Long ago, I predicted that we would see more of Jill Biden on the campaign trail than Joe.
After Biden's debate fiasco, Jill is proving me true, keeping a travel schedule that would rival that of a rock band promoting a new album.
Talking Points…
- Joe Biden buries himself in the debate
- Jill hits the road
- Analysis
You all know how badly Joe Biden did during the debate, so there is no need to recap that disaster. What you may not know, however, is how badly it has impacted Joe Biden in polling.
In national polling, Biden had finally passed Trump, albeit only by 0.2%. That lead is now gone, as Trump has vaulted over Biden. Trump has also taken back the leads he lost in battleground states. Trump leads in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Biden's hopes of winning the Blue Wall to get to 270 are disappearing rather rapidly unless he can figure out something to turn this around.
Biden had planned a busy travel week over the holiday weekend to try to restore voter confidence. He reportedly told his closest allies that he knew the clock was ticking on winning back their confidence. Part of that strategy was apparently to create more excuses for Biden's poor performance.
The White House is now pitching the narrative that Joe Biden is suffering jet lag from a trip he took two weeks before the debate, as well as having a cold. Biden even told donors that he never should have agreed to take that trip two weeks prior to the debate so soon after. Now, realize Biden spent a full week at Camp David doing prep, and none of this had been mentioned, including the cold, only surfacing after he bombed.
Even though Joe Biden needs to raise confidence, Jill Biden is doing most of the talking. Jill has not only been traveling with Joe, working up the crowd before Joe talks, but she is also making her own stops to try to rebuild support. She even made a campaign stop in Virginia before getting back on the plane to attend the debate.
Jill was recently featured on the cover of Vogue and has been flying all over the country.
On Tuesday, Jill was in Pennsylvania, where she appeared at Lehigh Carbon Community College's Allentown campus. During her appearance, she stated:
"[Joe Biden] knows that the key to our tomorrow's rests in our classrooms.
"In making sure our students are ready for the jobs of the future, jobs that are available in the communities where they grew up, communities like this one."
On Wednesday, she was in Michigan to open a new campaign center. She also told the crowd that Joe is the guy on the ticket, and he will remain so, stating:
"Joe is the Democratic nominee and he is going to beat Donald Trump, just like he did in 2020."
Jill can get out there as much as she wants, but she is not the one people need to see. I mean, listen, I have stated many times that I believe Jill is one of the main shot callers in this administration. Democrats, however, still seem to believe that Joe is the guy, so Joe is the one that voters need to see if they are going to regain any faith in his stamina and mental ability to do the job. Until Biden can keep a busy schedule without standing on stage like a puppet, his campaign is sunk.
