Silverio OmariPresident Joe Biden’s family gathered at Camp David on Sunday, urging him to remain in the race despite his poor debate performance. Some family members criticized how his staff had prepared him, according to four individuals familiar with the discussions.
Biden spent the day with First Lady Jill Biden, his children, and grandchildren at the Maryland retreat, initially planned for a photo shoot with Annie Leibovitz for the upcoming Democratic National Convention. However, the meeting also served as a way to address the rising Democratic anxiety following Thursday’s debate.
Despite acknowledging his poor performance against Donald Trump, Biden’s family believes he is still the best candidate to defeat the Republican presumptive nominee and is capable of serving another term. Jill Biden and Hunter Biden were particularly vocal, advising the president not to withdraw based on one subpar performance and questioning the staff’s debate preparations.
Since the debate, where Biden appeared raspy and gave convoluted answers, his campaign has worked to reassure donors and surrogates as Democrats question his candidacy. At this stage in the delegate process, Biden would need to decide to withdraw for a new nominee to be chosen, and his closest advisors, his wife and son, are encouraging him to continue.
Biden’s age, at 81, had already been a concern for voters, and his debate performance heightened these worries. Over 51 million people watched the debate, according to CNN.
While Biden was with his family, prominent Democrats showed public support for his campaign. Democratic Rep. James Clyburn and Sen. Raphael Warnock defended Biden’s ability to lead and criticized Trump’s falsehoods during the debate. Warnock related Biden’s debate to his own experiences of wishing he had delivered a better sermon but emphasized Biden’s lifelong dedication to public service.
However, some Democrats worried that the campaign and the Democratic National Committee were not addressing the debate’s impact seriously enough. Former Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin called the debate a disaster and suggested that Democratic senators should ask Biden to release his delegates and allow the convention to choose a new candidate, according to an email obtained by The Associated Press.
Rep. Jamie Raskin noted serious conversations within the party about the situation. Despite this, DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison and Biden’s campaign manager, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, provided an optimistic assessment during a call with committee members but did not allow questions, leaving some members feeling dismissed.
“There were a number of things that could have been said in addressing the situation. But we didn’t get that. We were being gaslit,” said Joe Salazar, a DNC member from Colorado.
Muthomi Ireri
