President Joe Biden’s highly anticipated news conference went better than the debate, but it wasn’t a masterpiece either, and Democrats worry they’re back to the same starting point they were before Biden’s speech on Thursday night.
Biden’s remarks included a vociferous defense of his record and detailed foreign policy but also some eyebrow-raising gaffes, such as confusing the names of his vice president and his rival.The takeaways from the news conference remain muddled as Democrats remain reeling over last month’s debate, where Biden’s incoherent answers sparked a tense discussion about who should succeed him in the 2024 presidential election.
“This is not a home run. It’s not a disaster, but it doesn’t prove that Trump can go on a campaign and win. It doesn’t make the debate go away. It doesn’t move the polls. If I were a member or a donor, I wouldn’t walk away inspired by this press conference. The problems Trump had before the press conference are still there,” said one former House Democratic aide.
“This is the worst-case scenario. The situation remains the same. That was the goal,” the source added. “We are still stuck in purgatory.”
Biden began his press conference by praising this week’s NATO summit, stressing that under his leadership the alliance would be “not only stronger, but also greater,” and dismissing former President Donald Trump’s skepticism about the alliance.
“Have you ever seen a more successful conference?” he retorted to a reporter during the question-and-answer portion of the event.
He debated journalists in the audience on topics such as Russia’s war with Ukraine and the Israeli-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip, and his defenders boasted that he understood complex issues. He also brushed off questions about his mental state, defending his decision to continue campaigning by saying, “I have to get this job done because there’s so much at stake.”
Asked whether the new president would ease concerns, Democratic strategist Karen Finney said, “It absolutely should,” adding, “He’s answered the tough questions, he’s given detailed and substantive answers, he’s been forthright about the concerns that have been raised.”
“I think he’s convinced a lot of people that he should continue,” Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) told CNN on Thursday night, days after telling reporters that Democrats were “not on the same page” about his chances of winning the presidential election in November.
But other moments caused alarm.
Towards the end of the summit, Biden mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin,” a reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has invaded Ukraine, and at the start of the question-and-answer session, he mistakenly called Vice President Kamala Harris “President Trump,” a remark that quickly went viral on social media and rankled Democrats.
“This is even worse than I thought it would be,” one Democratic pollster said. “The minute you say ‘Vice President Trump,’ it’s over.”
“I don’t think he can stand what’s going to happen,” the person added.
There was no flurry of calls for Biden to back down, but he was forced to back down when Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, issued a statement shortly after the press conference ended, underscoring that some Democrats had already made up their minds before the press conference began.
“It has been the honor of my career to work alongside him on his incredible legacy in American history,” Himes said in a statement, praising Biden’s “unconditional patriotism,” pointing to health care reform, infrastructure funding and gun safety measures.
“Given these characteristics and his accomplishments, I hope President Biden will step aside from the presidential campaign.”
Reps. Scott Peters (D-Calif.) and Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.) also issued statements at similar times calling for Biden to withdraw.
Taken together, the press conference seems unlikely to bring about much change for Democratic politicians who have yet to see enough results to either press hard for Biden’s ouster or to bow to him entirely.
“There weren’t any fatal mistakes. His economic vision was clear. But nothing else has changed, so we’re still waiting to see,” said James Zogby, a veteran Democratic National Committee member.
The Biden campaign has been trying desperately to change that since the disastrous debate.
They agreed a stronger approach was needed — more travel and more unscripted moments to ease concerns about both Biden’s age and his electability.
The campaign flew Biden to Pennsylvania and Wisconsin for interviews with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos (and, on Monday, NBC News’ Lester Holt). The president himself sent a letter to House Democrats on Tuesday emphasizing his intention to stay in the race. But Democrats are still “seeing the George interview all over again,” one Democratic strategist said of the press conference, referring to the interview with Stephanopoulos that was deemed enough to stave off Biden but not enough to calm the storm around him.
Democrats on Capitol Hill are expected to continue discussing whether or not to endorse Biden. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York on Thursday praised the “frank, calm and inclusive” discussions lawmakers are having and said he would “respect the sanctity of those discussions until that process is complete.”
However, the conclusion of that process seems far from in sight.
“This was in many ways a worst-case scenario for Democrats,” a battleground Democratic strategist told ABC News on Thursday. “The president and his team will view this as a huge success, but everyone else will see this as just another example of the president being too old to win.”
