Joe Biden campaigns in Pennsylvania on Sunday to convince voters that he is suitable for office, while members of his own party debate whether he should be replaced as the Democratic presidential candidate.
Biden will make two campaign appearances in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, two important cities in the state he needs to win to maintain control of the White House in November.
The appearances, which include a speech at a Black church in Philadelphia and an event with a union in Harrisburg, are part of an intensified effort by the Biden campaign to calm growing concerns among Democrats who have been panicked by Biden's shaky debate performance last week.
A high-profile interview during prime time on Friday evening did little to calm her nerves, as the President had to face tough questions about his age and mental fitness.
On Sunday, Democratic Senator for Connecticut, Chris Murphy, told CNN that the interview would not be enough to convince voters.
Personally, I love Joe Biden, but I don't know if the interview on Friday evening did enough to answer these questions," said Murphy. "This week will be absolutely crucial. I think the President needs to do more.
The clock is ticking," he added.
Many Democratic lawmakers, party officials, and influential donors have called privately for Biden to suspend his re-election campaign after last week's disastrous debate, and the pressure is likely to increase this week as lawmakers return from a short break.
The New York Times reported on Friday that the leading Democrat in the House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffries, will hold a virtual meeting with senior House Democrats on Sunday to discuss Biden's candidacy.
In the Senate, Senator Mark Warner from Virginia will hold a similar session for the Democrats on Monday, reported the Times.
Although Biden won Pennsylvania in 2020, Trump is now ahead by 4.5 percentage points in the RealClearPolitics poll average.
During a speech at the Mt Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia on Sunday afternoon, Biden told the congregation that his goal was to "unite America again.
I know I look like I'm 40 years old, but I've been at this for a while," Biden joked. "I've been doing this a long time and I am – frankly – never been so optimistic about the future of America, if we hold together. I really mean it.
During the approximately 20-minute interview on Friday on ABC, Biden dismissed polls showing that he is trailing Trump both nationally and in the critical swing states that will decide the outcome of the election.
I don't think anyone is more qualified to be president or to win this race than I am," Biden said on Friday.
His campaign might take some comfort from a weekend poll showing him leading Trump in the key states of Michigan and Wisconsin. The candidates are tied in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and North Carolina, but the President is trailing in Pennsylvania.
The California Congressman Adam Schiff said on Sunday to NBC that Biden's debate performance "rightly raised questions among Americans about whether the president has the energy to defeat Donald Trump. And this is an existential race.
Given Joe Biden's incredible record and Donald Trump's terrible record, he should easily defeat Trump. Joe Biden is running against a criminal. It shouldn't even be close, and there's only one reason why it is close. And that is the President's age.
In a weekend opinion article for CNN, David Axelrod, the architect of Barack Obama's successful 2008 presidential campaign, warned: "At this rate, Biden is headed for a staggering defeat against a lawless and unpopular former president.
Denial. Delusions. Defiance," he added.
However, some legislators continued to publicly support him over the weekend, including influential Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn from South Carolina and progressive favorite Bernie Sanders.
What we are discussing now is not a Grammy contest for best singer," said Sanders on CBS' Face the Nation.
Biden is old. He is no longer as articulate as he used to be. I wish he could still hop up the steps to Air Force One. He can't. We need to focus on the policies.
