Late-night family meeting after receiving reports of presidential election defeat and campaign fund shortage
Went to bed after deciding to resign
U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to withdraw from the presidential race is reportedly due to internal reports indicating a slim chance of winning the election and difficulties in fundraising.
According to an anonymous Democratic strategist cited by CNN, the reason Biden shifted his stance from completing the race to withdrawing within 48 hours was the judgment that he ultimately could not overcome concerns within the party that he could not defeat former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate.
Poll results show the gap with Trump widening, especially in battleground states, while more than 30 Democratic lawmakers publicly urged President Biden to withdraw from the race. Not only major donors but also ordinary party members began to turn their backs. The strategy to hold on and wait for a comeback opportunity was seen as a failure.
Steve Ricchetti, a close advisor to President Biden, and Mike Donilon, chief strategist, met a day before the decision to report these realities in detail. Politico, a U.S. political news outlet, reported that Ricchetti and Donilon’s report included fundraising performance and internal campaign poll results.
The poll, conducted last week at the request of the Biden campaign for the first time in over two months, was reportedly very pessimistic. It showed that Biden was trailing former President Trump in six key battleground states and that his approval ratings were falling even in traditionally Democratic strongholds such as Virginia and New Mexico.
There was also an internal assessment that fundraising would not continue through the election. President Biden reportedly held a family meeting that same night. He is known to make major decisions through family meetings.
Analysis suggests that Biden decided to withdraw because he could no longer endure the pressure to resign from his allies within the party. CNN pointed out that after suffering a crushing defeat in the first TV debate against former President Trump, Biden repeatedly claimed he could win for three weeks, but since then, "Biden’s inner circle has shrunk to just his closest aides and family."
CNN further noted that after spending a day and a half at his Delaware residence, Biden, who has been loyal to the Democratic Party for over half a century, finally acknowledged that he was considered an obstacle to the election. "Described as more isolated than ever, he could not withstand the pressures both on and off the stage," CNN diagnosed.
In this situation, what Biden himself took sensitively was his "honor." As pressure to resign within the party intensified, there was talk that holding on a little longer could be seen as a forced ouster. Politico analyzed, "Knowing that more senior party members would apply pressure, a sudden resignation was the best opportunity for the president to appear as if he made this decision on his own terms."
On the night of the 20th (local time), President Biden held a family meeting, confirmed his resignation, and went to bed. When he woke up the next day, only First Lady Jill Biden and two other aides were with him at the Delaware residence. Then, around 1:45 p.m. on the 21st, he called his close aides to announce his intention to withdraw. After expressing gratitude for their efforts so far, he posted a statement of withdrawal from the presidential race on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
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