For the first time, the US President admitted that , may not be able to save his candidacy unless he convinces the public in the coming days that he is ready to serve another term after an unsuccessful debate with Donald Trump.
According to The New York Times, Biden shared these thoughts with a key ally, whose name is not mentioned.
President Biden, the ally stressed, is still deep in the fight for re-election, but he knows his next few appearances ahead of the holiday weekend should go well. Those appearances include an interview scheduled for Friday with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos and campaign trips to Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
"He knows that if he has two more such events (like last debates< /em>) until the end of the weekend, we will be in another place”, – said a Biden ally, referring to the president's widely criticized debate performance.
The conversation is the first indication that the president is seriously considering whether he can bounce back from his disastrous performance at the Atlanta debate. on Thursday.
One of Biden's top advisers, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said the president is “well aware of the political challenge he faces.”
After the NYT article was published, White House spokesman Andrew Bates said it was “absolutely false.”
Biden's campaign has been nervously watching the polls, aware that bad numbers could reignite the crisis that has engulfed the president's candidacy.
A CBS News poll on Wednesday showed former President Donald Trump leading Biden 50% to 48% nationally after the debate, with Trump leading 51% to 48% in key battleground states that typically decide elections.
Several Biden allies stressed that the president is still in the fight of his political life and largely views this moment as a chance to come back from the dead, as he has done so many times during his half-century career.
But he is also keenly aware, they say, that he has a tough time convincing voters, donors and the political class that that his performance at the debate was rather an anomaly.
Prepared by: Nina Petrovich