Can Biden turn things around again? The 81-year-old wants to show that he is the right presidential candidate for the Democrats. Whether he will succeed, however, is questionable.
US President Joe Biden is facing crucial tests in the fight for his candidacy that could decide his political future. The Democrat wants to show how fit he is in a TV interview and a campaign trip to the US state of Wisconsin. The 81-year-old is under intensive observation – every appearance is closely watched. He is trying to dispel any doubts about his suitability for the office. But according to reports, support is continuing to crumble, and major donors to the Democratic Party are now turning away from him – including the granddaughter of a founder of the media company Disney.
A week ago, Biden had a disastrous performance in the evening’s televised debate with his Republican challenger Donald Trump, making several mistakes and losing the thread. After the appearance, a debate broke out in the USA about whether Biden is really the right candidate for the Democrats in the presidential election in November. Trump knows how to exploit his political opponent’s weakness and recently challenged him to another TV debate. This would make Biden’s lack of competence clear, said the 78-year-old.
Biden often has a hard time making appearances where he cannot read from the teleprompter. He regularly stumbles over words and confuses names and places. This is probably one of the reasons why the Democrat rarely gives TV interviews. Apparently, however, the pressure was so great that Biden will answer questions from TV journalist George Stephanopoulos in Wisconsin today. The entire interview is to be broadcast at prime time (2 a.m. on Saturday night in Germany).
At the same time, Biden’s campaign team has reportedly announced that the president plans to travel to contested states in the coming weeks. The 81-year-old will also speak freely more often. After his TV debacle, the Democrat’s poll numbers deteriorated not only at the national level, but also in the important states that are not clearly assigned to the Democrats or Republicans. These are usually considered to be decisive in the election.
Party donors are apparently increasingly nervous about Biden’s performance. NBC and the New York Times reported that a wealthy Disney heiress wants to withhold her financial support for the party until Biden withdraws from the presidential race. “Biden is a good man who has served his country well, but there is far too much at stake to allow timidity to dictate our actions,” both media outlets quoted Abigail Disney as saying. If Biden does not step down, the Democrats will lose.
According to the New York Times, a group of donors is also working to financially support the next generation of the Democratic Party. The money could be used for a possible successor candidate. Election campaigns in the USA are extremely expensive. Only those who have the necessary cash can stay in the race – and hold their own.
Biden gave short speeches at the White House on Thursday during the celebrations for the national holiday. “I’m not going anywhere,” Biden said spontaneously at a barbecue for active military personnel in the garden of the White House after a short read-out speech. His actual speech before the fireworks began over the green area of the National Mall not far from the White House was very short – Biden at least seemed a little exhausted. The USA’s national holiday on July 4th, which dates back to the Declaration of Independence in 1776, is traditionally celebrated with parties, parades and fireworks.
