RALEIGH, N.C. — Chairman Joe Biden tried to turn his disappointing debate performance into a rallying cry for his supporters at an event on Friday, portraying himself as gloomy but not outrageous, as some in his party are whispering about replacing him atop the ticket.
“I know I’m not a young man. I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t argue as well as I used to, but I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. gotta tell!” said an energetic Biden, nodding to the criticism he received after Thursday night’s debate as he contrasted it with assessments of the accuracy of several of the former president’s statements Donald Trump.
“When you get knocked down, you get back up,” Biden shouted to a cheering crowd.
“I plan to win this state in November,” Biden said of North Carolina. “If we win here, we win the election.”
The campaign event, in a state that has not elected a Democratic presidential candidate since Barack Obama in 2008, comes after what many political observers and some Democrats called a poor performance by Biden in Thursday night’s debate against former President Donald Trump.
The president’s low energy levels and gravelly, gravelly voice during Thursday’s debate sent some Democrats into a tailspin as they worried that a week of preparation at Camp David had yielded a lackluster performance.
There were moments when the 81-year-old Biden froze during the debate and seemed to lose his train of thought, and moments when he stumbled over his words, despite having struggled with a stutter all his life.
Biden said Friday about last night: “I stood on stage for 90 minutes and debated the man who has the morals of an alley cat.”
Although Biden coughed at times during his Friday speech, his demeanor was more animated, delivering offensive remarks and stirring up the crowd.
Biden said that when he reflected on Trump’s 34 felony convictions, his sexual assault of E. Jean Carroll and the multimillion-dollar fine for corporate fraud, “I thought to myself, Donald Trump is not just a convicted felon — Donald Trump is a one-man crime wave.”
A senior Biden adviser said the campaign team worked closely with the president on Friday morning to prepare his closing remarks in Raleigh on the debate. It was, the advisor said, not a response to the negative reporting or the increasing calls within the party to consider stepping aside. Biden, the adviser said, knows full well that he did not deliver the performance he needed last night and knew he had to do something about it immediately on Friday.
First Lady Jill Bidenwore a black dress with the words ‘vote’ in white letters. She gave a speech to her husband, praising the president’s strength and leadership.
“Despite facing unimaginable tragedy, his optimism is unwavering, his strength unwavering, his hope undiminished,” she said. “And over the past few years, Joe has helped heal our country, helped us all recover from the chaos of the previous administration.”
“We don’t choose our chapter in history, but we can choose who will lead us through it,” she continued. “What you saw on the debate stage last night was Joe Biden — a president of integrity and character who told the truth — and Donald Trump telling lie after lie after lie.”
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, a Democrat, said onstage that there were 130 days left before “the biggest election of our lifetime.”
“I know tensions are running high right now, but this election isn’t just about what kind of president we want to have. This election is about what kind of country we want to be,” said Cooper, who asked the audience if they were in “Donald Trump’s America.” Finally, the crowd started chanting “lock him up!”
At the event, several Biden supporters acknowledged his lackluster performance but defended him.
“It wasn’t his best night, but he’s a better president,” John Burns said. “He is a better man and he will have my vote and my work for the next five months.”
“When you look at everything he’s done for our country and what he means to us, I think you’re not just looking at a moment in time, but his contributions to our country and our society,” Tara Winters said.
Another supporter, David Tillem, said advisers need to do a better job of “pacing” the campaign. “Who else is there? That’s the question. He’s the one leading the way. Can he do it? Yes,” he said of Biden. “Is he going to bust his butt during the campaign? Probably needs to pace it better.”
As Biden embarks on post-debate campaign trips, his supporters are quietly brooding in Washington.
Some Democrats, who spoke anonymously to NBC News, began calling on Biden after the debate to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race so the Democratic Party could nominate a new candidate.
Other Democrats who spoke publicly reiterated their support for Biden. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a potential future presidential candidate, told MSNBC immediately after the debate that Democrats should not panic.
“I think it’s futile and I think it’s unnecessary. We’ve got to go in, we’ve got to hold our heads high and as I say, we’ve got to have the back of this president,” he said. “You don’t turn away because of one performance. What party does that?”
He added: “The Democrats have delivered. This president has delivered. We have to deliver something for him right now.”
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, another potential future Democratic presidential candidate, admitted in an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Friday morning that Biden did not do well last night, but stressed that Democrats should “stop worrying.”
“I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with both the former president and President Biden, and you know what I can tell you: Joe Biden is up to the task,” he said.
Gabe Gutierrez and Mike Memoli reported from Raleigh, N.C., and Rebecca Shabad, Jonathan Allen and Kelly O’Donnell reported from Washington.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
