WASHINGTON – WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden Thursday opened a critical section in its effort to save his endangered re-election campaign, facing a growing sense that he may have just days to make a convincing argument that he is fit for office before Democratic support for him evaporates completely.
After Biden’s disastrous debate performance last week against Republican Donald Trump, some funders were postponing or canceling upcoming fundraisers, according to a person familiar with the plans who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss private discussions.
Biden himself, in a meeting on Wednesday night with Democratic governors, acknowledged that he needs to sleep more and limit nighttime events to be able to sleep earlier and rest for work, according to three people familiar with the meeting, who also spoke about his condition. of anonymity. One person said the president joked that his health was fine, it was his brain that was facing challenges.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, who was at the meeting, was asked about the idea that Biden wants to limit events after 8 p.m. and responded: “He did it with a smile on his face. It was more of a rhetorical framework of just being fit and rested.”
Newsom, who was campaigning for Biden in western Michigan, added: “I like it when a president recognizes that he is human.”
In an interview with a Wisconsin radio station that aired Thursday, Biden argued that much more than his own political future was in danger, saying, “The stakes are really high. I know you know that. For democracy, for freedom… our economy, they are all at risk.”
The interview on Civic Media Radio Network’s Earl Ingram Show, recorded Wednesday, was part of a media campaign and public events that the Democratic president and his team recognized as a watershed moment.
After hosting a July 4th night barbecue at the White House for military families, Biden is scheduled to campaign in Wisconsin on Friday and give an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, which will air as a late-night special noble that night.
He plans to be in Philadelphia on Sunday and give a full press conference during the NATO summit in Washington next week.
It’s not certain his campaign will survive this long if he doesn’t have a strong showing on ABC. Discussions that were once a whisper who should step in his place if he to bow are getting louder.
For now, Biden is not ready to step aside and has communicated that in conversations with Democratic governors, close allies and campaign officials.
But time is short for possible change. The Democratic National Committee announced weeks ago that it would hold a virtual call for a formal nomination ahead of the party’s national convention, which begins Aug. 19.
“I’m proud to run for re-election as a president who made his promises and I kept them,” Biden said in the radio interview.
“I had a bad night. A bad night. I screwed up,” he said of the debate, where he gave hesitant and complicated answers.
“But 90 minutes on stage doesn’t erase what I’ve done for three and a half years,” he said in a different interview, with Philadelphia-area WURD Radio.
In their private conversations, Biden focused on how to reverse the trajectory of their difficult debate and emphasized the critical nature of this year’s presidential election.
During a call, when asked what would happen if his efforts to correct course didn’t work, Biden stressed that he understood the importance of the race and would put the country first, according to a person who spoke directly with the president. The person was granted anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Biden’s Wednesday night meeting with Democratic governors lasted more than an hour and drew more than 20 of them, some in person and others participating virtually. They later described the conversation as “frank” and said they supported Biden despite being concerned about Trump’s victory in November. Details about Biden’s comments about getting more sleep were first reported by The New York Times.
During that meeting, Biden told leaders that he had been examined by his doctor after his debate performance, according to two people familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the private conversation. A few hours earlier, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had said that Biden had not been examined by a doctor.
The White House blamed Biden’s debate performance, where he looked pale and his raspy voice sometimes trailed off, in a cold. Biden also said he had jet lag after back-to-back trips abroad that ended 12 days earlier.
Biden’s team has resisted repeated calls to release more robust medical records for the 81-year-old president. After his last complete physical exam in February, his doctor declared him fit for service.
Two Democratic legislators publicly asked that Biden give up the race. Most Democratic lawmakers, however, are taking a wait-and-see approach, hoping to get a better idea of how the situation plays out through new polls and television interviews. That’s according to Democratic lawmakers who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the president.
Some have suggested that Vice President Kamala Harris is emerging as the favorite to replace Biden should he withdraw. Those involved in private discussions recognize that California Newsom and governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan remain viable alternatives. But for some members, Harris is seen as the best prospect to quickly unify the party and avoid a messy and divisive convention fight.
Newsom was asked directly whether, if Biden dropped out, he would support Harris. He said, “I don’t even like playing with hypotheses.”
Trump was seen on video declaring that Harris would be his new rival, saying, “she is so pathetic.” It was not clear when he made the comments, which were posted on his social media account.
While other Democratic allies have remained silent since the debate, there is growing private frustration over the Biden campaign’s response at a crucial juncture in the campaign — particularly as Biden waited several days to do direct damage control with senior members of his own party.
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Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti in South Haven, Mich., and Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.
