Biden’s and Trump’s Performances on the 2022 Trail Sow Doubts About 2024
PoliticoBiden’s press secretary tried to clarify the president’s remarks, and offer an olive branch to Manchin, but then Biden went to New York on Sunday to campaign for Gov. Kathy Hochul and told another group of hecklers: “No more drilling, I haven’t formed any new drilling.” Trump’s missteps, however, make those of Biden look more like a bug bite than a beheading. The former president has demanded Jews “get their act together,” called on Republicans to somehow impeach Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, mocked the name of McConnell’s Taiwanese-born wife and, as the rest of his party focuses intently on the midterms, used the final days of the campaign to all but announce his presidential candidacy and hand a would-be challenger a new nickname, Ron DeSanctimonious. Ron DeSantis campaigns for New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin at a rally, Oct. 29, 2022, in Hauppauge, N.Y. | Julia Nikhinson/AP Photo Yet if the party doesn’t rally around an alternative, that 30 percent may still be enough of a foundation for Trump to win the nomination against a divided field, his path to the nomination six years ago. When one attendee gently said of Biden, “I know I shouldn’t say this but maybe he is getting a little bit too old,” another attendee interjected: “Trump is only one year younger!” Should the former president formally announce his candidacy this month, top Biden officials believe it’s virtually certain the current president will at least begin to pursue a re-election bid.