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David Axelrod, an ex-top strategist for former President Barack Obama, said President Joe Biden is more likely to "lose by a landslide" than secure victory.
“He’s not winning this race,” Axelrod said during an appearance on CNN's Inside Politics Sunday (July 7). “If you just look at the data and talk to people around the country, political people around the country, it’s more likely that he’ll lose by a landslide than win narrowly this race."
Former President Obama has publicly supported Biden, his vice president for two terms, amid scrutiny that followed a disastrous performance in the first presidential debate last month. Axelrod, however, acknowledged concerns about Biden's age, as well as reports that the doubts have rankled the 81-year-old president.
“If the stakes are as large as [Biden] says, and I believe they are, then he really needs to consider what the right thing to do here is,” Axelrod told CNN.
Axelrod's appearance came amid reports of uncertainty regarding the president's re-election campaign as a top campaign official reportedly told at least one megadonor that Biden's withdrawal from the 2024 election is "only a matter of time" privately according to TMZ, as well as multiple Democratic officials publicly calling for him to drop out. The official reportedly said that focus had shifted from singular support of the president's re-election to "Democrats have to retain The White House" following Biden's disastrous performance in the first presidential debate against former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee.
Biden, the oldest president in history, appeared opposite Trump, on the debate stage for the first time since the 2020 election and did little to quell concerns about his vigor and energy. The president appeared to struggle with his voice, clearing his throat and coughing multiple times, and was often seen open-mouthed and staring when Trump spoke, occasionally struggling to finish sentences.
Biden's performance reportedly led to "panic" among Democrats, according to longtime Democratic operative and CNN senior political commentator David Axelrod.
“He seemed a little disoriented. He did get stronger as the debate went on. But by that time, I think the panic had set in,” Axelrod said, adding that "there are going to be discussions about whether he should continue.”