House Democrat defends Biden: ‘Governance is the biggest part of the job, not just the performance or the theater’

Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) said Sunday he is confident Democrats should keep President Biden as their nominee, pointing to the importance of governing, not just campaigning, to serve in the White House.

“Yes,” Ivey said on NewsNation’s “The Hill with Chris Stirewalt” when asked if he is confident Democrats should stick with Biden.

When asked about his message to voters who had doubts after seeing Biden’s debate performance on Thursday night, Ivey said, “I would say keep watching.”

“And think about what you’ve seen over the last four years as far as his performance. I think he’s fine and, you know, often great. I thought the State of the Union, he was excellent and he was also great on Friday in North Carolina,” he continued.

Ivey suggested that debate performance carries too much weight when it comes to choosing the country’s leader.

“Governance is the biggest part of the work, not just the performance or theater part. And I think he did a great job there too,” he continued, mentioning Biden’s role in bringing NATO countries together to rally around Ukraine and Biden’s stance on abortion access.

“I really think abortion is a big issue that the public is going to focus on. The president was lying about everyone wanting to get rid of Roe,” Ivey said, referring to Trump. “It’s clear, state after state and election after election, that people actually want Roe back. And I think we have to draw that difference. In fact, the president did a good job on Thursday night.”

His comments come amid growing concerns among some in the Democratic Party about keeping Biden at the top of the ticket ahead of the 2024 general election following Thursday’s debate. Since then, Biden and his surrogates have been campaigning, trying to quell any concerns among voters about Biden’s ability to perform.

At the debate and in the days following, Ivey acknowledged that Biden had a “tough night” on Thursday, but said, “I feel good about where we’re headed right now.”

“You know, obviously the president had a rough night on Thursday, but I thought he bounced back really well on Friday with the rally in North Carolina. And he looked like the person I’ve seen at the State of the Union and when he gave one of the big campaign speeches in Philadelphia, which I had the opportunity to attend. So I feel good about where all those things are,” he said.

Ivey said Democrats should focus on “getting back on track to reach voters to explain the great things he’s done on the economy,” and specifically said Democrats should explain the ways in which Biden’s policy achievements can affect the lives of voters.

“Inflation rose, but has been falling. We’ve had historic lows in unemployment,” he continued. “There’s a great story to tell. The key is that we can’t just focus on macro terms, we have to explain to individuals what the personal benefits have been for them and be clear about that.

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