Joe Biden’s family has urged him to stay in the race after a disastrous debate performance last week, with senior Democrats and donors expressing anger at the way his staff prepared his campaign, according to US media reports.
The president gathered with his family at Camp David on Sunday, where discussions reportedly included questions about his political future. Pressure has mounted on Biden in the past few days, when his indecisive performance in a debate highlighted his weaknesses and invited experts, media and voters to call for him to step down.
According to the New York Times, at the meeting at Camp David, Biden’s family members, including the president’s wife, children and grandchildren, told him that he could still show Americans that he was capable of serving another four years.
Although his family is aware of how poorly he has performed, they still believe he is the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump, according to reports.
The strongest voices pleading with Biden to resist pressure to withdraw are his wife, Jill, and his son, Hunter, who last month became the first sitting president to be convicted of a felony after a jury found him guilty, the Associated Press reported. children.
The trip to Camp David was prearranged to take a photo with Annie Leibovitz at the upcoming Democratic National Convention.
Relatives of the president are also said to be critical of the way his closest advisers prepared him for the debate.
During the debate, Biden, who had a gravelly voice, swayed and stuttered, stammering multiple times and sometimes unable to finish his sentences. His opponent, Donald Trump, has spun a series of lies, including claiming that he actually won the 2020 election, but Biden has failed to refute it.
On Sunday, a narrative began to emerge that accused Biden of spending six days in isolation at Camp David for a rigorous debate preparation schedule.
“I believe he’s overtrained, overpracticed,” said John Morgan, a Florida attorney and a major Biden fundraiser.
Critics of Biden’s performance also say preparations should focus on the larger vision he needs to sell to the nation.
“My only request is to make sure he rests before the debate, but he’s exhausted. He’s not feeling well,” one person who said he made the appeal to top Biden aides days ago told Reuters. “What a terrible decision to send him out looking sick and exhausted.”
Calls for Biden to step down have grown louder since a CBS post-debate poll showed the number of Democrats who believe Biden should not run for president rose to 46% from 36% in February.
Biden’s approval ratings have been declining since he took office, and after Thursday concerns about his age and handling of crises at home and abroad were highlighted more than ever before.
Prominent Democrats took to talk shows Sunday to acknowledge the president’s poor performance but continued to support him.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries acknowledged Biden’s setback but said it was “nothing more than a preparation for a comeback.”
Raphael Warnock, the Democratic senator from Georgia and a Baptist pastor, said there were “several Sundays where I wished I could have preached a better sermon,” linking the experience to Biden’s debate performance .
“But after the sermon is over, my job is to embody the message and show up for the people I serve. That’s what Joe Biden has been doing his whole life,” Warnock said.
However, not all Democrats appear to agree. Asked on Sunday if the party was discussing new 2024 candidates, Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin told MSNBC: “There’s a very honest, serious process going on at every level of our party. And strictly dialogue, because this is a political party, we’re on point of view.
“Whether he’s a candidate or someone else is a candidate, he’s going to be the keynote speaker at our convention. He’s going to be the figure that we rally around moving forward,” Raskin said.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report
