Biden is making appeals to donors as concerns persist about his presidential debate performance

NEW YORK — NEW YORK (AP) — President Joe Biden is looking at regain your mojo and reassure donors at a Saturday fundraiser that he is fully up to the challenge of winning donald trump.

The 81 year old man worrying performance in the first presidential debate on Thursday rattled many Democrats, who see Trump after the January 6, 2021 insurrection as a existential threat to US democracy. Biden’s meandering responses and difficulties in responding to Trump led The New York Times editorial board to declare on Friday that he should drop out of the race and that staying would be a “reckless gamble.”

Biden and his wife, Jill, attended an afternoon campaign event in East Hampton, New York, the Long Island beach town where real estate firm Zillow values ​​the average home at $1.9 million. Based on public records, the event closed to the media was at the home of Avram Glazer, owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team.

Scheduled later was a fundraising night in Red Bank, New Jersey.

After Thursday night’s debate, Biden shined more brightly in speeches in North Carolina and New York on Friday, saying he believes “with all his heart and soul” he can do the job of the presidency.

Biden’s campaign said it raised more than $27 million on Thursday and Friday, including $3 million at a fundraiser in New York City focused on the LGBTQ+ community.

Jill Biden told supporters Friday that he told her after the debate, “You know, Jill, I don’t know what happened. I didn’t feel so good.” The first lady then said she responded to him: “Look, Joe, we’re not going to let 90 minutes define the four years you’ve been president.”

The Democratic president still needs to calm the fears raised by the debate, as it has infiltrated the public consciousness with clips and memes spreading on the Internet and public pressure for him to withdraw from the race.

Democratic donors in New York, Southern California and Silicon Valley have privately expressed deep concerns about the viability of Biden’s campaign following his debate performance.

In a series of text messages and private conversations, they discussed the short list of potential replacements, a group that included Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Vice President Kamala Harris.

But as of Friday, there was no formal effort to pressure Biden to step aside and some suspected that would never happen given the logistical challenges associated with replacing the presumptive nominee just four months before Election Day.

Some donors noted that they would stop their personal donations. They said revenue from Biden’s weekend fundraiser would almost certainly be strong because tickets were sold and paid for before the debate.