HOOKSETT, N.H. – Voters in New Hampshire, a key Northeastern battleground state, say President Biden’s extremely tough performance in a debate with former President Trump two weeks ago will heavily influence their decision on who to support in the 2024 reelection race.
“I’m leaning a little bit towards Donald Trump because the debate performance was really, really, really impactful to me and I was really surprised by Joe Biden’s performance,” Mario, a New Hampshire voter, told Fox News.
Mario and about a dozen other voters stopped at a highway rest stop halfway between New Hampshire’s capital, Concord, and the state’s largest city, Manchester, on Monday to voice their opinions.
After a tough performance in his first head-to-head debate with Trump, Biden has been trying to prove he still has the stamina and agility to handle the toughest, most demanding job in the world — and the mental fortitude to beat Trump.
Newsom says calls from fellow Democrats for Biden to end reelection campaign ‘unhelpful’
President Biden and former President Trump debate in Atlanta. (Getty Images)
Discussion This was a major setback for Biden, who at 81 is the oldest president in U.S. history. His halting speech and halting answers in the Atlanta contest caused widespread panic within the Democratic Party, with calls both public and privately growing within the party for Biden to step down as the standard-bearer for the 2024 presidential election.
Over the past week and a half, six House Democrats have publicly called on Biden to end his reelection bid, and on Sunday, Fox News and other outlets reported that four House Democrats who serve on key committees said in a private conference call that the president needed to step aside.
Biden responds to Democrats’ calls for withdrawal: ‘It will only help Trump and hurt us’
In a letter to Democratic lawmakers sent on Monday after returning from the July 4th holiday, Biden reiterated his commitment to “keep this campaign going” and insisted, “The question of how to proceed has been debated for over a week now and it is time to end it. We have one job: to defeat Donald Trump.”
“Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the agenda ahead will only help Trump and hurt us,” the president added. “Now is the time to come together, to move forward as a party and to defeat Donald Trump.”
President Biden spoke at a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
“I’m not a Donald Trump fan,” Mario said, adding, “I think Donald Trump is too old.”
“But for me, he’s the slightly younger of the two and a little bit more experienced, so I’m leaning towards him at the moment.”
New Hampshire voter William Jacopucci said Biden “has been a great president. I really like him. I think he’ll do a good job for the rest of his term.”
But, he added, “In three or four years’ time, he’ll be a lot older, so, although I really like him, I think we should give someone else another chance.”
“President Biden’s actions are very disappointing, but all things considered, at this point, I would still fully support him tomorrow,” New Hampshire voter Al Burns told Fox News.
“I hope he withdraws from the race, but I will support him or his successor — anyone other than Donald Trump,” Burns emphasized.
House Democratic leaders call on Biden to step down
“Biden doesn’t seem to know what he’s talking about,” said Rose, a New Hampshire voter who said she leans toward Trump.
But she criticised both Biden and Trump’s debate performances, adding that she “felt like they both just talked in circles around each other”.
The voter was interviewed a few minutes ago. Governor Gavin Newsom The California lawmaker, a key surrogate for Biden’s reelection campaign, arrived at the highway rest stop to attack a small but growing number of Democratic lawmakers urging the president to end his reelection bid.
“It’s not going to help anything, I’ll be frank with you,” Newsom told reporters in New Hampshire, the third battleground state where he has been campaigning on Biden’s behalf since Thursday.
Asked by Fox News about the political damage caused by such calls from within his party, Newsom said, “Obviously, it’s unhelpful, but it’s a small minority of people.”
And the governor emphasized that the “overwhelming majority of the caucus” still supports Biden: “Everywhere I went the six days that I was out, we had to change venues because so many people showed up. They showed up without giving in to skepticism or fear.”
Trump’s approval rating rises in post-debate polls after Biden’s failure
Newsom spoke to reporters shortly afterward. White House officials As President Trump defended Biden’s health and denied that he’d ever been treated for Parkinson’s, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre fielded a barrage of questions Monday afternoon about recent reports that a top neurologist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center met with Biden’s physician at the White House in January.
“Has the president been treated for Parkinson’s? No,” she told reporters after being pressed further on the subject. “Is he being treated for Parkinson’s? No. He’s not being treated for Parkinson’s. Is he taking medication for Parkinson’s? No. So those are the questions I can answer for you completely.”
Asked if he had concerns about Biden’s cognitive ability, Newsom said: “I have no concerns.”
“I’ve spent more time with him than probably any other governor in the country, if not more,” Newsom emphasized. “I’ve spent a lot of time with him personally, I’ve spent a lot of public time with him, I was with other governors just a few days ago, we’ve had late night and early morning phone calls, we’ve had very casual conversations in a lot of stressful situations. And I have no doubt about that.”
Several national polls conducted in full after the debate and released last week contained a number of warning signs for Trump, including a widening of his single-digit lead over Biden and growing concern among Americans about whether Biden is up to the task of running the country.
Despite denials, Newsom’s name has frequently been mentioned in media reports as a possible successor if the president changes his mind and decides to end his re-election campaign.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, President Biden’s top surrogate, speaks with voters during a stop at a highway rest stop in Hooksett, New Hampshire, on July 8, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Asked whether he would seek the nomination at his party’s convention in Chicago next month if the president declines, Newsom said: “I think that’s a legitimate question and I respect that.”
But, he quickly added, “This is also exactly the question Donald Trump wants people to ask him when he’s on the golf course.”
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Asked if the media attention was an intentional sabotage, the governor replied, “Of course it is.”
“Look, this is intentional. I know how they operate,” Newsom said, pointing a finger at conservative media. “This is all being deliberately instigated to create a little stir. Mishegos (Yiddish word meaning insanity or reckless behavior or activity)
“I don’t take it personally. I don’t take it seriously, but sometimes I think other people take it more seriously than they should,” Newsom said.
“This is deliberate misinformation and disinformation and it can be very effective. We have to counter it. That’s why I’m here.”
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