New poll raises concerns for Biden
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The Big Story
New poll raises concerns for Biden
A much-anticipated New York Times/Siena College poll showing former President Trump has expanded his lead over President Biden has become the latest warning sign for the reelection campaign in the aftermath of last week’s debate.
© AP Photo/Evan Vucci
The poll, published Wednesday, showed Trump‘s lead jump to 6 points, up from just 3 a week prior. It’s the largest lead the former president has held in a Times/Siena poll since 2015.
Biden’s campaign is taking several steps to tamp down talks of replacing him as the Democratic nominee in the November general election. This comes as The New York Times reports Biden told a close ally that he knows he needs to convince the public that he can serve four more years to salvage his candidacy, a report that the White House has denied.
Biden is set to sit for his first interview following the debate this coming weekend with “Good Morning America” and “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos. Parts of the interview will air on Friday, while the full interview will air on “This Week” on Sunday and GMA on Monday.
He is also scheduled to hold a solo press conference at the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C., next week.
“We’re going to turn the page, we’re going to get out there across the country, Americans are going to see him for themselves,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a briefing on Tuesday.
Biden’s opportunity last week to shore up his support and overcome fears about his cognitive abilities clearly did not pan out, leading to some within his own party to want to turn to an alternative like Vice President Harris or another Democrat whose name has been floated as a potential replacement in the past week.
Only one congressional Democrat has openly called for Biden to step aside, Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), but a few other notable Democrats have also appealed for it. Others have reportedly supported it privately.
Even those still publicly supportive of Biden have said the president needs to do more and be more aggressive to assure the public of Biden’s abilities instead of, as The Hill’s Alex Gangitano reports, painting a rosy picture and gaslighting Democrats that all is fine.
“It is kind of Orwellian, these claims that people are being told ‘Don’t look at what you saw, that’s not real.’ That’s what George Orwell said in ‘1984,’” said one donor who was on a call with the Democratic National Committee about their attitude on concerns surrounding Biden.
Essential Reads
Key election stories and other recent campaign coverage:
House Democratic leadership is set to hold a call this afternoon, two sources familiar with the matter confirmed to The Hill, as anxiety rises over President Biden’s standing as the party’s nominee. The call — scheduled for 5 p.m. Eastern time — will include Democratic leadership and members of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, one of the sources said. The discussion comes as questions — and concerns …
Vermont Sen. Peter Welch (D) warned Wednesday that President Biden could take other Democrats down with him if he loses badly in November, and said he doesn’t know anymore if Biden would be a stronger candidate than Vice President Kamala Harris. “So if we do really poorly at the presidential level, that creates a fierce undertow,” he said in a CNN interview. “The most important thing is to have Trump out of the office, a Democrat …
President Biden and Vice President Harris joined a call with their reelection campaign staff on Wednesday, during which the president stressed that he will stay on the top of the ticket amid panic within the party over whether he should step aside. “I’m in this race to the end and we’re going to win because when Democrats unite, we will always win. Just as we beat Donald Trump in 2020, we’re going to beat him again in 2024,” …
The Countdown
Upcoming news themes and events we’re watching:
In Other News
Branch out with a different read from The Hill:
The Biden reelection campaign has launched a new ad hitting former President Trump for his comments about “Black jobs” at the presidential debate. In response to the first 2024 general election debate’s only question regarding Black voters, Trump took a shot at President Biden’s immigration stance, arguing that immigrants were stealing “Black jobs.” “They’re taking Black jobs now — and it could be 18, it could be 19 and even …
Former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) says President Biden isn’t doing enough to win back skeptics and get his campaign back on track in the wake of his abysmal debate performance last week. “I’m worried that it’s Wednesday, the debate was Thursday, and all we saw was a five minute press conference that was very muted,” Ryan, who unsuccessfully challenged Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination …
Around the Nation
Local and state headlines regarding campaigns and elections:
Was Trump-Biden debate a game changer? Don’t ask Nevada politicians (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
California Gov. Gavin Newsom to campaign for Biden in West Michigan Thursday (The Detroit News)
What We’re Reading
Election news we’ve flagged from other outlets:
Big Donors Turn on Biden. Quietly. (The New York Times)
The mandate from Kamala Harris’ camp: Stay the course, dispel Biden replacement theories (CNN)
Elsewhere Today
Key stories on The Hill right now:
Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) said Monday he will introduce a constitutional amendment to reverse the Supreme Court ruling issued Monday, which largely shields former presidents from criminal prosecution for actions in office. “I will introduce a constitutional amendment to reverse SCOTUS’ harmful decision and ensure that no president … Read more
Former first lady Michelle Obama is the only Democrat to beat former President Trump in a new poll Tuesday. The survey, conducted by Reuters/Ipsos, found Obama was the only Democrat with a lead on Trump in a hypothetical match-up, garnering 50 percent support to his 39 percent. Only 4 percent of respondents said they would not vote at … Read more
What People Think
Opinions related to campaigns and elections submitted to The Hill:
On Biden’s debate, Democrats have no one to blame but themselves
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