NY.– Former President Barack Obama, who rebounded from a disastrous debate to win reelection in 2012, publicly endorsed President Biden after his dismal performance in Thursday’s debate against former President Donald J. Trump.
Obama also sought to allay Democrats’ concerns about whether Biden should remain their presidential nominee.
“Anyone has a bad debate,” he said in a comment on his social networks. “Believe me, I know about this. This choice will continue to be a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary people his entire life and someone who only cares about himself.”
“Last night didn’t change any of that and that’s why there will be a lot at stake in November.”
Obama, who served as president for eight years, with Biden as vice president, played a key role in unifying the party behind Biden during the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries.
Now, fearing the consequences that Biden could lose to Trump in November, he has advised Biden’s team to help the president get re-elected.
The circumstances are different, but Obama faced a similar crisis of confidence during his 2012 re-election campaign.
By underestimating his Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, Obama turned in a performance in his first presidential debate that was a disaster — one month before Election Day.
That episode marked a turning point in Obama’s re-evaluation of his debate strategy. He then confronted Romney again twice with more combative and assertive material, calming the jitters that had grown in the Democratic Party after it had been caught off guard in its first confrontation with Romney.
Obama was not the only former president to support Biden this Friday.
In a statement, former President Bill Clinton defended Biden, saying on social media that Biden has given the United States three years of “strong leadership.”
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