After a delayed acknowledgement that the debate vs Trump hadn’t gone according to plan, the Biden campaign is now working to change the pitch. President Biden met with Democratic Governors in an attempt to reassure them that he was still cut out to run for the White House. In all, there were 24 Governors, some of them joined online. After the meeting, the Governors of New York, Maryland and Minnesota addressed the media. “None of us are denying it. Thursday night was a bad hit,” said Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The Governors said their meeting with the President and Vice President was honest and frank and they shared some of the concerns they had heard about his ability to successfully lead the campaign. “The president has always had our backs, we’re going to have his back as well,” said Maryland Governor Wes Moore, putting any doubts to rest. “President Biden is in it to win it,” was how New York Governor Kathy Hochul summed it up.
The first Presidential debate turned out to be a disaster for Biden where he mumbled, lost his train of thought and was, at times, incoherent. It’s raised a lot of questions about whether he’s fit to fight for another term. Biden acknowledged the setback the very next day when he spoke in Raleigh on June 28. “I don’t debate as well as I used to but I know what I do know. I know how to tell the truth,” he said to loud cheers.
Biden said he’s staying put. When the question was put to the White House Press Secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre said, “The president is clear eyed and he is staying in the race.”
In Raleigh, Biden had said, “I know what millions of Americans do when you get knocked down, you get back up.”
That fight is going to be easier said than done. If the Biden campaign had hoped the debate would put to rest all questions about his health, it’s done just the opposite and there are voices within Democrats who are saying it’s time for him to bow out. Congressman Seth Moulton is one of them. He feels if Biden continues, the status quo would bring back Trump. And he’s not the only one.
Minnesota Governor said he backed Biden because he’s seen what a Donald Trump presidency was like, calling it chaos. “We’re worried because the threat of a Trump presidency is not theoretical for governors,” explained Tim Walz. “We served when Donald Trump was president and the threats to our nation were real. And so those concerns are real to us. And what we understand was ‘a Trump presidency was chaos, destruction’. A Biden presidency was dealing with COVID, using science, investing in infrastructure and working to the middle class.”
The debate has hit the Biden campaign, there’s no doubt about it. It shows up in opinion polls too. Democrats will be keeping a close eye on how Joe Biden does on the campaign trail and in public events as talks of his possible replacements still carry on.
