Biden buys time but every day tests his capacity to keep his campaign alive

Biden buys time but every day tests his capacit

But no critical mass of lawmakers emerged to seriously threaten Biden’s hold on the nomination and the party’s Senate and House leaders offered clear, if hardly effusive, support for the president. Ultimately, Biden’s warning in a letter to lawmakers on Monday – “I am firmly committed to staying in this race” – and the knowledge that primary voters have spoken left his critics little leeway to act.

But he’ll face a fresh test on Thursday when he holds a solo press conference at the end of the NATO summit. Any slip ups or confusion would rip off the fragile patch Biden has fixed on the dam of Democratic Party support.

The spectacle of a party debating the viability, strength and mental capacity of its nominee less than four months from Election Day encapsulates the crisis that has consumed the president’s campaign. There is little evidence so far that Biden is ready to throw himself into saturation-level town halls, campaign swings and media blitzes that many Democrats — including those who think he should stay in the race — have called on him to do. Some Democrats now see him as unlikely to win in November. And for all of them, the vibe is existential because Trump, the Republican presumptive nominee, has rarely been in a stronger political position since jumping into presidential politics.

y to keep his campaign alive