Experts say President Biden must use this week’s NATO summit in Washington to make the case that he is worthy of being his party’s nominee, but Democrats remain skeptical of his performance in the debates.
“This is a crucial week for President Biden, not only because there will be a lot of interest in what he says at his press conference, but because this summit will be a clear example of the restoration of American global leadership in support of our national defense,” Joel Rubin, a former senior State Department official during the Obama administration, told Fox News Digital.
“Long-term bipartisan investments in NATO are paying off, and the president will have an opportunity at this summit to remind the American people why his approach to building security alliances with our global partners advances both America’s security abroad and our economy at home.”
Biden has been facing growing resistance in his reelection campaign since his debate with former President Trump, the Republican front-runner. Many consider the debate a disaster because it made the president look worse than many expected. “I have no idea what you meant at the end of that sentence,” Trump said, as Biden appeared to trail off during his response.
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Reaction to this seeming inadequacy has been intense. Pro-Biden media, including major newspaper editorial boards, have begun publishing op-eds urging the president to hand over the campaign to another candidate. There are also rumors circulating that House and Senate Democrats will write the president a letter urging him to reconsider running for a second term.
That scrutiny will likely continue intensified at a NATO summit this week, which Biden will lead in the nation’s capital and must use as an opportunity to show the American people he is still up to the task, several lawmakers said.
A reporter works in the media center at the NATO Summit in Washington, DC, on July 9, 2024. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
“With the world’s eyes on the NATO summit, Biden must demonstrate to the American people that he is capable of serving the remainder of this term, let alone any future terms,” Rep. Mike Lawler, D-New York, told Fox News Digital.
“President Biden has a responsibility to demonstrate that he is competent and up to the task,” Lawler said. “What we’ve seen in recent weeks is insufficient to meet that responsibility.”
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Sen. Mike Waltz, a Republican from Florida, argued that Biden’s situation is difficult enough without having to “pander to allies” and keep China and Russia “on his radar.” Waltz called the whole situation “scary.”
“With our borders open and our enemies advancing, we are at our greatest risk,” Waltz said. “The world has two clear choices in November: further weakness and chaos under a Biden administration, or we can emerge strong again under a Trump administration.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), left, Canadian Ambassador to the United States Kirsten Hillman, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (R-NY/Dakota), in Leader Schumer’s office on the U.S. Capitol on July 9, 2024. (Bonnie Cash/Getty Images)
A spokesman for Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania) pointed to recent comments Fetterman made about Biden and his fitness for the job, in which he accused party members of trying to abandon him because of his poor performance in the debates. During an appearance on Fox News this month, the senator called that response “the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”
“So if you want to vote Democrat or stay a Democrat or are prepared to move away from Joe Biden, you’re helping Trump by moving away,” Fetterman told Fox News Sunday anchor Shannon Bream, pointing to his difficult debate performance prior to his historic win as proof that recovery is possible.
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“I refuse to join the Democratic vultures who have been riding Biden’s shoulders since the debate. No one knows better than me that a tough debate is not the sum of a person and their record,” Fetterman wrote on social media platform X shortly after the debate ended and panic spread throughout the party.
Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) “When you have a president who presents himself as weak, you invite conflict, aggression and war,” he told Fox Business’ “Bernie & Company” host Stuart Birney, referring to the war between Russia and Ukraine and the Israeli operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg throws the ceremonial first pitch before the Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals game on July 8, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Mitchell Leighton/Getty Images)
“After the debate performance, in my view, it was extremely dangerous because it sends a signal of weakness and incompetence to foreign adversaries,” McCaul added, writing in a separate message to X: “As world leaders gather in Washington this week, all eyes are on the president.”
The ongoing war in Ukraine is now in its third year with no clear path to an end, making the NATO summit already crucial, Rubin said, and with threats from Russia, China, Iran and others remaining, NATO needs to leave the meeting with some direction and clarity of intent.
“President Biden has successfully pressured the vast majority of NATO member states (23 of 37) to meet a key threshold of dedicating 2% of GDP to defense spending,” Rubin noted.
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“When his administration took office, that number was six,” he explained. “NATO will also announce a plan to build a bridge for Ukraine to join NATO and will back this plan with concrete actions, such as elevating the coordination of Ukraine’s defense assistance under NATO command.”
“Finally, and most importantly, the American defense industry will have access to new global investment opportunities at home and abroad. More than $36 billion in American taxpayer funds dedicated to the Ukrainian military will now be spent in nearly every state in the country,” Rubin said.
Fox News Digital’s Julia Johnson contributed to this report.
