OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
President Joe Biden held a NATO press conference on Thursday night, his first press conference with questions in months.
The conference was originally scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. ET but was pushed back to 6:30 p.m. and then after 7 p.m. The event is widely seen as high-stakes, as it will show whether or not the president can prove that his shaky debate performance was an anomaly.
Biden made it clear that he has no plans to drop out of the race and believes he is the most qualified to win the race against former President Donald Trump.
This comes as a growing number of prominent allies have called for Biden to step aside, including Vermont Sen. Peter Welch, more than a dozen House Democrats, and megadonor George Clooney.
President Joe Biden began his response to a question with a gaffe by mistaking Vice President Kamala Harris for “Vice President Trump.”
Biden was also asked if he was concerned about Vice President Kamala Harris’ ability to beat Trump.
“I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn’t think she was qualified to be president,” he said.
WATCH:
Joe Biden: “I am the most qualified person to run for president.” pic.twitter.com/8ajFvtgRtD
— Conservative War Machine (@WarMachineRR) July 11, 2024
This comes as the Cook Political Report has shifted five significant swing states and Nebraska’s swing district in favor of former President Donald Trump in its most recent prediction for the 2024 presidential election.
Amy Walter, the editor-in-chief of the non-partisan election forecaster, explained the changes to their electoral map, noting that “As of July 9, the Democratic Party is living in a state of suspended animation. Despite growing calls from many in his party to leave the contest, President Joe Biden has made clear he has no intention of dropping out.”
Walter continued her article by acknowledging that although many of the insiders she has spoken to are still optimistic that Biden will notice his abysmal polling numbers and decide to withdraw, the likelihood now seems “remote.”
According to its most recent Electoral Map prediction, Arizona, Georgia, and Nevada have all moved from being classified as “toss-up” to “lean Republican,” giving Trump 268 electoral votes in his column.
Additionally, Cook Political changed the status of Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Nebraska’s 2nd District from “likely Democrat” to “lean Democrat,” suggesting that Trump may now be able to win these blue states.
Only 226 of the 270 electoral votes that are required are in Biden’s column; the other 44 are must-win contests for Biden, including Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Cook Senior Editor Dave Wasserman commented on the shift, stating, “The notion that the presidential is a Toss Up was a stretch even before the debate. Today, Trump has a clear advantage over Biden and a much more plausible path to 270 Electoral votes.” In the Cook forecast, Trump only needs to win of the three toss-up states to win the election.
Today, we’re making six changes to our Electoral College Ratings.
AZ: Toss Up to Lean R
GA: Toss Up to Lean R
MN: Likely D to Lean D#NE02: Likely D to Lean D
NH: Likely D to Lean D
NV: Toss Up to Lean R@amyewalter on the state of the race post-debate: https://t.co/AAoW23wKWC— Cook Political Report (@CookPolitical) July 9, 2024
A whopping 72 percent of voters believe Biden should not run for a second term, up nine points from February.
A recent CBS News/YouGov poll highlights potential concerns among voters about Biden’s ability to complete his term.
This survey will be one of the first post-debate polls that Democratic strategists and donors will examine to assess the impact of Biden’s debate performance on his candidacy.
Among Democrats, 46 percent said Biden should not be running for a second term, up 10 points since February. When pollsters asked respondents why Biden should not run, they answered:
–His age: 86 percent
–Decisions he might make in office: 71 percent
–His record as president: 66 percent
–Ability to campaign effectively: 59 percent
–Seventy-two percent of voters say Biden does not have the “mental” and “cognitive health” to serve, up from 65 percent since June 9.
“After the debate, some Democratic officials reportedly said Joe Biden should step aside as the nominee and give another Democrat a chance to run for president in 2024. That idea finds resonance with nearly half the nation’s rank-and-file Democrats,” CBS reported.
“That’s related to perceptions of Mr. Biden’s health: Democrats who don’t think Mr. Biden has the mental and cognitive health to serve are more likely to say he shouldn’t be the nominee. And that former number has increased among Democrats. It’s also gone up among independents,” the outlet added.
