After critical debate, Biden and Harris kept visiting swing state NC. What they did here.
President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign lasted less than a month after the consequential debate that touched off heavy criticism of his mental acuity.
The debate on June 27 between Biden and former President Donald Trump led to calls, including from top Democrats, for Biden to drop his reelection bid.
Biden announced on Sunday that he would drop out of the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place. During the critical period between the debate and that decision, Biden, Harris and their surrogates continued to visit North Carolina. Visits by Biden’s team had been common throughout the election season, hinting at North Carolina’s crucial role for Democrats in the upcoming election.
While North Carolina has mostly been won by Republican presidential nominees for years, it is considered a swing state because the victories tend to be by slim margins. In 2020, Trump won the state by just 1.3%. He lost nationwide. In addition to the presidential ticket, Democrats are running against Republicans in races up and down the ballot, including for governor.
North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is not running for reelection. There has been speculation that he could be on the short-list to run for vice president alongside Harris. The Democratic National Convention is in August in Chicago.
Here’s a rundown of the visits after the debate by Biden, Harris, First Lady Jill Biden and former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Biden rally in Raleigh on June 28
On Friday, just one day after his debate, Biden reassured supporters in Raleigh that he was able to handle another four years.
During the rally at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds — during which Biden was significantly more energetic than in the debate — Biden said, “I know I’m not a young man.”
“I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but I know what I do know. I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong and I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done,” he said.
“And I know like millions of Americans know, when you get knocked down you get back up,” Biden said.
Biden was joined by First Lady Jill Biden, who spoke before her husband.
Also speaking at that rally were Cooper and North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, a Democratic candidate for governor.
Biden was joined by First Lady Jill Biden, who spoke before her husband.
Jill Biden visits Wilmington July 8
The first lady also visited Wilmington on July 8 to campaign.
There, she launched Veterans and Military Families for Biden-Harris, the Wilmington Star-News reported.
Harris visits Greensboro July 11
At a campaign event at a Greensboro high school on July 11, Harris spoke on the upcoming election and the importance of voting to defeat Trump.
“Ultimately in this election, we each face a question. What kind of country do we want to live in?” she said. “Do we want to live in a country of freedom, of compassion and rule of law, or a country of chaos, fear and hate?”
Of Biden, Harris said, “he is a fighter. And he is the first to say ‘when you get knocked down, you get back up.’” “So we will continue to fight, and we will continue to organize, and in November we will win.”
Cooper also joined Harris on stage at James B. Dudley High School. There, he acknowledged the situation. “I know that tensions are high right now, but we must, and we will, come together,” he said.
Harris visits Fayetteville on July 18
And just one week after her visit to Greensboro, Harris stopped in once more, but this time in Fayetteville.
While there, Harris and Cooper both took the stage, using many of the same talking points from Greensboro.
Harris also spoke on the Republican National Convention — which was ongoing at that time — and on Trump’s picking Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance to run with him as vice president. Harris said Trump was trying to distract people from his record as president and Project 2025, a Heritage Foundation-written policy plan for a Trump presidency. She also criticized Republicans for abortion restrictions and attempts to overturn the 2020 election.
After the attempted assassination of Trump during a rally on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania, the GOP made calls to unify.
Harris spoke on this, too, saying “if you claim you stand for unity, you need to do more than just use the word.”
Nancy Pelosi speaks July 20 at NC Democratic Party’s annual Unity Dinner
And most recently, on Saturday, Pelosi was the keynote speaker at the North Carolina Democratic Party’s annual unity dinner.
During speeches by Pelosi and Cooper, Biden rarely came up. Pelosi largely spoke on the importance of electing and mobilizing Democrats and defeating former President Donald Trump.
She briefly mentioned accomplishments of Biden and congressional Democrats, saying they “know how to do the job.”
This story was originally published July 21, 2024 at 5:03 PM with the headline "After critical debate, Biden and Harris kept visiting swing state NC. What they did here.."
