By Bernd Debusmann Jr, BBC News, Washington
US President Joe Biden responded to criticism over his age, telling supporters in a fiery speech that he would face re-election in November after a poor debate performance fueled concerns about his candidacy.
“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious,” he said Friday at a rally in the battleground state of North Carolina, a day after sparring in a televised showdown with Republican rival Donald Trump.
“I don’t walk as easily as I used to… I don’t debate as well as I used to,” he acknowledged. “But I know what I know, I know how to tell the truth (and) I know how to do this job.”
Mr Biden, 81, said he believed with all his heart and soul he could serve another term, as the jubilant crowd in Raleigh chanted “four more years”.
The US president held a rally in Virginia hours later, where he hailed a “great victory” in the debate, which was watched by 48 million viewers and millions more online, according to CNN. “Joe Biden’s problem is not his age,” said Mr Trump, 78. “It’s his competence. He is grossly incompetent.”
The former president said he did not believe speculation that Mr Biden would withdraw from the race, saying he was “doing better in the polls” than other Democrats, including California Governor Gavin Newsom and Vice President Kamala Harris.
While questions about Mr. Biden’s age are not new, his faltering performance during the debate – marked by verbal gaps, a raspy voice and hard-to-follow answers – sparked panic among some Democrats who raised new questions about his candidacy.
Democratic officials, political operatives and those close to the president who spoke to the BBC’s Katty Kay painted a picture of a party anxious and concerned about the strength of its candidate.
Nancy Pelosi, former Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that “from a performance standpoint, it wasn’t great.” Other Democrats, like Biden’s former communications director Kate Bedingfield, called the debate “really disappointing.”
Democratic donors who spoke anonymously to various media outlets were more blunt, with one calling the performance “disqualifying.” “The only way it could have been more disastrous would have been if he had fallen off the stage. The big donors are saying … he has to go,” one Democratic operative told the Financial Times.
And Friday, The New York Times editorial board called on Mr. Biden to step down. He said Democrats should “recognize that Mr. Biden cannot continue his run and create a process to select someone more capable to replace him.”
Despite concerns from some media pundits, early indications suggest there has been “no change” in the polls following the debate, Washington Post columnist Philip Bump told the Today show from BBC R4.
However, Mr Bump stressed that no “high quality” polls had been conducted since the debate aired.
Speaking later on the show, pollster Frank Luntz said most Americans have already decided who they will vote for later this year.
But publicly, many senior Democrats and Biden allies defended his performance, seeking to calm liberal concerns Friday. Among those rallying behind Mr. Biden was former President Barack Obama, who tweeted that “bad debate nights happen.”
“This election is still a choice between someone who has fought his whole life for ordinary people and someone who only cares about himself,” Mr. Obama wrote, adding that Mr. Trump is “someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit.”
Mr Biden and his campaign were quick to reject calls for him to resign as a candidate.
“President Biden is the only person to ever beat Donald Trump. He will do it again,” a campaign adviser said. “This election was never going to be won or lost in one rally, one conversation, or one debate. “
The Biden campaign also said the president had raised $14 million at fundraisers in recent days, in an apparent effort to show it was maintaining momentum.
Mr. Biden is expected to meet donors on Friday and Saturday, including at events in Manhattan and the wealthy Hamptons.
