had a cold and a bad night.”
“I think his four years are, you know, one of the great presidencies of our lifetime. He should be honest with himself. This is a decision he’s going to have to make,” Quigley said on CNN.