WASHINGTON — In recent weeks, President Joe Biden has privately expressed confidence that he will win the November election, according to three people familiar with his comments, in a shift from the frustration over the status of his campaign that he had been venting to aides for just a few months.
Biden’s shift in mood has been driven in part by recent polls that show him gaining ground against former President Donald Trump, these people said. But, they added, he was also boosted by more frequent trips to swing states and an apparent coalescence around his candidacy by some Democrats who have not yet embraced him.
The president has been particularly encouraged by the specific metrics that his campaign advisers now provide him regularly: the growing number of campaign offices being opened and staff being hired, as well as efforts to expand the campaign’s reach. low-cost fundraising. program, a Biden campaign official said.
“He just thinks he’s going to win,” said one of the people familiar with Biden’s private comments.
Biden doesn’t necessarily point to anything specific to explain why he believes he will win; Instead, he has sometimes told people close to him that he simply feels that way, according to two people familiar with his comments.
The Biden campaign declined to comment for this article.
The president’s positive outlook on his re-election prospects is a significant reversal from his views for much of the past year, since the launch of his campaign. For months, the president privately expressed frustrations, which sometimes turned into anger and outbursts with staff, due to his diminished standing with voters. In fact, complaints about Americans not giving him the credit he believes he deserves for what he considers to be his accomplishments, including an economic trend in a positive direction and bipartisan infrastructure legislation, have been a reoccurrence for much of the Biden’s time in the White House.
Meanwhile, Trump has faced a challenging few weeks, with his stance on abortion — that it should be left to the states — receiving pushback from his Republican base. Trump is now in a Manhattan criminal courtroom filled with unflattering sketches and scandalous headlines about allegations that he paid a porn star during his 2016 presidential campaign.
Still, in what is expected to be a tumultuous campaign, where global and economic events could continually change, Biden’s optimistic outlook may be short-lived.
Biden has little control over some key factors shaping the current political environment. Inflation is still high and remains a top concern for some key voters that Biden needs to win over. Security at the U.S. southern border remains an unresolved — and important — concern for many voters. Several polls have shown that voters trust Trump more at the border.
Additionally, opposition to Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which Biden supported, continues to grow across the country, and months of efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement have so far failed. Anti-war protests have escalated on college campuses, with students building camps and clashing with authorities as Biden struggles with young voters. Voters also continue to raise concerns about his age, 81. And the polls, although tighter, still show the race between Biden and Trump as a toss-up.
“No one is naive about how close this election will be,” said a Biden adviser. At the same time, the advisor said that there is a feeling among the president’s team that “the campaign has finally reached its rhythm”.
A new NBC News poll released this week showed some positive signs for Biden, but also that he still needs to make significant inroads with key voters to win in November, said Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates, who conducted the poll. with Republican pollster Bill. McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies.
Biden’s overall job approval rating rose to 42% in the new NBC News poll, up from 37% in January. The increase came largely from top Democrats. But Biden is still struggling to win over young, Latino and independent voters, and continues to trail Trump in voters’ confidence in his leadership, according to the poll.
“He’s showing strength, but there are still ways to get to where he needs to be,” Horwitt said.
A Biden aide said the president is feeling the momentum that began with his State of the Union address last month and was well received by Democrats. The president trusts his advisers’ campaign plan for the next six months, the adviser said, adding: “We see this as a very close race that will last until the end.”
In addition to an average of two presidential visits per week to swing states, part of the current phase of that plan has included spending money to bolster Biden’s campaign.
After months in which his campaign delayed building its campaign infrastructure — to the consternation of concerned Democrats who occasionally relayed this to Biden or others close to him — the tangible signs of a rapidly building campaign operation contributed to Biden’s more optimistic outlook. .
As Biden has recently traveled to swing states, the campaign has been working to include not just traditional retail stops at a restaurant or a supporter’s home, but also visits to local campaign offices, in part so Biden can see that expansion is more than just numbers in an informational document.
“There’s a real groundswell happening because of you, and that’s important,” Biden told volunteers at a union hall in Scranton, Pennsylvania, last week, after reviewing some statistics about the campaign.
Some of the president’s recent public comments seem to indicate his private confidence. He mocked Trump’s difficulties posting bail in a civil trial, falling asleep during court proceedings and even his hair.
“By the way, remember, he was trying to deal with Covid, he just said to inject some bleach into your veins. He made a mistake — it all went to his hair,” Biden said Wednesday at a union event. “I shouldn’t have said that. I probably shouldn’t have said that. You are a bad influence on me.
Biden referred to a positive change in his position the next day at a fundraiser organized by actor Michael Douglas.
“While the press isn’t writing about it, the momentum is clearly in our favor,” Biden said, adding, “The polls are moving toward us and away from Trump.”
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
