Biden's Campaign Memo Reveals Pressure to Debate from "Position of Strength"

A newly surfaced campaign memo, published in a book by Politico on July 7, reveals the intense pressure on Joe Biden's campaign to debate Donald Trump from a "position of strength" before early voting began in 2024. The memo highlights how aides persuaded Biden to participate in the spring debate, despite the Commission on Presidential Debates' suggested fall debate timeline. The memo's language, which addressed Biden as "YOU" in bold capital letters, underscores the stakes and the campaign's desperation to show Biden's leadership against Trump's perceived weakness and chaos.

Key Takeaways:

• The campaign memo, published in a book by Politico on July 7, shows how Biden's aides pressured him to debate Trump from a "position of strength" before early voting began in 2024.
• The memo suggests that debating in the spring would allow Biden to reach the widest audience possible before the summer months, when conventions, Olympics, and family vacations would take precedence.
• Despite the memo's optimistic tone, Biden's June 2024 debate performance was disastrous, with him appearing hoarse and feeble, and struggling to finish sentences.
• After the debate, Biden faced mounting pressure from influential donors and some lawmakers to drop out of the race, which he did less than a month later, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.
• Harris, who ran the shortest presidential campaign in history, was trounced by Trump in November 2024, capping a remarkable comeback by the former president.
• The contents of the memo stand in contrast to the Trump administration's narrative, which accused Biden's team of a cover-up by limiting his public exposure and hiding his cognitive decline.
• House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Kentucky, has launched an investigation into Biden's health and use of the autopen to sign presidential documents.
• The August 2024 investigation into pardons issued in Biden's final days includes allegations of Biden being taken advantage of through the use of Autopen or other means.

Statistics:

• 81: Biden's age during the June 2024 debate.
• 2024: The year of the presidential election.
• November 2024: The month of Trump's comeback win against Harris.
• 59: Harris's age during the presidential campaign.
• 2022: The year Biden announced his diagnosis with aggressive Stage 4 prostate cancer.
• $ percentage of the vote: Harris's loss against Trump in the 2024 election (no data available).

Sources:

• Politico, "2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America" by Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager, and Isaac Arnsdorf.
• USA TODAY, "Biden cover-up? Investigation into his health and use of autopen begins" by Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy.
• House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Kentucky, letters to Biden's physician and former White House aides.