Even Biden partisans were shocked by the evening’s debacle. “I love Joe Biden. I know he’s a good man… Tonight was heartbreaking in many ways… There’s panic in the Democratic party,” Maria Shriver, the former first lady of California and a member of the Kennedy family, wrote on X. Former Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill offered a more blunt take, saying while the debate showcased that Trump is “a liar, a flawed character, mean, a jerk, very unlikable”, Biden”had one thing he had to accomplish and that was reassure America that he was up to the job at his age, and he failed at that tonight”.
Party veterans tried to stem the panic, suggesting that voters should look at the larger picture. “It’s a choice between someone who cares about you – your rights, your prospects, your future – versus someone who’s only in it for himself,” former first lady, senator, and prez candidate Hillary Clinton said. But with polls showing Biden’s age is going against him, there is pressure in the Democratic Party from activists and donors to act quickly. “Our odds of Trumpocalypse II just materially increased,” Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and a Democratic donor, was quoted as saying in an email to party insiders.
Biden appeared to acknowledge the criticism during a rally in North Carolina on Friday, saying “I don’t debate as well as I used to.” But he added, “I know how to do this job.” Speaking for 18 minutes, Biden appeared far more animated than his showing the night before, and he excoriated Trump for his “lies”. “The choice in this election is simple,” he said. “Donald Trump will destroy our democracy. I will defend it.”
Biden’s campaign announced that it raised $14 million on debate day and the morning after, while Trump’s campaign said it raised more than $8 million from the start of the debate through the end of the night.