According to reports, President Biden felt humiliated by his performance in Thursday’s debate and was “lacking in confidence.”
“It’s chaos,” said a person familiar with the president’s mood after the debate. He told NBC News.
The outlet reported that following Biden’s debate performance, several prominent Democrats have privately expressed concerns about Biden’s chances of beating Donald Trump in November’s presidential election, but they continue to staunchly support Biden in public.
“The only person who has ultimate influence over him is the first lady,” another person told the outlet. “If she decides a change in policy is needed, that will happen.”
President Joe Biden walks off stage during the CNN presidential debate at CNN Studios on June 27, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The president and his family are reportedly scheduled to hold private discussions about the future of his campaign at Camp David on Sunday.
“Any discussions about the campaign are expected to be informal or after the fact,” a person close to the Biden family told NBC. “No one is sitting down to have any formal or definitive discussions.”
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Biden spoke about his debate performance at a rally in North Carolina on Friday.
“I know I’m not young. I can’t walk as easily as I used to, I can’t talk as smoothly as I used to, I can’t argue as well as I used to. But I know what I know: I know how to tell the truth!” Biden told his supporters.
President Joe Biden exits with First Lady Jill Biden after the CNN presidential debate at CNN Studios on June 27, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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“Frankly, this job is too dangerous for me to do this job,” Biden said in his speech. “Donald Trump is a real threat to this country.”
He also told the crowd that he wouldn’t run for re-election if he didn’t think he could do the job.
Speaking at a fundraiser in New Jersey on Saturday, the president acknowledged it had not been a “great night.”
“Police during the debate found that we converted more undecided voters to our support than Trump did, and a big part of that is because of what Trump did on January 6th,” he said. “People remember the bad things he did while he was president.”
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Biden’s campaign said it has raised $27 million since his debate performance.
The next debate, hosted by ABC News, is scheduled for September 10th.
The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
