Former US President Barack Obama (L) and former US President Bill Clinton (R) cheer US President Joe Biden during a campaign fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on March 28, 2024 to.
Brendan Smialowski | Afp | Getty Images
Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton attempted to do some damage control Friday after President Joe Biden lost in the debate against his November election opponent, former President Donald Trump.
“Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know. But this election is still a choice between someone who has spent his entire life fighting for the common people and someone who only cares about himself,” Obama said in a post on X, linking to the Biden campaign website. “Last night didn’t change that, and that’s why there’s so much at stake in November.”
A few hours later, Clinton imitated the defensive play.
“I’ll leave the assessment of the debate to the experts, but one thing I know: Facts and history count,” Clinton said in his own post on X, following with a short list of Biden’s accomplishments.
During Thursday’s 90-minute showdown, Biden stumbled regularly, pausing mid-sentence to collect his words and stumbling over his sentences. The mistakes even happened on issues like abortion and the economy, which he repeatedly discusses at campaign rallies and at White House events.
The messages from Obama and Clinton mark a shift in strategy for Democrats as they seek to correct course after Thursday’s flop.
Much of the Democratic statement immediately after the debate sought to downplay Biden’s glaring mistakes, instead attacking Trump’s performance and giving Biden a generous assessment.
“As the night goes on, I think [Biden] “I really rose to the occasion,” Biden co-campaign chairman Mitch Landrieu told NBC News Thursday night after the debate. “I’m proud that he stood up to Donald Trump.”
Obama and Clinton’s comments represent a new tactic: Acknowledge the disaster of the debate and tell the public not to focus on it.
Biden himself followed this formulation on Friday during a rally in North Carolina: “Guys, I don’t walk as lightly as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to.” But I know what I know: I know how to tell the truth.
But debates are important for voters. After the September 2020 debate, numerous polls showed that voters thought Biden did a better job, which helped him maintain his lead over Trump.
This year’s presidential race has been all but dead so far and is expected to be won by a narrow margin in November, leaving little room for error.
In the days since the debate, Democrats have been concerned about how it might affect the perceptions of voters already fraught with concerns about Biden’s age and his fitness to lead the country for another four years.
Some Democratic strategists, donors and pundits have already suggested that Biden should drop out of the race and reopen the Democratic field to potentially stronger candidates.
The Biden campaign has so far rejected this proposal. Biden and Trump are expected to face off in a second and final debate on September 10th.
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2024-06-29 14:36:53
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