Joe Biden feels “humiliated” and “painfully self-conscious” about his image following his disastrous debate performance as he prepares to discuss the future of his re-election campaign.
The president has retreated to Camp David with his wife, children and grandchildren to take a break from the campaign and weigh his options. NBC News reported for the first time.
Pundits described Biden’s mood as “humiliated and lacking confidence” after his showdown with Donald Trump, in which he stumbled over his words and lost his train of thought several times.
Biden is said to be “painfully aware that the physical images of him at the debate — eyes staring into the distance, mouth agape — will live beyond his presidency.”
The withdrawal comes as his team continues to insist that the idea of him dropping out of the race would only “lead to weeks of chaos,” calling the concerns of several Democrats the work of a “bed-wetting brigade.”
President Joe Biden is said to be “humiliated” and “painfully self-conscious” of his image after his car crash debate saw him stumble over his words and lose his train of thought.
The president has retreated to Camp David with his wife, children and grandchildren to take a break from campaigning and weigh his options.
“Any discussion about the campaign is expected to be informal or an afterthought,” a source told NBC News. “No one will sit down and discuss it formally or decisively.”
However, a person familiar with the dynamics told the outlet that there is only one adviser Biden will ultimately listen to.
“The only person who has the most influence over him is the first lady,” this person said. “If she decides she needs to change course, she will.”
“That’s the best possible way for Donald Trump to win and for us to lose,” Biden’s deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty argued in an email after the president’s latest visit to the Hamptons, where he was confronted by people holding signs with the same message: drop out of school.
“First of all: Joe Biden will be the Democratic nominee, period. End of story. The voters voted. He won overwhelmingly,” Flaherty continued.
While the discussion at Camp David is said to be informal, one source said there is ultimately only one adviser Biden will listen to.
Calls have grown for the president to drop out of the race, including from a plane with a banner reading “BI-DONE!” (pictured) flying over a Hamptons fundraiser he attended
“And if he were to withdraw, it would lead to weeks of chaos, infighting over food, and a group of candidates limping into a brutal convention brawl, all while Donald Trump has time to speak to American voters unopposed.”
He added: “All of this would be at the service of a candidate who would go to a general election in the weakest possible position and with zero dollars in his bank account.
‘You want a highway to loss? This is it.’
His adamant email came after a A plane with a banner that said “BI-DONE!” was seen flying high over the high-profile fundraising event in the Hamptons in the afternoon.
“I saw it flying over East Hampton tonight…” Trump tweeted in response.
At the event, the first couple rubbed shoulders with a host of wealthy donors – as the Times reported several times Silicon Valley’s ‘megadonors’ were trying to reach out to the first lady to influence her. her to convince Biden to withdraw in favor of a younger candidate.
Biden supporters have claimed that the fight over whether Biden should withdraw is “the best possible way for Donald Trump to win and us to lose.”
On Friday, Biden continued to defend his acknowledgement of his performance in the previous day’s debate, speaking at a rally in North Carolina. There, he told spectators that he remained the party’s best bet to beat Trump, despite what millions of people saw on television.
‘I know that I am not a young man, I do not walk as easily as before, I do not speak as softly as before, I do not debate as well as before.
“But I know what I know,” he continued, before receiving a round of thunderous applause.
“I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done.”
“I know, as many Americans know, when you get knocked down, you get up,” he concluded.
Biden has had to defend his candidacy not only among worried Democrats, but also in the media.
In an editorial over the weekend, the New York Times begged Biden to step aside.
Additionally, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote that “retirement is now necessary” for the 81-year-old incumbent, calling on him to pass the torch to a more competent candidate.
Meanwhile, several concerned advisers told Axios on Saturday how the commander in chief should step down.
Biden has not only had to defend his candidacy among concerned Democrats, but also to the media, including major newspapers such as The New York Times.
“This is no longer about Joe Biden’s family or his emotions,” one fed-up adviser told the publication. ‘It’s about our country. “It is a total disaster that needs to be addressed.”
Meanwhile, experts have said the decision is ultimately up to the president at this point in the game, even though he is reportedly too tired to work after 4 p.m. and struggles to wake up before 10 a.m.
A Democratic House member who spoke to NBC News for its Saturday night story on how the president will use the visit to reassess his reelection bid said they, too, believe Biden should step down, but have not yet publicly called for it.
They said three colleagues expressed the same sentiment during House votes on Friday, as Biden continued to hold his own in North Carolina.
House members have also not wavered publicly, and their aides have also rejected the idea that they are having second thoughts behind closed doors.
“Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi has full confidence in President Biden and looks forward to attending his inauguration on January 20, 2025,” said Ian Krager, a spokesman for the former House speaker.
“Any suggestion that she has taken a different course of action is simply not true.”
Biden continued to defend his knowledge of his performance in the previous day’s debate, speaking at a rally in North Carolina insisting that he is still the party’s best bet to beat Trump.
Christie Stephenson, a spokesperson for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, similarly added that her boss has “made clear publicly and privately that he supports President Joe Biden and the Democratic ticket from top to bottom.”
Brianna Frias, a spokeswoman for South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn, said the representative “has complete confidence in President Joe Biden and the Biden-Harris ticket.”
“Any report alleging the congressman has expressed anything other than strong support for President Biden is completely false,” he told NBC News.
That said, Democrats could be giving the president space as he ponders his next steps, and Camp David appears to be a critical point in this decision-making process, as insiders say First Lady Jill has the most influence outside of the her husband’s inner circle.
“The decision makers are two people: the president and his wife,” one of the sources familiar with the discussions about this familiar dynamic told NBC News.
They added: “Anyone who does not understand how deeply personal and familial this decision will be is uninformed about the situation.”
Another person familiar with the matter echoed the idea that Biden will only listen to his wife of nearly 50 years, telling the station: “The only person who has ultimate influence over him is the first lady.
“If she decides there needs to be a change of course, there will be a change of course.”
Biden is said to be “painfully aware that the physical images of him at the debate — eyes staring into the distance, mouth agape — will live beyond his presidency.”
The remarks echoed those issued from inside earlier in the day, after The New York Times reported that she privately viewed Biden’s awkward confrontation with his former rival as simply “a bad night.”
Meanwhile, Biden’s top advisers have told their staff to hold firm in meetings, conveying the mission statement: “We will weather the storm, just like we always have,” according to a senior administration official.
The Democratic National Committee’s official procedures for the convention, adopted in 2022, give the committee the authority to choose a new candidate if any member of the slate dies or withdraws.
Biden also has the power to withdraw himself from the race, freeing up all the pledged delegates he has accumulated.
There are 3,894 of 3,937 so far, according to a count by The Associated Press.
