In a recent campaign event held in McLean, Virginia, Biden attributed his subpar showing to jet lag, having traveled through approximately 100 time zones during two overseas trips earlier in June.
Despite facing increasing questions about his 2024 reelection bid following the lacklustre debate, Biden addressed the issue.Speaking without a teleprompter, he admitted, “I didn’t have my best night, but the fact is that you know, I wasn’t very smart.”
He explained that he had decided to travel around the world a couple of times before the debate, resulting in fatigue.
“Didn’t listen to my staff and came back and nearly fell asleep on stage,” Biden said. “That’s no excuse but it is an explanation.” Prior to the debate, he had travelled to France and Italy during two separate trips within a two-week period.
CNN Presidential Debate: President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump
After attending the Group of Seven summit in Bari, Italy, he flew overnight to appear at a fundraiser with former President Barack Obama in Los Angeles on June 15 before returning to Washington the following day. Biden then spent six days at Camp David preparing for the June 27 debate.
Although White House officials have attributed Biden’s halting debate performance to a cold, he did not mention being sick during Tuesday’s fundraiser. A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll that closed on Tuesday revealed that one-third of Democrats believe Biden should end his reelection bid following the debate. However, the poll also indicated that no prominent elected Democrat performs better than Biden in a hypothetical matchup against Trump.
The two-day poll found that both Trump, 78, and Biden, 81, maintain the support of 40% of registered voters, suggesting that Biden’s support has not diminished since the debate. Election Day is scheduled for November 5.
