According to information obtained by The Washington Post, Biden’s campaign donors are giving the president a two-week grace period following his dismal performance in the debate against former President Donald Trump.
Any dip in the 81-year-old president’s approval rating after two weeks would be problematic and unpalatable to donors, a source familiar with a conference call with major campaign donors on Monday told The Washington Post.
In a more than hour-long Zoom call aimed at reassuring big donors, the Democratic National Finance Committee quashed speculation that Biden might give up on reelection.
“The call was very reassuring,” the source said. “He’s moving forward with full force and will likely do better in the next debate. The campaign is running as normal.”
“They have dispelled any speculation that he will withdraw. The purpose of the call is to see the way forward.”
The committee told donors that its internal polling had been very strong and there was no sign that Biden’s approval rating had dropped after the debate.
Someone on the call seemed to say the president would do more speeches to the nation to get donors, the media and voters to focus on the issues, not the debates, but he didn’t want Biden to go off script.
“They want to get him out there … but they want to make sure he sticks to the script,” the source said.
“They will be using teleprompters at every event possible,” the source added.
The Biden campaign denied this was true.
“Their interpretation of the teleprompter was incorrect,” a Biden campaign spokesman told The Washington Post. “Nobody on the Biden campaign said that.”
Addressing the nation from the White House on Monday, Biden blasted the Supreme Court’s decision that granted absolute immunity to Trump, 78, for official acts performed while in office.
Biden carefully read his speech from two teleprompters as he refused to answer shouted questions from reporters about his crushing defeat at Thursday’s CNN debate or the future of his reelection campaign.
“He’s calm and focused on the future,” the source said of Democratic Party insiders’ remarks about Biden’s current state of mind.
“The donors are not asking for their donations to be returned,” the source claimed.
a Morning Consult Poll A survey released Monday found that 44% of registered voters support Trump, while 43% support Biden.
The survey was conducted between June 28 and June 30, just days after last week’s debate, and showed Biden’s approval rating slipping from a June 16 poll showing him leading Trump by one point.
