WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden will sit down on Friday for his first television interview since his disastrous debate performance last week, something that could be crucial in determining whether he can salvage his embattled candidacy.
The interview with the anchor George Stephanopoulos from ABC News appears to be one of the highest-stakes moments for a president or candidate in many years. Democratic elected officials, donors and voters will be watching closely to see if he can still deliver results in an adversarial environment and perform worthy of being the party’s nominee for defeat. donald trump this fall.
The interview will “air in its entirety as a primetime special” at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, ABChelpadding that an “unedited interview transcript will be made available the same day.”
The big questions on the minds of many Democrats are: Will the weakness and incoherence he displayed in the debate not normalies, or have they become common occurrences for Biden? Will he still be able to mount a vigorous campaign with a reasonable chance of defeating Trump? And if not, would Democrats be better off if Biden stepped aside so a replacement candidate — likely Vice President Kamala Harris — could be nominated at next month’s convention?
“Every appearance he makes between now and the convention is make or break in terms of Democratic support for him to continue as our nominee,” said one Democratic lawmaker in Congress, who is particularly skeptical about Biden remaining in the race. “He needs to show that he can deliver the full range of events necessary for an active and successful campaign.”
Democrats have reason to be nervous. Even before the debate, polls indicated that Biden was a dark horse in the race against Trump, albeit a close one, with questions about his age and physical condition following him throughout the campaign, including among his own Democratic base. Post-debate polls are mixed — some showed a drop in support for Biden but within the margin of error, while others showed a statistically significant drop in the runoffs against Trump.
As some Democrats call on him to give up the race, Biden remains publicly defiant. At a Fourth of July celebration at the White House, he told a guest who shouted a message of support to him: “I’m not going anywhere.”
He stepped up its efforts on Wednesday to reassure nervous Democrats — speaking with congressional leaders, meeting with governors and holding an all-hands meeting with campaign staff members who are pledging to stay in the race.
“No one is kicking me out,” Biden told staffers, according to a campaign official on the call. “I’m not going away. I’m in this race until the end and we’re going to win.”
But privately, Biden remains torn between acceptance that he might have to step aside and defiance in the face of those calls, sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.
Other Democrats say Biden’s interview on Friday will be less important than what the polls say in the coming days — in the Biden-vs.-Trump race for the White House, nationally and in swing states — as well as signs about whether his candidacy is harming. Democrats’ hopes of winning seats in the House and Senate in a highly competitive battle for control of both chambers.
If Biden’s position weakens to the point where it appears that remaining in office would cost Democrats the House, that would be a red line, said a House Democrat who represents a competitive district.
Allies say it is crucial that Biden holds more interviews, meetings and events in impromptu settings. Since the debate, he has given numerous speeches at rallies and fundraisers and at the White House — often with a teleprompter in a controlled environment.
Last week, Biden admitted he slipped up when it came to his communications skills, but says he remains in command when it comes to doing the job of president — and claims Trump is too dishonest and dangerous to hold power. At 81, Biden is just three years older than Trump, 78, whose falsehoods, rants and descent into grievances at the Atlanta debate were overshadowed by Biden’s inability to provide coherent answers.
Trump attacked Stephanopoulos on social media on Thursday, calling him the “Cruelest, Cruelest Interviewer.” He too called to “another Debate” with Biden but without moderators — “this time, without limits — A whole discussion, just the two of us on stage, talking about the future of our Country”.
Biden’s ABC appearance could be the most important interview for a presidential candidate since 1992, when Bill and Hillary Clinton sat down for an interview to show solidarity after Gennifer Flowers said she had an extramarital affair with Bill Clinton for 12 years.
The man who organized that interview?
Stephanopoulos, who was then the communications director for the Clinton campaign.
This article was originally published in NBCNews. with
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