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How Biden's press conference performance will determine his fate in the 2024 presidential election
The eyes of the world will be on Joe Biden on Thursday evening and all the 81-year-old has to do is give strong, forceful answers to a series of questions, showing he can perform well in an unscripted setting and quiet the talk he is not mentally fit for a second term in office.
But in a sign of how worried aides are about his performance at the 6:30 pm ET press conference, they have a backup plan in place in case Biden fumbles for words and stares into space like he did in the first presidential debate.
The pressure is on Biden as he tries to tamp down the voices in the Democratic Party calling for his exit from the presidential race and shore up support behind his candidacy. At least a dozen Democratic lawmakers have called for him to bow out.
A good performance can reassure his frantic allies that he has the mental and physical energy to compete against Donald Trump. A bad perfomance could be a disaster and the nail in the coffin for his chances of staying as the Democratic nominee.
The president has said repeatedly he is not leaving the contest.
President Joe Biden has been preparing for the press conference all week
The press conference, originally scheduled for 5:30 pm, was delayed until 6:30 pm, the White House announced Thursday morning.
Biden has been preparing for the press conference all week, the White House said, as officials argue this isn't a single, high-stakes event but part of a greater strategy to have Biden out in public more and be more available to the media.
Extra events are already on the schedule, a series of public events with images to counter anything unfortunate moments that might happen in the presser: the president will sit down with NBC's Lester Holt for an interview on Monday during a trip to Texas, he'll travel to Detroit on Friday, and, next week, in addition to Austin he'll visit Las Vegas.
But the press conference could be the make or break moment for his candidacy.
Lawmakers, party officials, donors, allies and foes alike will be tuning in.
White House spokesman John Kirby said he didn't know how long the press conference would last but that Biden will call on the reporters himself. In the past, the president has used a list prepared by White House staff with the names of the journalists he should call on.
'How long it will take will depend on how many questions,' Kirby said on Fox News on Wednesday. 'I cannot give you time but it will be a substantial press conference - again with multiple reporters and him, by himself, calling on them.'
The president's last solo press conference was in November 2023.
The challenge for Biden will be to show himself as a strong, clear communicator who can argue why he can beat Trump in November and win a second term.
The president, who can be dependent on a teleprompter, will also have to demonstrate he can be unscripted and think on his feet as he gets asked multiple questions in real time.
His allies argue it will help reset his candidacy.
'The press conference and other events like that will be helpful in getting us back to the contrast between Biden and Trump that we need and the country deserves,' Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said.
But it's not just the press conference.
Lawmakers and party officials will be looking closely at polls coming out in the next few weeks – ones that have been conducted since Biden's debate performance has sunk in.
Already a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll found that most Democrats think Biden should end his campaign based on his debate performance.
The poll finds that 56 percent of Democrats say that he should end his candidacy, while 42 percent say he should continue to seek reelection.
Party members also will be watching the president's next round of fundraising numbers. Donors have been expressing their fury about Biden's debate performance. Some claim the party misled them about Biden's ability to do the job.
Donald Trump and Joe Biden at the June 27 presdiential debate
Biden has held 36 news conferences to date, including 14 solo and 22 joint news conferences alongside other leaders.
The president is still facing calls from some Democratic lawmakers to leave the race. And other bad news has piled on.
George Clooney, a lifelong Democratic and major party donor, on Wednesday wrote an op-ed in the New York Times calling on Biden to exit the race. The call from the prominent actor sent political earthquakes through the Democratic Party.
Additionally, the Cook Political Report moved six states toward Trump in its Electoral College ratings on Tuesday, citing Biden's decline in national and private battleground polls post-debate.
Other prominent Democrats have been less than supportive of the president.
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi is among those appearing to question Biden's decision to remain in the contest.
'It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to make that decision. Because time is running short,' she said on Morning Joe on Wednesday.
Biden has said repeatedly he is in the presidential race to stay.
'I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump,' Biden wrote to Democratic lawmakers on Monday as he started a forceful strategy to regain the confidence of his party.
His week has gone well thus far. He had a near disastrous speech opening NATO but managed to avoid a near flub when reading from his teleprompter.
He has hung on for two weeks after his disastrous debate with Trump where he often stared blankly into the camera and struggled to find his words.
And some Democrats have stayed with him.
'I'm not going to advise the president on anything other than, 'Stay in. You're our guy. And I have your back,' Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania said on Wednesday.
Joe Biden and Jill Biden leave the debate stage after his terrible performance
But the fear is spreading among Democrats that not only Biden will lose in November, he'll take Democratic lawmakers down with him.
If Republicans win the White House, Senate and House of Representatives, Donald Trump would be unchecked in his presidential power.
'Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election and maybe win it by a landslide and take with him the Senate and the House,' Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado told CNN.
'So for me, this isn't a question about polling. It's not a question about politics. It's a moral question about the future of our country.'
Bennet also voiced what many Democrats have argued privately – if the Biden campaign has a plan to win a second term, they're not sharing it publicly or privately.
'The White House, in the time since that disastrous debate, I think, has done nothing to really demonstrate that they have a plan to win this election,' Bennet said.