President Joe Biden faced more calls from fellow Democrats to abandon his re-election campaign after a news conference Friday in which he gave nuanced answers but sometimes stumbled over his words.
It is unclear whether Biden’s performance will convince skeptics in his party that he is the best candidate to defeat Republican Donald Trump in the Nov. 5 election and serve another four-year term in the White House.
So far, at least 17 congressional Democrats have called on him to step down and allow the party to choose another flag-bearer, some of whom announced their stance after the news conference Thursday night.
Democrats worry that Biden’s low public approval ratings and growing concerns that he is too old for the job could cause him to lose seats in the House and Senate, eroding his grip on power in Washington if Trump wins the White House.
But Biden made it clear he has no plans to step down.
“If I come to the convention and everybody says they want somebody else, that’s the democratic process,” Biden said, and then added a stage whisper, which he often uses to emphasize, “That’s not going to happen.”
Biden likely did not reassure those who were appalled by his poor performance in the June 27 presidential debate against Trump.
At one point, he referred to his vice president, Kamala Harris, as “Vice President Trump.” This came just hours after he introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin” at a NATO summit, leaving those in the room stunned.
Biden sometimes fumbled his answers at the news conference but still offered detailed assessments of global issues, including Ukraine’s war with Russia and the Israel-Gaza conflict, reminiscent of his decades of experience on the world stage.
Some Democrats weren’t convinced.
“We must put forward the strongest candidate to confront the threat posed by the MAGA authoritarianism that Trump promised. I no longer believe that is Joe Biden,” said Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, who called on the president to end his campaign after the news conference.
A senior campaign official, who asked not to be named, said the performance was “the worst. Not good. But not bad enough to make him change his mind … It will get him public support, but privately he’s going to say he’s not ready for it.”
Fundraiser Dmitry Melhorn said other donors told him they had seen the president perform very well. “This is the man who can beat Trump. The mistakes are already there and the potential for further correction is very high,” he told Reuters.
Biden will hold a rally in Detroit on Friday, where his campaign says he will focus on the “dangers” of Trump’s agenda.
The Michigan city is also the headquarters of the United Auto Workers labor union, whose leaders had endorsed Biden but are now assessing their options, three sources told Reuters.
Most American voters are divided into ideological camps, and opinion polls show the race is tough.
