White House denies reports Biden plans to stay in race

Joe Biden’s campaign has made clear that the president is moving forward and that there is “absolutely no” discussion about suspending his campaign, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Wednesday, just hours after the article was published. New York Times Biden reportedly told an ally whether he was considering staying in the race.

According to Times According to one report, Biden had a conversation with an unnamed “key ally,” who reportedly said the president knew he needed to quickly reassure the public that he could still get the job done.

THE Times The report is the first indication that the president has questioned his ability to run for re-election since his disappointing performance in last week’s debate.

CNN also reported that Biden privately acknowledged to an ally that the next step was crucial to whether he could salvage his re-election bid.

“Polls are plummeting, fundraising is drying up and interviews are going badly. He’s not oblivious,” the ally was quoted as saying by CNN.

Jean-Pierre called the Times’ reporting “absolutely false.”

Potential candidates to replace Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket (Credit: Collage by Grace Yagel/JTA)

“The president is lucid and he is staying in the race,” Jean-Pierre said. “I have nothing else to say. He is staying in the race. This is what the president promised to do, this is what he wants to continue to do, to work on the successes he has achieved.”

Jean-Pierre confirmed that Biden spoke with top Democrats and allies, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Rep. Jim Clyburn, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), who since the debate have expressed surprise and concern over the president’s lack of communication with them.

Jean-Pierre confirmed that Biden’s chief of staff, Jeffrey Zients, held a conference call with all staff on Wednesday to “bring the team together across the building” and “acknowledge what the president himself has said, which is that the last few days have been difficult.”

On Wednesday, Jean-Pierre’s acknowledgements of the disastrous debate and its aftermath were complemented by praise for Biden’s political record.

Jet lag and colds

On Tuesday, Biden and the White House offered different explanations for his poor debate performance.

While the White House has attributed Biden’s often expressionless state and muddled responses during debates to a cold for which he was not being treated, Biden told donors he blamed two overseas trips earlier in June on his jet lag.

Biden traveled to France and Italy on two separate trips in the span of two weeks last month, flying overnight from the Group of Seven summit in Bari, Italy, to attend a fundraiser with former President Barack Obama in Los Angeles on June 15 before returning to Washington the next day.

“I didn’t listen to my team and I came back on stage almost falling asleep,” he said. “It’s not an excuse, but it’s an explanation.”

On Wednesday, Jean-Pierre said she knew jet lag and Biden’s schedule played a role in her performance when she spoke to reporters Tuesday, but that she was focused on the cold and that’s what she “relied on.”

“His schedule had something to do with it. It was the schedule and the cold,” she said. “And I was aware of that yesterday.”

Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration has been one of the most transparent in releasing medical records, but it was not right to bring White House doctor Kevin O’Connor to the podium in the briefing room, as reporters in the room requested.

On Tuesday, the White House said O’Connor had traveled with Biden for the debate, and on Wednesday, Jean-Pierre said the president had not been evaluated by a doctor before the debate despite having a cold.

According to Jean-Pierre, who saw Biden on Wednesday with Vice President Kamala Harris, the president “looked great” and was “in a very good mood.”

Jean-Pierre called Biden “the sharpest I’ve ever known” in his experience working with him.

Damage control continues

Biden will be under intense scrutiny for the rest of the week as he hosts active-duty military personnel for July 4 celebrations at the White House, makes a campaign stop in the key swing state of Wisconsin and gives a prime-time interview to ABC that Jean-Pierre said is “not scripted.”

Jean-Pierre said Biden wanted to acknowledge what happened, but he also wanted to move forward.

“He also knows that he’s the president of the United States, so he has to continue to work and act on behalf of the American people,” she said. “That’s what he has to continue to do. And that’s how he’s going to move forward.”