Biden, aides tell allies he will run in 2024 amid growing Dem fears
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and members of his inner circle have reassured allies in recent days that he plans to run for re-election in 2024, as they take steps to deflect concern about the 79-year-old president’s commitment to another campaign and growing Democratic fears of a coming Republican return to power.
The efforts come as the broader Democratic community has become increasingly anxious after a bruising six-month stretch that has seen Mr. Biden’s national approval rating plummet more than a dozen points, into the low 40s, amid growing concerns about inflation, Democratic infighting in Washington and faltering public health efforts to move beyond the COVID19 pandemic.
The message is aimed in part at tamping down the assumption among many Democrats that Mr. Biden may not seek re-election given his age and waning popularity, while also effectively freezing the field for Vice President Kamala Harris and other potential presidential hopefuls.
“The only thing I’ve heard him say is he’s planning on running again,” said former senator Chris Dodd, DConn., a Biden friend. “And I’m glad he is.”
At a virtual fundraiser this month, Mr. Biden told a small group of donors that he plans to seek a second term, underscoring the message he gave the nation in March at his first White House news conference before cautioning that he had “never been able to plan
three-and-a-half, four years ahead, for certain.”
“What he is saying publicly is what he firmly believes. There’s no difference,” said former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who attended the fundraising event. “He will not run if he feels he can’t do the job physically or emotionally.”
But interviews with 28 Democratic strategists and officials, many of whom requested anonymity to speak more frankly, show that the assurances have not stopped the internal debate over whether Mr. Biden will appear on the ticket.
Some Democrats take a skeptical view of any public and private signals Mr. Biden and his team send about re-election, reasoning that there is an incentive for them to project interest in a second term, regardless of his true intent, to avoid weakening his standing. Another presidential bid, others worry, will involve a much more rigorous schedule than the relatively calm 2020 campaign, which was
largely conducted remotely because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even among those in close touch with Mr. Biden’s innermost circle, interpretations about his intentions vary.
One Democrat involved in campaigns said they couldn’t think of a single person they had spoken to in the last month who considers the possibility of Mr. Biden running again to be a real one.
“I hear this question get asked every day,” said another Democratic veteran of recent presidential campaigns, about whether Mr. Biden will run for re-election. “No one ever asked that question about Barack Obama. No one ever asked that question about Donald Trump.”
Florida trial lawyer John Morgan, who was a top 2020 Biden donor, said he was unsure whether Mr. Biden would seek re-election.
“What is his health going to be in the next three years?” he wondered aloud. “All you have to do is look at the mortality tables in Americato understand what I’m saying.”
Mr. Biden received a health checkup Friday — a day before his 79th birthday Saturday — at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center that found the president to be “healthy,” “vigorous” and working out five days a week. His doctor described a stiffer walking gait in recent years, which he attributed to spinal arthritis, and some acid reflux that has caused him to repeatedly clear his throat.
His advisers say that health is not a current concern that would prevent another campaign.
“He has told people privately that he plans to run and we will be ready for that,” said one Biden adviser, who requested anonymity to describe internal conversations.
Mr. Biden has so far rejected then-President Trump’s approach of declaring a re-election campaign in the first months in office, reasoning that such an announcement would waste money and wear out campaign donors, allies say.
Mr. Biden is widely expected to wait until after the midterms to make a formal announcement.
Shortly after arriving in the White House, Mr. Biden shifted the assets of his presidential campaign to the Democratic National Committee, leaving his donor and volunteer lists to be managed by the national party.
The party does plan to review the order of nominating states in the primary calendar, a threat to the first-inthe-nation position of the Iowa caucuses, but those efforts do not assume a contested Democratic fight.