U.S. President Joe Biden mixed up the names of his Vice President, Kamala Harris, and his Republican rival, Donald Trump, on Thursday. This blunder comes as more Democratic colleagues urge the 81-year-old incumbent to end his re-election bid.
Growing Concerns Among Democrats
Biden faces increasing doubts from donors, supporters, and fellow Democrats, who question his ability to beat former President Trump in the November 5 election and to lead the country for another term. The mix-up occurred when Biden, responding to a question from Reuters about his confidence in Harris, mistakenly referred to her as "Vice President Trump."
"I wouldn't have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if she was not qualified to be president," Biden said, drawing attention to his slip.
Additional Mistakes Raise Eyebrows
Earlier that day, Biden mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as "President Putin" during a NATO summit in Washington. The error drew gasps from the audience before Biden corrected himself.
NATO members, wrapping up their summit in Washington, extended support to Ukraine against the Russian invasion initiated by President Vladimir Putin in February 2022.
Biden's Campaign Under Pressure
Biden's campaign has been struggling since his poor debate performance against Trump, 78. So far, 13 of the 213 Democrats in the House and one of the Senate's 51 Democrats have publicly urged the president to withdraw from the race. More Democrats may express their concerns if Biden continues to perform poorly.
During a recent news conference, Biden frequently coughed and occasionally garbled his responses. However, his answers became more coherent as he continued. Biden, who overcame a childhood stutter, has a history of mispronunciations and mistakes throughout his political career.
Calls for New Leadership
Several House Democrats, including Brad Schneider of Illinois, Greg Stanton of Arizona, Ed Case of Hawaii, and Hillary Scholten of Michigan, have called for Biden to end his campaign. "For our country's sake, it is time for the President to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders," Stanton stated.
While no party leaders in Congress have officially called for Biden to end his candidacy, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently declined to say he should stay in the race. The campaign has commissioned a survey to assess how Vice President Kamala Harris would perform if she were to replace Biden as the candidate. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found Harris would fare no better than Biden, with both statistically tied with Trump.
Growing Concerns Within the Campaign
Prominent donors, including actor George Clooney, have urged Biden to drop out, and concerns are reportedly growing within Biden's campaign operation. Some longtime advisers are considering ways to convince him to end his re-election bid, according to The New York Times. NBC News also reported that some campaign staffers believe he has little chance of winning the election.
A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found Biden and Trump tied at 40% each. Other opinion polls show Trump leading Biden, with some strategists warning that Trump could win reliably Democratic states like New Hampshire and Minnesota.
Path to Re-Election
In a strategy memo, Biden's campaign argued that a close election was always expected and laid out a narrow path to re-election. The plan focuses on winning three battleground states: Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. If Biden secures these states, along with others considered reliably Democratic, he would achieve the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. In 2020, Biden won 306 electoral votes.
Despite the challenges, Biden's campaign believes that other battleground states he won in 2020 are "not out of reach."
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