Biden campaign: Debate 'crystallized the threat' of a second Trump term
President Biden's campaign appears to be doing damage control following the president's poor showing at Thursday night's debate by framing the event as a chance for Americans to see former President Trump's "lies" on display.
Democrats have fallen into a panic following the debate, the first face-to-face interaction between the two presumptive nominees since 2020, after Biden offered a low-energy performance. Although Trump was criticized by some over the factual basis of his claims, he was largely regarded as the winner of the debate.
Calls for Biden to step aside and make way for someone else to lead the Democratic ticket in November have seen a significant uptick since Thursday night.
Several Biden surrogates have attempted to downplay the impact Biden's performance could ultimately have on his chances in November, including Vice President Harris, who argued in a post-debate interview that Biden had a "slow start" but a "strong finish."
Biden's campaign communications director Michael Tyler echoed Harris's sentiments in comments to reporters Friday while aboard Air Force One and argued the debate showcased Trump's "extremism."
"Last night was one of the first times that the American people are going to begin to see the extremism that Donald Trump represents and just how harmful a second Trump term would be moving forward," Tyler told reporters.
He continued, "So, I think the President is honest about his own performance. But as far as what last night's debate actually provided for the American people, it — it crystallized the threat — it begins to crystallize the threat that Donald Trump poses."
While the debate may not have quelled Americans' fears over the presidents age, it did put Trump's lies on display, he argued.
"I think it forced Donald Trump ... what you saw Donald Trump do throughout the course of that debate as it went on was ... obviously, he spent the entire night lying," Tyler said. "But as the debate went on in prime time, without an audience for him to feed off of, he became more unhinged, he started to spew more and more lies, and he reminded the American people of exactly why they fired him in the first place."
The next presidential debate is slated for Sept. 10, after both political parties hold their conventions and solidify their candidates.