USA The unflinching: Biden campaigns in Michigan
A US President Joe Biden who remains unperturbed in the debate over his mental fitness has been canvassing for votes in the state of Michigan. "So much for my campaign falling apart," said the 81-year-old Democrat during an appearance in Detroit.
13.07.2024, 04:55
SDA
As at the press conference after the NATO summit, the President showed no signs of self-doubt. He wants to and will beat his Republican challenger Donald Trump again, Biden made clear. He read his speech from a teleprompter, improvising only slightly. At one point he seemed to lose the thread, but quickly distracted from it with an anecdote.
Demands to withdraw do not stop
On the same day, actress Ashley Judd joined her Hollywood colleague George Clooney in calling for Biden to withdraw from the presidential race in an opinion piece on "USA Today". Judd asked Biden to make way for a "talented and strong candidate". As a staunch Democrat, this would not be easy for her.
Meanwhile, the Democratic minority leader of the US House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffries, announced that he had met with the US President personally on Thursday evening (local time) and conveyed the concerns of his party colleagues to him.
The "Washington Post" published an opinion piece entitled: "Biden remains intransigent. He must acknowledge reality." In it, the authors agree with the warning from Biden's supporters that we must not lose sight of the danger of another Trump presidency. But they also write: "The best way to keep Mr. Trump out of the Oval Office is to have a strong alternative."
Previously, the New York Times, citing two unnamed sources, had reported that some Democratic Party donors were withholding an estimated 90 million US dollars in campaign support as long as Biden remained a candidate. Last week, there were already reports that a wealthy Disney heiress wanted to withhold her financial support for the party until Biden withdrew from the race.
Cheers for Biden, boos for the press
There seemed to be no sign of any of this in Detroit. Biden's audience was animated, cheering loudly over and over again "We've got your back", "Don't give up" and "We love you".
When Biden addressed the negative headlines of the past few days, there were boos, but the Democrat put a stop to them and defended the "good men and women" in the press. He nevertheless criticized being unfairly put through the wringer because he sometimes mixes up names. "I say Charlie instead of Bill. But you know what? Donald Trump got a free pass."
Biden also focused on the Republican challenger in the rest of his speech. In the auto industry city of Detroit, he described Trump as an opponent of trade unions and the working class. The core message: he himself takes care of people's problems, while the convicted felon Trump only drives around on his golf course.
During his visit to Michigan, Biden also made an unannounced stop at a restaurant - such surprise appearances are not unusual in the US election campaign, but are being followed with great attention in the current tense situation.
Mixed feelings in Congress
All eyes are also on the US President among members of Congress: Since his disastrous performance in the TV duel against Trump, around 20 Democratic MPs have openly opposed Biden.
Minority Leader Jeffries wrote in a letter to the Democratic members of his chamber after his meeting with the President that he had "directly expressed the full range of insights, candid perspectives and conclusions" of his caucus to Biden. Strikingly, he made no mention of having expressed his support for Biden's presidential candidacy.
Many Democratic members of Congress are worried that a lack of support for Biden could also cost them re-election. In addition to the presidency, all seats in the House of Representatives and a third of the seats in the Senate will be put to the vote in November. There are fears among Democrats that the Republicans could control both chambers of Congress and the White House after the election.
Biden is to be officially chosen as their candidate at the Democratic Party conference in August. He has already won the necessary delegate votes in the primaries. Therefore, only he can decide to drop out of the race. It remains to be seen whether the doubters or the hopefuls will ultimately be heard.
