“I don’t walk as easily 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 do know. I know how to tell the truth,” U.S President, Joe Biden said at a North Carolina rally as he addressed the widespread criticism of his presidential debate performance.
During the debate, Biden delivered a shaky performance, stumbling over his words on several occasions and at times was unable to finish sentences.
His opponent, Donald Trump, made a series of falsehoods which Biden failed to refute.
Biden failed to put voters’ concerns about his biggest vulnerability; his age, to rest.
A poll conducted after the debate found that 72% of registered voters now believe that Biden does not have the mental and cognitive health to serve as President.
That is seven points higher than weeks before the debate.
In failing to decisively refute Trump’s falsehoods and articulate a compelling vision, Biden inadvertently bolstered his opponent’s campaign
He failed to reassure voters of his capabilities during the debate, highlighting a vulnerability that adversaries are likely to exploit in the future.
More importantly, Biden failed to convince swing voters, leaving crucial swing voters reassessing their allegiances.
Following Biden’s debate performance, there have been calls for him to step aside.
However, no major party figures have broken ranks to call for Biden to step down, with prominent Democrats including past presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton voicing support.
It will not be an easy process to replace Joe Biden at this late stage of the process, with him having triumphed mostly unopposed during the primaries and all set to be confirmed as the nominee at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August.
Since Biden is the presumptive nominee after dominating Democratic primaries, there’s no realistic way for the party to move on. The only significant change would be if he were to voluntarily step aside.
Some party leaders fear a new nominating contest at this point would run the risk of setting off an internal civil war that could effectively hand Trump the presidency.
Ultimately, the only person who can determine the fate of this campaign is Joe Biden himself.
The Democratic damage control strategy is basically arguing that one bad night does not detract from Biden’s past successes.
Biden campaign spokesperson, Michael Tyler said to reporters, “We’d rather have one bad night than a candidate with a bad vision for where he wants to take the country.”
Biden Has To Step Up
So far, there is no sign that the 81-year-old President is contemplating abandoning his campaign.
The President has stepped up campaigning since the television debate.
After his campaign speech in North Carolina, he went to six more election events in four different states.
“I intend to win this election. When you get knocked down, you get back up,” Biden said at North Carolina.
“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious. I would not be running again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul that I could do this job. The stakes are too high.”
Joe Biden
As the election cycle progresses, Biden faces a formidable task in reshaping public perceptions and restoring confidence in his ability to govern effectively.
The challenge lies in Biden’s ability to pivot, regain lost ground, and persuade a skeptical electorate of his capacity to lead the nation forward.
This demands not only strategic political maneuvering but also a renewed commitment to clarity, coherence, and transparency in communication.
Only by addressing these concerns head-on can Biden hope to regain lost ground and reaffirm his capacity to lead the nation forward.
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