As the Republican convention opened yesterday, many Democrats were gravely concerned about President Biden’s chances in the November election. They are divided over how to proceed with a weakened leader in a scrambled political environment, insiders said.
The attempted assassination of Trump complicated what Biden’s campaign considered one of its most potent messages: that the former president poses a significant threat to American democracy. Trump’s in-the-moment response to the shooting — the raised fist and bloodied face that instantly became a defining image — sent Democrats into yet another tailspin.
Polling since Biden’s disastrous debate performance last month has been mixed. The latest New York Times/Siena College polls found Biden trailing Trump in Pennsylvania and just slightly ahead in Virginia, two must-win states. So far, there is little indication of how the attack on Trump might have shifted the race.
Analysis: “The vibe is grim,” said Matt Bennett, the co-founder of Third Way, a Democratic think tank. “I haven’t talked to a single Democrat who is like, ‘Things are fine.’ It’s universal.”
Biden: In a televised interview, the president said it had been “a mistake” for him to say last week that he wanted to put Trump in “a bull’s-eye.” The assassination attempt has raised questions about how far language should go in a heated campaign, our chief White House correspondent writes.
