From late arrival to repeated gaffes, a series of blunders led to Biden's debate debacle against Trump

WASHINGTON, DC: Joe Biden arrived late to his debate with Donald Trump, leading to a series of unfortunate events that have severely impacted his campaign. The once-promising opportunity for a resurgence against his formidable rival turned into a crisis that has Democratic lawmakers openly calling for his resignation.

Blaming a cold and a "bad night," Biden appeared frail, confused and struggled to finish sentences during the debate. Initially, he managed to convince politicians, donors, and voters that his performance was just an off night, as polls remained relatively stable immediately after.

However, subsequent errors by both Biden and his team have turned this "bad night" into a potentially unrecoverable disaster, possibly handing Trump the White House.

Joe Biden's pre-debate overconfidence and missteps led to poor performance

Biden's confidence in his debating skills, bolstered by previous successes, including against Trump, led to complacency. He left his Atlanta hotel 27 minutes late, arriving at the debate venue with less than half an hour to spare. This left no time for crucial preparations, such as learning where to look when Trump was speaking, per the Washington Post.

Consequently, Biden often appeared disoriented, staring into space and seemingly unaware of his surroundings.

Millions watched in shock, sadness, and fear, including Trump himself. "No one was more shocked at Biden's performance than Donald Trump," one of Trump's advisers noted. Trump even skipped the post-debate spin room to avoid appearing like he was kicking Biden while he was down.

To brush off the debate performance as a blip, Biden's staff planned a major rally in Raleigh, North Carolina. "I don't walk as easy as I used to. I don't speak as smoothly as I used to. But I know what I do know… I know how to do this job," Biden proclaimed. "When you get knocked down, you get back up."

While the rally showcased a loud, confident, articulate, and energetic Biden - a stark contrast to his debate performance - the key difference was that he was reading from a teleprompter, not answering spontaneous questions.

Donors' and lawmakers' concerns about Joe Biden's condition

While the Raleigh rally was a step in the right direction, it also highlighted the stark contrast in Biden's performance settings. Many had noticed his declining mobility, frequent lapses in thought, and overall lack of energy over the years.

His debate performance shattered the illusion that he could still rise to big moments, leading to increased scrutiny.

Biden further alarmed donors by speaking for just six minutes at a June 29 fundraiser, making a gaffe, and then leaving without taking questions. His next event at Governor Phil Murphy's private villa in New Jersey saw Biden speaking so softly that the audience of 50 struggled to hear him.

Despite using a teleprompter, he still lost his train of thought at times. The main issue was that these were his only events, rather than following up Raleigh with a media blitz to demonstrate his capabilities.

Biden's limited public appearances, totaling just 32 minutes of scripted remarks over five days, created a vacuum that opponents and worried Democrats filled with drama. By Monday, the crisis was spiraling, with Biden's camp leaking discontent and Democrats openly discussing replacing him.

"Everyone lost confidence by Monday. I started hearing from donors, members, and everyone on Monday. It was only getting worse," one Democratic congress member said. "The talking points suck, totally suck. They did a terrible job after the debate. Terrible."

This created an atmosphere of doom and despair, exacerbated by major newspaper editorials urging Biden to step aside for the good of the country.

"I would have been more aggressive if I was them. 'They needed to have him out earlier, to show there was nothing," Biden ally Al Sharpton told the Post. "The White House seemed surprised at the reaction. They should have fired right back. You don't give your enemies the chance to set your narrative. They let their enemies set the narrative."

Democrats' damage control and further missteps by Joe Biden

Biden called his staff to reassure them they weren't to blame for the debate and tried to quell reports of friction between them and his family. Democratic governors demanded a sit-down with Biden, meeting with him on Wednesday at the White House.

While they made a public show of support, privately they expressed concerns about losing key states like Maine, New Mexico, and Colorado.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who had been largely sidelined during the campaign, was suddenly considered as a potential successor. However, she angrily rejected the idea at the governors' meeting, declaring, "This is about our f**king democracy" and demanding support for Biden, per the Post.

Biden made another gaffe in a radio interview, calling Harris "the first black woman to serve with a black president," despite the question being pre-approved by his campaign.

Stuart Stevens, Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign lead consultant, argued that Biden should have immediately gone on a press blitz after the debate to overshadow his poor performance. "There is a very simple path to this. You just have to go out and do it," he said. "If you can't do it, that is a different thing."

At 81, nearly 82, Biden's needs have changed, requiring more sleep, different shoes, and even shorter steps to board Air Force One. His rally in Madison, Wisconsin, followed by a 22-minute radio interview on ABC, offered a chance to stop the campaign's bleeding.

Biden defiantly declared his intention to contest and win the November 5 election with a lively speech, but he still lost his train of thought at times, appeared unsure, and made factual errors, the Daily Mail reported.

Democrats facing internal strife and uncertainty

As Congress returns to session, the Democratic party faces internal strife over whether Biden should stay in the race.

Dmitri Mehlhorn, a donor adviser to LinkedIn co-founder and key Biden supporter Reid Hoffman, highlighted the critical period ahead: "This Democratic circular firing squad will continue, but it will also end. The question is: Does it end in a couple of weeks, which is manageable, or does it end in a couple of months, which will be a disaster? It's a self-inflicted wound, and the question is: Do we keep shooting ourselves?"

Unless Biden can pull his campaign out of this tailspin, the situation could become dire. The coming weeks will be crucial in determining whether he can regain his footing or if the Democratic party will continue to spiral into chaos and uncertainty.