After dismal debate, Biden’s Raleigh stop gives him fodder for his new campaign ad
A campaign ad for President Joe Biden released Monday features clips from his rally in Raleigh last Friday.
After a lackluster performance in Thursday’s debate, Biden headed to Raleigh, in a performance many said was more indicative of his campaign overall. Clips from the Raleigh stop were used in the ad, including shots from the crowd, Biden greeting voters and quotes from his speech.
During the Raleigh event, Biden directly addressed his debate performance. Two of those quotes were used in the ad.
“I know how to tell the truth,” Biden says in the middle of the ad.
The new spot comes after the president received widespread criticism for his performance in the debate, with the New York Times editorial board calling for Biden to step down and allow a new candidate to take his place.
In the last clip of the ad, Biden says “like millions of Americans, I know when you get knocked down, you get back up.” This was the final line of his Raleigh speech.
The ad does use clips from Thursday’s debate — but none of them feature Biden. The main body of the ad features clips of former President Donald Trump during the debate along with fact-checks provided by the campaign. It takes aim at Trump’s actions on Jan. 6, which Biden also addressed in Raleigh.
“His biggest lie,” Biden said. “He lied about how he had nothing to do with the insurrection on Jan. 6.”
A news release from the Biden-Harris campaign said the ad “puts a spotlight on the difference in character between the two men by lifting up President Biden’s concluding remarks from his Friday rally.”
Buttigieg, Cooper praise Biden
Also on Monday, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg were asked if they would be willing to step in if Biden left the presidential race.
Buttigieg joined Cooper at a site where contractors are building a Blue Ridge Road underpass near the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. Neither answered directly.
“Look, he has been a generational president,” Cooper said about Biden, pointing out Biden’s body of work for the first three and a half years of his term and calling it “extraordinary.”
Buttigieg said he was “proud to be on President Biden’s team,” also calling Biden an extraordinary leader.
“And again, you see it right out here, this is not just talk. This is dollars and cents, jobs, roads, bridges, things happening that many, many of his predecessors, notably the previous administration, said they were going to get done, failed to get done. Now it’s actually happening,” Buttigieg said.
Cooper, who leaves office at the end of the year, has been asked frequently by reporters what his plan is for next year, and if he would work in the Biden-Harris administration. In April he said he “wasn’t thinking about next year,” and on Monday he deferred the question again, noting he has another six months as governor.
“I’m going to work every single day making sure we’re investing in North Carolina. I’ll find a job somewhere,” Cooper said.
