A day after the first Presidential debate between incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden and Donald Trump on CNN, media pundits across the political spectrum in near unison acknowledged the very poor showing of Biden, with many openly floating the idea of his replacement before the November elections.
Scott Windmeyer, director of strategic communications and advisor to Democratic campaigners (including President Carter’s 1980 campaign), reiterated the general sentiment that the current president failed to perform on the stage speaking to “To Vima”.
“Joe Biden needed to win over more undecided voters on the night of the debate. I don’t think he made any gains. Thursday was a very bad night for Joe Biden,” he noted.
Windmeyer believes it will take a couple of weeks before the visibly exhausted Biden, who exhibited mental lapses during the CNN studio debate, will withdraw from the presidential race. For now, the incumbent President and Democratic nominee does not seem willing to do so, despite the internal criticisms.
The Founding Managing Partner and Chief Strategy of FINN Partners, a global marketing agency, says Biden had had every opportunity to come across as presidential, lay out his achievements, and highlight the contrast with Trump, “a convicted criminal”, but failed to deliver.
Windmeyer claims Trump managed to “spew a multitude of lies and distortions” in a succinct manner, while Biden struggled to articulate even five complete words. “He shouldn’t have been subjected to this ordeal. He shouldn’t be running for a second term. We’ll see what changes will be set in motion,” he added, suggesting that “we need to let the next two weeks unfold.”
If President Biden is to be replaced as the candidate, “it must happen before July 15, when the Democratic convention begins,” he emphasized. “It would be wise for the Democratic Committee to decide on the developments before the convention starts in August. It would not be appropriate for the convention to be overshadowed by these issues. They need to decide in advance what will happen.”
by Ioanna Kleftogianni
