President Biden’s reelection campaign on Friday announced a $50 million ad blitz that will air in battleground states this month, signaling the president’s commitment to remaining in the race despite growing calls for the 81-year-old to drop out.
During last month’s debate, Biden struggled to form coherent sentences and, at times, appeared downright confused. Biden’s debate performance has caused widespread panic among Democrats, leading to calls from major Democratic donors and at least three House Democrats for Biden to drop out of the race.
Still, Biden said he’s “not going anywhere” at a White House Fourth of July event.
The campaign has charted a path forward that involves Biden appearing at more casual, unscripted events, CNN reports, along with “strategic investments around key events,” including the Olympic Games and the Republican National Convention. The campaign plans to run TV, radio, and digital ads on “the issues that will decide this election,” including “a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions, economic relief and opportunities for middle- and working-class families, and the threat Donald Trump poses to our democracy and the rule of law.”
Biden’s “aggressive travel schedule” this month will take him, the vice president, the first lady, and the second gentleman to every battleground state.
Biden “can also be expected to engage in frequent off-the-cuff moments over the course of the month, as he has consistently throughout this campaign,” the campaign said in its announcement.
Still, in a radio interview that aired Thursday, Biden only offered critics additional fodder when he said, “I’m proud to be, as I said, the first vice president — first Black woman — to serve with a Black president, proud to have been involved with the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.”
ABC News is set to air an interview with Biden on Friday evening. The interview with the network’s George Stephanopoulos could prove a make-or-break moment for the Biden campaign.