Over the past two week, a civil war has been brewing in the Democratic Party as Joe Biden faces a meltdown over his debate performance against Donald Trump.
With polling showing him hurting Democrats in their races and some even suggesting that Trump would beat Biden in a landslide not seen in decades, some in the presidential reelection campaign have begun putting out, looking for an escape.
Multiple outlets have reported that as the drama continues to unfold, some in the Biden camp have begun testing the polling of potential alternatives, including Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Daily Caller reports that President Joe Biden’s campaign is reportedly testing how Vice President Kamala Harris polls against former President Donald Trump, sources told both The New York Times and NBC News.
Biden has defied calls from some allies for him to step aside following his disastrous debate performance. But the president and his campaign’s stubbornness has not eased concerns about the 81-year-old’s ability to seek a second term, causing speculation on who could replace Biden. Using a survey of voters, the Biden campaign is gaging how Harris would fare against Trump in a head-to-head matchup, three people informed on the effort told the NYT.
NBC News reported that a source familiar with the decision confirmed the NYT reporting. The polling of Harris’ strength against Trump is in response to the former president “stepping up” his attacks on the vice president at campaign rallies, the source told the outlet.
Harris has naturally been floated as someone who could replace Biden because of her position in the White House, but also because the reelection campaign could only give its current funds to her, the NYT reported. As of May 30, that would be about 91 million cash in hand, the outlet reported.
Biden might not be testing the polling for the reasons thought, however. New Conservative Post writes that the president has a massive “chip” on his shoulder, especially when it comes to Barack Obama, who encouraged him to put Kamala in the first place. It seems just as likely that the president’s campaign has begun polling the popularity of Harris to show she shouldn’t replace him.
On Thursday evening, despite some verbal slip-ups, the president appeared to calm some Democratic nerves with a press conference during the NATO Summit. Biden gave extended remarks on many different foreign policy issues and declared that “he is the most qualified person to run” against Donald Trump in 2024.
