Joe Biden’s re-election bid has been fighting for survival for almost a week, ever since last week’s disastrous debate in Atlanta against Donald Trump organised by CNN. Biden has received a breath of fresh air this Wednesday in his own home. Several Democratic governors have visited the White House and met with the president behind closed doors. Others have connected by video conference. Inside, they have spoken sincerely, they say. On the way out, it has been all good words, closing ranks and joining forces to defeat Donald Trump at the polls on 5 November. That gesture will not be enough to ease the pressure on Biden to give up re-election.
“The president has been very clear that he is in this to win. He is our nominee and the leader of our party,” Maryland Governor Wes Moore, one of three who acted as spokespeople for the group, said on the way out. “In November we have a binary choice between someone who has continually delivered for the people of our states and someone whose vision for the future of this country is downright dangerous,” he said, drawing a contrast between Biden and Trump. “We have said we will stand with him. The president has always had our back, we will too,” Moore said.
The White House visit was led by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association. In addition to the mayor of Washington DC (Muriel Bowser), Governors Gavin Newsom (California), John Carney (Delaware), JB Pritzker (Illinois), Andy Beshear (Kentucky), Wes Moore (Maryland), Maura Healey (Massachusetts), Gretchen Whitmer (Michigan), Kathy Hochul (New York) and Dan McKee (Rhode Island) also attended in person. Another 14 participated remotely.
The meeting lasted just over an hour and also included Vice President Kamala Harris, who is the front-runner to succeed the president if he finally becomes convinced that he has no chance of being elected in November and withdraws from the nomination. Gavin Newsom, Gretchen Whitmer and even Andy Beshear, among those present in the room, have also been mentioned as potential replacements. The transition from governor to president is almost as natural as that of vice president.
The priority, to win
At the end, three governors (Walz, Moore and Hochul) briefly appeared before the media outside the White House and gave a strong endorsement to the president. “Biden has our support,” said the leader of the Democratic governors. “The response was that we are all looking for the path to victory. All the governors agree with that, President Biden agreed with that. We are working together to make it very clear that our path to victory in November is the number one priority. And that is the number one priority for the president. So that is what we are trying to do. The reaction was good. The conversation was honest and open,” Walz added.
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Minnesota’s governor has responded affirmatively when asked by a reporter whether Biden is fit for office, even as he acknowledged that Thursday’s debate was a “bad performance.” That reference to the president’s top priority being winning in November suggests he would be willing to step down and hand over the baton if he sees he has no chance of winning and someone else can do better.
“Honest conversation”
“It was a great conversation with the president and the vice president because it was honest,” Moore said. “When you love someone you have to tell the truth, and I think we were honest about the feedback we were getting and the concerns we were hearing from people. We were also honest about the fact that as the president continued to tell us and show us that he was committed, we said we would stick with him.”
“The president has always had our backs, so we’re going to have his, too, because the results we’ve seen under this administration have been undeniable in all of our states. But what makes us most optimistic and hopeful is not necessarily that we’re afraid of an alternative, but also that we’re hopeful for the future. We know we have work to do,” Moore continued. “We know that the path to ensuring that we can get ahead in November is real. And it’s going to take effort from all of us to get it done and to get the job done, and we’re grateful to hear the level of enthusiasm and focus that the president and vice president have on winning.”
“President Joe Biden is in this to win, and we pledge our support because the stakes could not be higher,” said New York Governor Kathy Hochul. The three acted as spokespeople for the group of governors, but did not provide any explanations about the different positions that were held at the meeting.
“Joe Biden is our candidate. He is there to win and I support him,” Gretchen Whitmer tweeted after the meeting.
The governors’ support comes as two congressmen have already asked Biden to give up re-election and others have begun to express doubts. At the same time, the latest polls published show that the gap with Trump is widening enormously, reducing the Democrat’s chances of being re-elected in the elections of November 5. The pressure from the media and donors also does not cease. His candidacy remains in the balance.
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