Washington (Associated Press) President Joe Biden Opened on Thursday Important Stretching With his efforts to save his moribund reelection campaign. There is a growing realization that he may only have a few days to make a convincing case that he is fit to be president before Democratic support evaporates entirely.
Some donors are postponing or canceling upcoming fundraising events after Biden's disastrous defeat in last week's debate with Republican Donald Trump, according to the people, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss private discussions.
“I'm not going anywhere,” Biden told a crowd gathered for a Fourth of July barbecue on the White House South Lawn on Thursday.
During a meeting with Democratic governors on Wednesday night, Biden acknowledged the need to get more sleep and limit evening activities so he could get to bed earlier to prepare for the job, according to three people familiar with the meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity. One person said the president joked that his health was fine but that it was his brain that was the problem.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was at the meeting, was asked Thursday about Biden's desire to limit events after 8 p.m., saying, “He did it with a smile on his face. It was just a rhetorical framing of being healthy and rested.”
“It's nice to have the president recognize that he's a human being, too,” added Newsom, who was campaigning for Biden in western Michigan.
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In an interview with a Wisconsin radio station aired Thursday, Biden argued that much more was at stake than just his own political future, saying, “The stakes are very high. I think you know that. Democracy, freedom and the economy, everything is at stake.”
The interview, recorded Wednesday on Civic Media Radio Network's Earl Ingraham Show, was part of a barrage of media and public events that the Democratic president and his staff are viewing as a make-or-break moment.
At the Independence Day barbecue, Biden formally welcomed military families from the podium but then went to briefly address the crowd directly. He suddenly grabbed the microphone, stood in the middle of the lawn, and explained that there were thousands of people waiting to get to the party and that the grounds would be locked down while he was there and that he needed to go back inside.
“Keep fighting!” one supporter yelled.
“You got me,” Biden responded.
He also made a light reference to Trump, who in 2018 skipped a visit to a World War I cemetery in France that Biden recently visited.
The president will campaign in Wisconsin on Friday and will appear in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos that will air as a primetime special that evening.
He will visit Philadelphia on Sunday and hold a full press conference during the NATO summit in Washington next week.
Without a strong performance on ABC, it's unclear whether his campaign will last much longer. Who should step forward? instead of him Step back It's getting bigger and bigger.
For now, Biden is not ready to back down and has signaled that in conversations with Democratic governors, aides and campaign staff.
But there is a limited window for any potential changes: The Democratic National Committee announced weeks ago that it would hold a virtual roll call for the formal nomination before the party's national convention begins on Aug. 19.
“I'm proud to run for re-election as a president who has made promises and kept them,” Biden said in a radio interview.
“It was a bad night. A bad night. I messed up,” he said at the debate, about his halting, convoluted answers.
“But 90 minutes on stage doesn't erase what I've been doing for the last three and a half years,” he said in a separate interview with Philadelphia-area WURD radio.
In the private conversation, Biden focused on how to reverse the trajectory of the fractious debate and stressed the importance of this year's presidential election.
Asked during one call what would happen if efforts to get back on track didn't work, Biden stressed that he understood how important the campaign is and would put country first, said a person who has spoken directly to the president, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Biden's meeting with Democratic governors on Wednesday night lasted more than an hour and was attended by more than 20 governors, some in person and some online. After the meeting, the governors said the conversation had been “candid” and that while they were concerned about a Trump victory in November, they supported Biden. Details of Biden's comments about getting more sleep were first reported by The New York Times.
During the meeting, Biden told the leaders he had sought medical attention following his debate performance, according to two people familiar with the meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss private conversations. Hours earlier, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had said Biden had not sought medical attention.
The White House has criticized Biden for performing poorly during the debate, appearing pale and with a husky voice that occasionally cracked. ColdBiden also said he was suffering from jet lag after back-to-back international trips that ended 12 days ago.
Biden's staff has resisted repeated requests to release more detailed medical records. For the 81-year-old presidentAfter his final medical check-up in February, doctors Fit for the task.
Two Democratic members He publicly called out Biden. drop out of the competitionBut most Democrats are taking a wait-and-see approach, waiting for new polls and television interviews to get a better sense of how the situation unfolds, according to some Democrats who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the president.
Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Biden if he were to withdraw, according to a person involved in the private discussions. Newsom, California “The governor said. Gretchen Whitmer Michigan Sen. Harris remains a viable alternative, but some party insiders see her as the best candidate to unify the party quickly and avoid a confusing and divisive convention fight.
Asked directly whether he would support Harris if Biden were to withdraw, Newsom said, “I don't even want to talk hypothetically.”
“She's really pathetic,” Trump said in the video, posted to his social media accounts and it's unclear when he made the remarks, which were later revealed to be made by Harris, who he said would be his new rival.
On Thursday afternoon, Trump called for a second debate, saying, “But this time there will be no restrictions, just the two of us on stage.”
Other Democratic allies have remained quiet since the debate, but there is growing private frustration over the Biden campaign's handling of the election at a critical juncture, particularly over Biden's waiting several days to engage in direct damage control with senior members of his own party.
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Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti, Lisa Mascaro and Mary Claire Jalonick in South Haven, Michigan, contributed to this report.
