Biden to campaign in Michigan as he vows to stay in presidential race
President Joe Biden will return to Michigan Friday, the campaign said in a Sunday evening release, as he attempts to rebound from his first debate of 2024 against Republican Donald Trump.
Biden, the Democratic incumbent, will visit Detroit, the Biden campaign said.
It will be Biden’s fourth trip to Michigan of the year and will come 116 days before the Nov. 5 presidential election. Four years ago, Biden beat Trump, who was then serving as president, by 154,000 votes or 3 percentage points, 51%-48%, in Michigan.
However, Biden’s campaign has faced turmoil since the June 27 debate, during which he gave a handful of meandering and confusing answers, including saying at one point, “We finally beat Medicare.”
The 81-year-old’s showing spurred some pundits and five Democratic U.S. House members to call on him to step aside and let Democrats pick someone else to be their nominee to take on Trump this fall. Biden has rejected their prodding and contended that he will win the election.
“I’m not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work,” Biden tweeted Friday. “I’m staying in the race, and I will beat Donald Trump.”
Then, on Saturday, he posted, “I beat Trump in 2020. I’m going to beat him again in 2024.”
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Biden was in Wisconsin on Friday, he is visiting Pennsylvania on Sunday, and he will be back in Michigan this coming Friday. Combined, the three states helped propel Biden to victory in 2020 and carry 44 electoral votes in 2024.
Biden was interviewed by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos in Wisconsin on Friday.
“I convinced myself of two things: I’m the most qualified person to beat him, and I know how to get things done,” Biden said of Trump during the interview.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who could both be future Democratic presidential candidates, have continued to voice support for Biden. Newsom campaigned on behalf of Biden in Michigan on Thursday.
“Joe Biden is our president,” Newsom said during a stop in South Haven. “He said he’s all in. I doubled down, said I’m all in. And not only that, I’m here with you to prove it.”
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Trump’s last trip to Michigan came June 15 when he spoke at a Detroit church and at a convention of conservative activists. Trump targeted Biden in a post on the social media platform Truth Social Friday.
“Crooked Joe Biden should ignore his many critics and move forward, with alacrity and strength, with his powerful and far reaching campaign,” Trump wrote.
cmauger@detroitnews.com
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