Democratic candidate U.S. President Joe Biden and Republican candidate former U.S. President Trump attended the presidential debate held in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States, on June 27, 2024.
Brian Snyder | Reuters
Democrats are working on a media tour on Sunday to reshape perceptions of President Joe Biden after a poor debate performance that left voters cringing and his party in a damage-control frenzy.
“Yes, it was a bad performance,” Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, a close Biden ally, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “I know it when I see what’s called preparation overload. And that’s exactly what happened that night.”
The South Carolina Democrat followed the post-debate spin formula that Biden supporters have come up with since Thursday’s showdown: admitting a mistake and then pivoting to criticism of former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.
“Joe Biden should continue to run with his record. I do believe that compared to Trump’s four-year record, we will find that he is exactly what we need going forward,” Clyburn said.
Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton followed this structure in a similar argument on Friday.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Delaware Democratic Senator Chris Coons, and Georgia Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., also defended Biden at a media gathering on Sunday.
Despite receiving full media coverage, Biden’s performance in Thursday’s debate, in which he repeatedly stumbled over words or answered questions incorrectly, only heightened voters’ concerns about his age and suitability for a second term as president.
A new CBS News/YouGov poll conducted June 28-29 found that 72% of registered voters surveyed said Biden should not run for president, up from 63% in February. The poll also found that 72% of respondents believed Biden did not have the mental and cognitive ability to serve as president, a 7% increase since June 9.
Polls taken shortly after major events like Thursday’s debate represent a knee-jerk reaction. As the initial hype dies down and voters have more time to process, a more accurate snapshot of public sentiment may emerge. The CBS News Poll surveyed 1,130 registered voters and had a margin of error of +/- 4.2%.
But the new data directly conflicts with Biden’s argument that voters are not as upset by his debate missteps as political pundits are.
“I understand people’s concerns about this debate. I get it. I had a great night. But this is [is] What’s not being reported: Voters are reacting differently than experts are reacting,” the president said at a Saturday campaign event in East Hampton, N.Y. “Since the debate, the polls have shown some change, and we’ve actually gone up. .
Biden and Trump are scheduled to hold a second debate on September 10, but it is unclear whether the two candidates will follow through.
Ultimately, the debate sparked Democratic thinking about whether Biden should remain the presumptive nominee.
Some Democratic strategists, as well as newspaper editorial boards across the country, have suggested he should resign and give up delegates before the Democratic National Convention in August to allow someone else to succeed Trump in November.
Biden will travel to Camp David with his family on Sunday, where he is expected to discuss the path forward for his reelection campaign, according to NBC News.
Meanwhile, the Biden campaign has racked up a huge amount of fundraising since the debate. Biden campaign spokesman Kevin Munoz said that as of Sunday morning, the campaign had raised $33 million since Thursday, $26 million of which came from grassroots donors.
Munoz added that nearly half of the grassroots funding comes from donors giving to campaigns for the first time this election season.
