Biden Heads Into Make-or-Break Weekend for 2024 Election

(Bloomberg) - President Joe Biden is embarking on the most consequential weekend of his political career, knowing that he must restore the faith of voters, donors, and party officials deeply skeptical of his acuity — and that any misstep will prove fatal to his reelection campaign.

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The president, who has spent the week since his disastrous debate performance privately attempting to shore up support among top Democratic officials, will be heading to two must-win swing states — Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

But most crucial for Biden will be an interview on Friday with ABC News, offering voters and allies the first unscripted, high-pressure look at the president since he faltered in his showdown with former President Donald Trump , the Republican presidential candidate.

The network rearranged plans to slowly release the interview over the weekend, instead opting to broadcast the conversation in full as part of a prime time special — underscoring the intense national interest in Biden's well-being.

At this point, his troubled campaign cannot afford even the slightest mishap.

Biden's insistence to allies that the debate was the product of a single bad night and that he's resolved to remain in the contest has done little to calm nerves among Democrats, who for years have painted Trump as an existential threat to the nation.

Had a Cold

A series of excuses offered by the president and the White House — that he was battling a cold, weary from travel and not getting enough sleep — did little but reinforce fundamental questions about whether Biden, already 81 years old, could be entrusted as the leader of the free world for another four years.

While most party elders and prominent governors have so far resisted publicly calling on the president to drop out, they've also bluntly acknowledged their worry and said questions about his ability to handle the job are legitimate.

Top Democratic donors have said they would withhold or redirect their money unless Biden stepped aside, while lawmakers continue to discuss whether to band together and call for a change atop the ticket.

The president has conceded in some conversations with allies that another debacle in the coming days would necessitate a rethinking of the race, the New York Times reported. The White House and the campaign denied that account.

NATO Summit

Biden must also turn his attention to shoring up support among foreign leaders set to descend on Washington next week for the summit marking the 75th anniversary of NATO. His performance at the debate unleashed a torrent of concern in world capitals, with diplomats detailing instances in which they saw Biden's age showing during critical international gatherings.

At the same time, Trump is riding high, with a series of upcoming events that could further bolster his advantage.

The Republican nominee is expected to hold rallies of his own in Florida and Pennsylvania next week, and has hinted that he is readying the announcement of a running mate. After that, Republicans will gather in Milwaukee to nominate Trump as the presidential candidate for the third consecutive time.

Trump holds a 48%-42% advantage among voters, according to a poll released Wednesday by the Wall Street Journal, with eight in 10 Americans saying the president is too old to run for a second term. That is the greatest advantage Trump, who is 78, has held over Biden this year.

Biden plans to address a rally in Madison, Wisconsin, on Friday. He previewed his message to voters in an interview Thursday with Milwaukee radio host Earl Ingram, conceding that he "screwed up" and "made a mistake" with the debate.

His campaign announced they also planned $50 million in paid media in the month of July, and had plans to purchase commercial time during high-profile events like the Olympic Games and during coverage of the Republican convention.

Biden also plans a travel swing later this month targeting Black and Latino voters in the Southwest, attending the NAACP and UnidosUS conferences in Las Vegas, his campaign said in a memo, while Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to attend the Essence Festival in New Orleans and address the annual meetings of two historic Black sororities.

Biden will also "engage in frequent off-the-cuff moments over the course of the month," the campaign said in the memo, an implicit acknowledgment of the concern over his ability to handle unscripted moments.

In his Wisconsin radio interview, Biden added that he still believed he could win the election and that 90 minutes on the debate stage in Atlanta would not invalidate the successes of his presidential term.

"When you get knocked down, you just get back up," Biden said.

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