Joe Biden and top allies have sought to reassure Democratic donors that he can beat Donald Trump, after a disastrous debate performance that left wealthy supporters divided over whether the US president should abandon his re-election bid.
Biden admitted he “didn’t have a great night” as he met with donors at a fundraiser in East Hampton, New York, on Saturday, where the cost of attendance ranged from $3,300 to $250,000 per person, according to the invitation.
“I understand the concerns about the debate. I understand that,” Biden told supporters in the wealthy resort town.
But the president argued that “voters have a different reaction,” adding: “Since the debate, the polls have shown a little bit of movement, which has actually moved us forward.”
Several polls have been released since Thursday night’s debate, but betting markets have swung sharply against Biden during and after the face-off. A Morning Consult poll conducted on Friday found that nearly half of Democratic voters think Biden should resign in favor of other candidates.
Three donors familiar with the East Hampton fundraiser described the atmosphere in the room as subdued, although the president appeared more forceful than when debating on stage Thursday night.
Biden is expected to attend another fundraiser later Saturday in Red Bank, New Jersey, hosted by the state’s Democratic governor, Phil Murphy.
Senior Democratic lawmakers and party representatives have also reached out to donors in recent days. Chuck Schumer, the highest-ranking Democrat on Capitol Hill, has tried to reassure some supporters about Biden’s candidacy since the debate, two party fundraisers said.
There are growing calls for the president to resign and allow another Democrat to serve as the party’s nominee for the White House ahead of November’s election.
At 81, Biden has faced questions for months about his age and fitness for office. But any concerns that Democratic Party insiders privately had about the incumbent president were exposed on Thursday night, after nearly 50 million Americans watched Biden struggle through the debate. on television against Trump. The President rambled, seemingly losing the ability to think and trying to complete sentences.
Biden insisted he would stay in the race, and campaign officials said he would participate in the second presidential debate scheduled for September.
The campaign has been touting what it says is a record influx of grassroots, or small-dollar, donations since Thursday. A campaign official said Saturday morning that the campaign had raised more than $27 million between the debate and Friday night.
“It wasn’t his greatest debate. But it was 90 minutes … in a campaign and in an administration where he accomplished great things,” Anita Dunn, a longtime senior adviser to Biden, said on MSNBC on Saturday. “It may not have been a great debate. But he was a great president.”
Asked if Biden’s inner circle When asked about his exit after the debate, Dunn replied: “No, our conversation was, ‘Okay, what do we do next?’
Jen O’Malley Dillon, Biden’s campaign chair, accused the “beltside class” of “outing Joe Biden.”
“If we see changes in polling in the coming weeks, it wouldn’t be the first time that overblown media stories have caused polls to temporarily dip,” said O’Malley Dillon.
But the White House’s assurances have done little to calm public unease. Late Friday, the influential New York Times editorial board announced a leader calling for Biden to resign.
On Saturday in East Hampton, reporters traveling with the president saw a group of onlookers holding signs that read: “Please leave the United States” and “Resign for democracy” and: “We love you guys but it’s time.”
The fallout from the debate has divided Democratic donors, whose backing is crucial to funding a campaign that will spend hundreds of millions of dollars in an effort to ensure four more years in the White House. Biden’s long-standing fundraising advantage over Trump has eroded in recent months. Trump outraised Biden in both April and May amid a surge in support following his conviction on 34 criminal charges in New York last month.
While some donors have redoubled their efforts to rally around Biden, others are more nervous. One Democratic fundraiser noted that some major Wall Street donors intend to continue funding Biden’s campaign while trying to persuade him to cede to another candidate. Another faction intends to keep all of their donations.
However, some high-profile Democratic donors have come to Biden’s full defense.
LinkedIn founder and billionaire Democratic donor Reid Hoffman sought to placate wealthy Biden backers in a letter on Friday in which he acknowledged that the president had given “a poor performance.” very bad debate”. But he added that it would be a “bad idea” to launch a public campaign to get him to resign.
“This election is very close, and I don’t know who will win,” Hoffman wrote. “But as a political philanthropist, with 129 days until the election, I’m doubling down on America choosing Biden’s decency, caring, and proven success over Biden.” because of Trump’s violence, lies and chaos.”
According to FiveThirtyEight’s latest average, Trump is narrowly leading Biden in national opinion polls, as well as in most of the key swing states that will determine the outcome of the election. in November.
A Democratic fundraiser said donors will review the poll results in the coming days to make their next move.
Some are weighing who they will put their energy behind if Biden steps down, with Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer among the most high-profile names to be named. The three donors and donors also said Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is attracting interest from Wall Street elites.
“The results of those polls will help donors decide what to do next… if the results are negative there will be consequences,” the fundraiser said.
But Biden’s campaign showed little sign of concern about the poll results over the weekend.
Geoff Garin, president of Hart Research and a pollster for the Biden campaign, said in a post on X Saturday night that two surveys he conducted in battleground states after the debate showed it had “no impact on vote choice.”
“The election was incredibly close and competitive before the debate, and it remains incredibly close and competitive today,” Garin said.
Additional reporting by Alex Rogers in Washington
