President Joe Biden reportedly regrets his decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race and believes he could have defeated Donald Trump, according to recent reports. This sentiment has emerged weeks after Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election.
Biden’s exit came after a poor debate performance on June 27, which deepened questions about his mental acuity and ability to campaign effectively.
Numerous factors influenced President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race. The debate on June 27 with former President Trump raised questions regarding Biden’s cognitive acuity. Additionally, his polling numbers were notably low, and over thirty Democratic leaders publicly urged him to step down. Furthermore, donors began expressing skepticism about his prospects of defeating Trump, which threatened financial contributions to his campaign.
After Biden’s withdrawal, he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who had just over three months to campaign before the election. Trump ultimately defeated Harris by 2.2 million votes or 1.47 percent.
While expressing regret, Biden has been careful not to blame Harris for the loss. He maintains that he could have won if he had stayed in the race, despite acknowledging mistakes such as his debate performance and the handling of pandemic relief checks.
But, some Democrats have criticized Biden’s reluctance to exit the race earlier, arguing that it broke his promise to be a transitional president and left Harris with insufficient time to campaign effectively. Senator Richard Blumenthal stated, “Biden ran on the promise that he was going to be a transitional president, and in effect, have one term before handing it off to another generation.”
As Biden’s presidency comes to an end, these revelations highlight the complex dynamics within the Democratic Party and the challenges faced in the 2024 election. The debate over whether Biden could have indeed defeated Trump will likely continue, serving as a point of reflection for the party’s future strategies.
Biden would not have defeated Trump
While some may view Joe Biden as one of the most underrated and under-appreciated presidents in U.S. history, it’s important to consider the significant challenges he would face against Donald Trump in an election. Realistically, his chances of surpassing Kamala Harris’s performance were slim. And at best, he might have only matched her results. This perspective highlights the dynamics at play.
The polling data proved to be relatively accurate, indicating that Biden truly was woefully unpopular in the polls. Given the circumstances, it would have been exceedingly challenging for him to recover the deficit, particularly considering his age of 82 and his reputation for lacking charismatic appeal.
Secondly, grocery prices represented a significant and unavoidable issue this year. If Harris, who was not in office when inflation occurred, could not escape the attribution of blame, it is unlikely that President Biden would be able to.
Thirdly, it must be acknowledged, even by President Biden, that Vice President Harris introduced a remarkable level of energy and enthusiasm to the presidential campaign, seldom witnessed in presidential politics. Her presence invigorated many women and young voters who might otherwise have abstained from voting or chosen to support former President Trump had Biden been the Democrat candidate.
As we saw in the stats, a significant number of individuals with left-leaning political views who participated in the 2020 election chose not to vote in 2024, notwithstanding the dynamic campaign led by Harris. It is reasonable to surmise that these individuals, along with many others, would have similarly refrained from voting had Biden been the candidate.
And consider this: Harris delivered one of the most outstanding debate performances ever, yet she still didn’t win the race. Although Biden may have shown improvement in his subsequent debate against Trump, it’s improbable that he could have matched the masterpiece delivered by Harris.
Trump did not secure the mandate he claims, yet it’s plausible that he might have achieved it if his opponent had been Biden.