- US President Joe Biden addressed concerns about his debate performance, asserting his capability for presidency. 

- Democratic leaders and former US President Barack Obama defended Biden, focusing criticism on Donald Trump. 

- Despite concerns, Biden’s campaign raised US$14 million on debate day and the morning after. 

US President Joe Biden forcefully tried on Friday to quell Democratic anxieties over his unsteady showing in his debate with former President Donald Trump, as elected members of his party closed ranks around him in an effort to shut down talk of replacing him atop the ticket. 

Biden’s halting delivery and meandering comments, particularly early in the debate, fuelled concerns from even members of his own party that at age 81 he’s not up for the task of leading the country for another four years. 

It created a crisis moment for Biden’s campaign and his presidency, as members of his party flirted with potential replacements and donors and supporters couldn’t contain their concern about his showing against Trump. 

US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden walk to the stage to speak at a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina. Photo / AP 

Biden appeared to acknowledge the criticism during a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, saying “I know I’m not a young man. To state the obvious.” 

First Lady Jill stood by him wearing a dress covered in the word “vote”. 

“Folks, I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to. 

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“But I know what I know – I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. And I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done,” the president argued. 

“I give you my word as a Biden. I would not be running again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul that I could do this job,” he said. 

Speaking for 18 minutes, Biden appeared far more animated than his showing the night before, and he excoriated Trump for his “lies” and campaign aimed at “revenge and retribution”. 

“The choice in this election is simple,” Biden said. 

“Donald Trump will destroy our democracy. I will defend it.” 

He added, alluding to his candidacy, “When you get knocked down, you get back up.” 

Even before the debate, Biden’s age had been a liability with voters, and yesterday’s face-off appeared to reinforce the public’s deep-seated concerns before perhaps the largest audience he will garner in the four months until Election Day. 

Privately, his campaign had spent the previous hours working to tamp down concerns and keep donors and surrogates on board. 

Democratic lawmakers yesterday acknowledged Biden’s poor showing but tried to stop talk of replacing him as their standard-bearer, and instead tried to shift the focus onto Trump’s attacks and falsehoods, which they hoped would remind voters of the daily turbulence of his presidency. 

“Well, the President didn’t have a good night, but neither did Donald Trump with lie after lie and his dark vision for America,” North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told the Associated Press, hours before he introduced the president in Raleigh. 

“We cannot send Donald Trump back to the White House. He’s an existential threat to our nation.” 

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a presidential debate hosted by CNN with President Joe Biden. Photo / AP 

Former US President Barack Obama backed up his former Vice President, posting on X that “Bad debate nights happen.” Alluding to his own poor showing in the first debate of his re-election campaign in 2012, Obama continued, “Trust me, I know. 

“But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself.” 

He added: “Last night didn’t change that, and it’s why so much is at stake in November.” 

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries answered with a flat “no” when asked yesterday if Biden should step aside. 

Representative Ritchie Torres, Democrat of New York, said, “Since the performance last night, I had to take a few more antidepressants than usual. 

“People have asked me, ‘Do I feel comfortable with the debate?’ You know, a Donald Trump presidency would cause me far greater discomfort than a Joe Biden debate performance.” 

Biden’s campaign billed the Raleigh event as the largest rally yet of his re-election bid in the state Trump carried by the narrowest margin in 2020. He’ll then travel to New York for a weekend of big-dollar fundraisers that his campaign now needs more than ever, as it looks to stave off Trump. 

Biden’s campaign announced that it raised US$14 million ($23m) on debate day and the morning after, while Trump’s campaign said it raised more than US$8m from the start of the debate through the end of the night. 

Vice President Kamala Harris, whom the Biden campaign sent out to defend his performance, was set to travel to Las Vegas, Nevada. She told CNN hours after the debate, “There was a slow start, but it was a strong finish.” 

US President Joe Biden's performance during the presidential debate has some in his party worried. Photo / AP 

Representative Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo, said he could hardly sleep because of the number of telephone calls he got after Biden performed “horribly” in the debate. 

“People were just concerned. And I told everybody being concerned is healthy, overreacting is dangerous,” Cleaver said. “And I think I wouldn’t advise anybody to make rash decisions right now.” 

Representative James Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat who was formerly a longtime fixture in House Democratic leadership, said he would likely speak to Biden later yesterday and his message would be simple: “Stay the course.” 

Biden and his allies were looking to brush aside concerns about his delivery to keep the focus on the choice for voters this November. 

They seized on Trump’s equivocations on whether he would accept the will of voters this time around, his refusal to condemn the rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, trying to overturn his 2020 loss to Biden, and his embrace of the conservative-leaning Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe vs Wade that had legalised abortion nationwide. 

But Biden fumbled on abortion rights, one of the most important issues for Democrats in this year’s election. He was unable to explain Roe vs Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling that legalised abortion nationwide. A conservative Supreme Court with three justices nominated by Trump overturned Roe two years ago. 

As elected Democrats united behind Biden publicly, donors and party operatives shared panicked text messages and phone calls last night and into today expressing their concern that Biden’s performance was so bad that he may be unelectable this fall. 

But there were no immediate signs of organised efforts among donors, his campaign leadership or the Democratic National Committee to convince the president to step aside, according to interviews with several people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share sensitive conversations. 

Still, morale was poor among some Biden campaign staffers across the country, who had been encouraged by top campaign officials in Delaware to organise hundreds of debate watch parties to get as many eyes as possible on the Biden-Trump showdown. 

The morning after, some embarrassed lower-level campaign staffers privately expressed their desire for Biden to quit the race. 

It was the same among some top Democratic donors in New York, southern California and Silicon Valley, who talked up the need to embrace a Biden replacement during a series of text chains and private conversations. There were informal conversations between donors and those close to potential Biden alternatives to gauge their willingness to step into the race. But there was no sense that a sitting governor or member of Congress would be willing to risk the political fallout that might come with a public break from the Democratic president. 

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat frequently mentioned as a 2028 contender and speculated about as a potential replacement for Biden on the ticket should he step aside, released a statement backing him today. 

“The difference between Joe Biden’s vision for making sure everyone in America has a fair shot and Donald Trump’s dangerous, self-serving plans will only get sharper as we head towards November,” she said. 

California Governor Gavin Newsom also dismissed questions on whether he would consider stepping in for Biden, telling reporters after the debate, “I will never turn my back on him.” 

Under current Democratic Party rules, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to replace Biden as the party’s nominee without his co-operation or without party officials being willing to rewrite the rules at the August national convention. 

Trump, meanwhile, flew to his golf club in Virginia, a one-time battleground that has shifted toward Democrats in recent years but that his aides believe can flip toward the Republican in November. He was set to hold at rally in Chesapeake today. 

- Zeke Miller, Darlene Superville, Steve Peoples, Michelle L. Price, AP