Joe Biden, the current President of America, has told his top allies that he is aware of the importance of today’s and coming days to his reelection candidacy after a distressing performance in last week’s debate.
However, a report in The New York Times suggests that Biden recognizes that his viability as a candidate is under scrutiny and may need to have voters’ confidence on his ability restored.
For instance, during a conversation with his campaign personnel on Wednesday, Biden excitedly stated; “No one’s pushing me out. I’m not leaving.” His vice-president Kamala Harris was present too and she supported him saying: “We will not back down. We will follow our president’s lead. We will fight, and we will win.”
Still, some allies have hinted that privately Biden knows he must do well on upcoming appearances which includes an interview with George Stephanopoulos of ABC News and stops in Pennsylvania or Wisconsin for the campaign. One ally said “He knows if he has two more events like that, we’re in a different place by the end of the weekend.” This was referring to his faltering debate performance.
These private conversations represent the first time Biden publicly admitted considering how best to recover from the debate. It further says Trump leads former President Donald J Trump 49 percent to 43 percent among likely voters according to another New York Times/Siena College poll taken after the debate.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre vehemently denied rumours claiming that some discussions had occurred between Joe Biden and close companions surrounding whether or not he should drop out of the race saying “That is absolutely false”. However one senior adviser who did not want to be named mentioned their perception of political hinderances ahead for Mr Biden as well as distances himself from these ideas about his capability.
Biden insists his debate performance was an anomaly and remains confident about his leadership capabilities. On the other hand, major donors within their party privately have asked him to stand aside, reflecting wider internal concerns. “The only thing that matters is his decision on whether or not he’s going to let it go” said a Democratic elected official anonymously.
Since then, Biden has made contacts with leading Democrats and many others including Vice President Harris as well as Democratic governors at the White House. Karine Jean-Pierre singled out some of them among them; Hakeem Jeffries (House Democratic Leader), Chuck Schumer (Senate Majority Leader) and Nancy Pelosi (former Speaker of the House).
Representative Debbie Dingell said Biden should speak more directly to the public. “He’s got to show the American people that he can do this job. He can’t be wrapped in bubble right now,” Dingell said.
Key donors who felt cheated after Biden missed a call meant to assuage fear also hold this view. The age factor surrounding Biden is increasingly being question by fellow democrats, wary of what that means for transparency.
