| | | | |  | | By Daniella Diaz and Nicholas Wu | Presented by Wells Fargo | With assists from POLITICO’s Congress team
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President Joe Biden's remarks Friday may not be enough to tamp down worries among congressional Democrats who have to share a ballot with him on Election Day. | AP | BIDEN OWNED THE BAD NIGHT. WILL IT HELP? The day after Joe Biden’s halting debate performance, the president appeared at a rally in North Carolina and offered a relatively candid take on his own televised fumble. “I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to,” Biden told a crowd in Raleigh, N.C. “I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. And I know how to do this job.” The Raleigh rally gave Biden the benefit of scripted remarks before a friendly, enthusiastic audience — a chance to reset with his base and jittery Democrats after a debate performance Thursday night that sparked widespread handwringing in the party. But Friday’s remarks may not be enough to tamp down worries among congressional Democrats who have to share a ballot with him on Election Day. When asked whether Biden’s comments would ease concerns, one congressional Democrat who was granted anonymity to speak candidly replied simply: “No.” The rally “gives ammunition to the ‘let’s take a breath’ crowd,” said a Democratic aide, also granted anonymity to share candid views. Other Hill Democrats whom POLITICO reached out to after the rally claimed not to have watched it at all. Vibe check: Before the Raleigh rally, House Democrats told POLITICO they didn’t think Biden should debate Donald Trump again following his performance Thursday. The majority of Democrats who spoke to reporters Friday acknowledged Biden’s performance was less-than-ideal but defended him and aired hopes that he would have time to recover. “Certainly he was sluggish, but the choice is still clear — sluggish versus dishonest, batshit-crazy felon,” said Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) Across the Capitol, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) said that "I was looking forward to a more — I guess — energetic approach” from Biden on Thursday night. “But from the substance, I think that the American people recognize they have a choice” between Biden and Trump’s records,” he added. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), meanwhile, pointed to senior Democrats’ confidence in Biden. “I'm not panic-stricken. I'm hopeful,” Cleaver said. “I ran into a few people today where I had to have a water bucket poured on the hair to put the fire out. I'm not one of them. And [former Speaker Nancy] Pelosi is not one of them. And [former Democratic Leader Steny] Hoyer is not one of them. And [House Minority Leader] Hakeem Jeffries is not one of them." (For more context on that assertion from Cleaver, read on.) The Biden campaign did not respond to a request for comment. — Daniella Diaz and Nicholas Wu, with assists from Jennifer Haberkorn and Ursula Perano
| | | | A message from Wells Fargo: Wells Fargo is proud of the role we play for our customers, communities and the U.S. economy. We serve 1 in 3 U.S. households and more than 10% of small businesses in the nation. We serve customers digitally and in-person, with 4,000 locations across the country, operating in 24 of the 30 largest markets. We cover more rural markets than many large banks, and nearly 30% of our branches are in low- or moderate-income census tracts. See how. | | | GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Friday, June 28, where Thank God It’s Friday. CLOSE READ: WHAT DEM LEADERS ACTUALLY MEAN ABOUT THAT DEBATE House Democratic leaders – past and present – were playing defense Friday morning for Biden. While choosing their words carefully about his poor debate performance, the group reiterated that it still sees him as the best candidate to defeat former President Donald Trump. “I support the ticket. I support the Senate Democratic majority. We're going to do everything possible to take back the House in November,” Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said. “The truth and the Constitution had a bad night,” said former House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). “The other candidate who respects none of those showed that last night.” Looking beyond the words: Top Democrats are widely seen as best-positioned to nudge Biden out of the way, and their defenses on Friday made clear they won’t go there right now. But several prominent party members delivered remarkable admissions of Biden’s failings during the Thursday night debate, even as they stood by him. Former House Democratic Whip Jim Clyburn (S.C.), a co-chair of Biden’s reelection, repeatedly said he believes the president should “stay the course” even as he acknowledged Biden struggled through the televised matchup with Trump. He called the bad debate “strike one” for the president. “If this were a ball game, he’d have two more swings,” Clyburn said. “I differentiate between worry and concern. So I wouldn't use the word worried. I'm not worried. Am I concerned? Yes. But I’m not worried,” Clyburn told reporters. “Because I don’t see any reason to worry. Who classifies the end result by one segment?” Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, one of Biden’s staunchest defenders, referred to the president’s performance as his “worst night” while reiterating that he’s the best candidate in the race. “On his worst night, his presentation of integrity was far better than the other guy's dishonesty. To see the Republicans embrace that dishonesty is just stunning,” Pelosi said, calling Biden “a great president” who improved over the course of the debate after “a bad start.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) let a post on X do the talking for him: “Tonight's debate made the choice clear: Four more years of progress, or four more years of attacks on our fundamental rights and our democracy. We’ve got to get out the vote for @JoeBiden, @KamalaHarris, and a Democratic Senate and House!” — Daniella Diaz and Nicholas Wu, with an assist from Anthony Adragna
| | | | THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.
Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | THE ARRAY-DISARRAY PENDULUM SWINGS HARD It’s been a while since we’ve seen such abundant glee from congressional Republicans. But as Democrats melted down after the president’s disastrous debate performance the previous night, GOP members and operatives were having a ball. All over the airwaves and the internet, Republican lawmakers tossed out jokes and critiques of the president. GOP flacks basked in the Democratic disarray. Some Republican congressional campaigns are already running ads and dinging their opponents over past defenses of the president’s age. It’s a field day for Trump’s party, any way you slice it. Beneath the delight: Republicans clearly hope the debate portends a bigger dip down-ballot for Democrats ahead of November. “The debate last night, the reverberations for that will continue,” Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Friday. “This will help ensure that Donald Trump is elected president in November, that we take back the majority in the Senate for the Republican Party and that we grow the House majority for Republicans." National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesperson Mike Berg told us in a statement: “Up to this point, every Senate Democrat has argued Joe Biden can survive four more years in the White House. After last night’s disaster, none of them have reiterated that point of view.” Counterpoint: A number of House and Senate Democrats have expressed support for the president since the debate, although some vulnerable Democratic incumbents have stayed notably quiet. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.), their party’s two most vulnerable incumbents in the chamber, both have yet to comment on Biden’s performance. Still, Democrats insisted that their candidates can withstand any aftershocks from Biden’s poor showing; many battleground Democrats are already polling ahead of the president, after all. Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson David Bergstein argued Senate campaigns, for one, “are candidate versus candidate battles, and Republicans have a roster of deeply flawed recruits.” “We'll win because we have the better candidates,” Bergstein added. Suffice to say that Republicans see it differently – and sense a bigger opening than ever to yoke their opponents to the president. “[Biden] will drag any ticket he’s on,” one GOP aide said, granted anonymity to speak candidly. — Ursula Perano, with an assist from Jordain Carney
| | | | A message from Wells Fargo:   | | | | | Sumo wrestlers hit Capitol Hill on Friday. Cups merch! Tom Suozzi really didn’t want to talk about the debate. Genuine condolences: To Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) following the death of his wife, which he announced this morning.
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What we say, we do. See how. | | | QUICK LINKS ‘Teaching the Socratic method with a bullwhip’: Congress remembers legend Judy Schneider, from Justin Papp at Roll Call Partisan pregame: House Republicans pass one-third of their spending bills, from Jennifer Scholtes Biden requests $4B from Congress to address Baltimore bridge, natural disasters, from Caitlin Emma Johnson says Biden's Cabinet should discuss invoking 25th Amendment, from Jordain Carney Republicans work to expand Congressional Review Act’s scope, Kelsey Brugger at E&E News Clearfield leads press to win over politicians in National Press Club Spelling Bee, from Mark Schoeff Jr. at Roll Call
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| | THURSDAY’S ANSWER: Curt Dimmick was the first to correctly guess that the campaign slogan for the first non-human mayor of Terlingua, Texas, was “You just have to give a darn.” TODAY’S QUESTION, from Curt: The Yellowstone Park Protection Act of 1894 is considered the first federal wildlife protection law. What member of Congress, considered by many to be an unsung hero in the conservation movement, authored the act? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@politico.com. GET INSIDE CONGRESS emailed to your phone each evening. | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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