Biden’s week of reckoning at NATO summit

It’s been a week of reckoning for Joe Biden.

Twelve days after a fitful debate performance that could go down as one of the most devastating in modern American history, the president is fighting for his political survival amid intense domestic and global scrutiny.

This week’s NATO summit in Washington, D.C., could be his path to at least a temporary reprieve, or the president’s last stand.

Biden has lashed out at critics over the past few days, claiming a mandate from Democratic primary voters and challenging opponents to step up and try to unseat him.

He has repeatedly promised that he will continue to press forward with his campaign and that the era of second-guessing and worrying is over. This urgent task will begin at the NATO summit.

Biden will host coalition leaders for three days of meetings and public events, culminating in a separate news conference on Thursday afternoon.

For Biden, who is well versed in foreign relations, he should feel comfortable on this stage. But it also raises the already high stakes of his presidency, as a poor performance would have international and domestic repercussions.

A mistake could trigger a political panic among Democrats that could even dampen his hopes of running in the November election, let alone winning it.

It could also heighten concerns among European allies about the growing likelihood of a Donald Trump presidency and the dramatic shift in foreign policy that would come with it.

“Biden’s performance has subsided a bit this week,” said Kristen Belzina, managing director of northern geostrategy at the German Marshall Fund.

“We don’t know how he’s going to exit.”

It is understood that many European leaders are anxious about Trump and his foreign policy strategies. The former president disparaged multilateral international alliances.

Over the past two weeks, however, these leaders have experienced something new — Biden anxiety, Ms. Belzina said.

After his poor debate performance, U.S. allies began to wonder whether the president was up to the task, she said.

At the upcoming NATO summit, they hope to see some evidence that his performance that night was an aberration and did not reflect the new normal.

“It’s concerning for close allies, the most meaningful allies, to be shaken,” Ms. Belzina said.

“So I think Biden has a good chance of passing the test. But if he fails to deliver on his promise, it will raise more questions about the reliability of the United States.”

Eyes will be on the U.S. president as he attends summits, hosts foreign leaders at the White House and holds bilateral meetings with key leaders, including newly elected British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Even after NATO’s closed-door meeting, news about Biden’s performance – good or bad – is sure to leak out.

Biden faces a tougher task at home this week.

The president noted that supporting and expanding NATO in the face of Russian aggression is one of his major achievements.

This is what differentiates his leadership from that of Trump and any Democrats who might replace him on the ballot, and this summit will be his chance to demonstrate that to the American public.

“Who can keep NATO together like me?” the president said in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Friday. He added that a NATO summit would be a good way to judge his capabilities.

“Come and listen,” he said. “Look what they say.”

But for the many politicians, pundits and party activists who have called for his ouster, simply dispelling the low expectations at the NATO summit and Thursday’s news conference may not be enough.

“Just having some good looks isn’t going to stop these problems,” said Bill Scher, a liberal pundit and Washington Monthly editor who recently wrote a column calling on Biden to step aside for vice president. Kamala Harris.

“Time is really of the essence to nip all speculation in the bud and they have wasted a week. There is no clear way out of this situation.

Mr. Scheer, a longtime supporter of Mr. Biden, said that after public opposition to him had solidified, the president was now trying to fight back through media interviews, letters and phone calls to Democratic politicians.

Once that sentiment is sufficiently solidified in the polls — which could take weeks — it may be too late to replace him outright.

“I understand how difficult it is when you’re nearing the end of your life and you’re not doing as well as you once did,” Mr Schell said. “It’s really painful to have to accept that in public.”

But data showing Biden is losing support and facing defeat in November is becoming increasingly clear.

Polls show that nearly three-quarters of Americans — even a majority of Democrats — think the president should step down. Six congressional Democrats called on him to abandon his campaign, while many others offered only vague support.

However, the president continues to say he will move forward with his campaign and that he has the national convention delegates to ensure he becomes the Democratic nominee. The decision is firmly in his hands, and if he can get through the week without making a major mistake, he might actually weather the storm ahead.

This week’s story, however, has been set. This is not an event where NATO celebrates its 75th anniversary and focuses on the challenges ahead.

Instead, this narrative may determine whether Mr. Biden can continue to fight politically.