The reviews are in on the first presidential debate between President Biden and former President Donald Trump.
“It wasn’t Biden’s best night,” Rep. Robin Kelly of Illinois admitted to CBS News.
“It pains me to say that the president’s performance was poor,” said Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean. “He had a bad debate. There are no two ways about it.”
“Look, it was a terrible debate,” said Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig, who told reporters she was still “processing” what happened.
But despite all the hand-wringing and quarterbacking on Friday morning over President Biden’s hoarse deliveryverbal stumbles and incomplete thoughts, many Democrats in Congress are unwilling to give up on him, despite some calls within the party’s ranks to consider another candidate.
“That was the first strike,” longtime Biden ally from South Carolina Jim Clyburn told CBS News. “If this was a ball game, he’s got two more swings.”
Clyburn’s message to nervous Democrats: “Stay the course.”
Clyburn, whose Approval 2020 from then-candidate Biden who prompted him to do so victory in the presidential primaries and nominationsaid he plans to speak with the president and is campaigning for him this weekend in Florida and Wisconsin.
“We have to focus on Biden’s record,” said the veteran Democrat, who attributed Biden’s performance to “stylistic” difficulties. “Focus on the substance. We have a workhorse on behalf of the American people. We have a showhorse trying to get him out of office.”
Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi agreed when asked about her impressions of the first confrontation between President Biden and former President Trump.
“Compared to someone who lied all the time, we saw integrity on one side and dishonesty on the other. That’s how I saw it,” Pelosi told CBS News.
Former President Obama also sent a similar message on social media.
“There are bad debate nights. Believe me, I know,” Obama posted. “But this election is still a choice between someone who has spent his life fighting for ordinary people and someone who only cares about himself. Between someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will tell the American people the truth — and someone who lies for his own good. Last night didn’t change that, and that’s why the stakes are so high in November.”
Some Democrats were less forgiving.
“That’s beyond my reach,” Rep. Tom Suozzi, who won a swing district in New York this year, told reporters when asked whether President Biden should resign.
Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire declined to directly answer the question of whether Mr. Biden was fit for another term in an interview with WBUR. Like other Democratic lawmakers, she said he had a “really bad night,” but unlike them, she expressed some uncertainty about what lies ahead.
“I’ve had the opportunity to work with him for the last three and a half years,” she told WBUR. “He’s done a lot for the country. It’s made a difference, and I think there will be evaluations in the future about what happens next. But I can’t give you an answer to that today.”
“I think there’s going to be a lot of discussions about what happens next. I think we’re going to have to see President Biden again and see what happens,” she also said, adding: “He had a really bad night last night. So the question is, is that going to disqualify him for the next four years?
Other lawmakers sought to allay concerns about the 81-year-old president’s impact at the top of electoral races.
“I’m not going to be part of the drama of this city immediately demanding that we’re in crisis because someone had a bad night,” said Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan, who acknowledged that “the purple state” will be competitive. “Let’s see what happens. I’m going to go home and talk to the people in my district.”
“Voters are not going to make a decision because someone has a sore throat,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, of California, who traveled to Atlanta as a campaign deputy and insisted that Mr. Biden will “100%” be the nominee.
The White House confirmed the president had a cold during the debate, describing it as “nothing out of the ordinary.” The Biden campaign held an all-staff call on Friday. Communications director Michael Tyler told reporters the campaign has no plans to change strategy and stressed there had been “no conversations” about Mr. Biden stepping down.
On Friday afternoon, Mr. Biden spoke to an audience in North Carolina, alternately chanting “Joe” and “four more years.” admitted his wrongdoings.
“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious,” the 81-year-old said at a campaign rally in Raleigh. “Folks, I don’t walk as smoothly as I used to. I don’t talk as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know what I do know — I know how to tell the truth.”
