President Biden has dismissed veteran Democratic political strategist David Axelrod as a “stab” for questioning whether the commander-in-chief should seek a second term – as consecutive polls show the incumbent losing next year to former President Donald Trump.
The 80-year-old Biden’s hot temper and profanity are an open secret in Washington, and his disdain for Axelrod — as reported Monday by Politico columnist Jonathan Martin — is the latest sign of a feud between Biden loyalists and Barack Obama administration veterans.
Axelrod, best known for masterminding Obama’s 2008 and 2012 election victories, initially said Biden should reconsider his position earlier this month, after a New York Times/Siena College poll showed Biden losing to Trump, 77, in five of the six states up for grabs. likely to determine the outcome of the 2024 vote.
“Only @JoeBiden can make this decision. If he continues to run, he will be the candidate of the Democratic Party. What he had to decide was whether that was wise; either for HIS interest or the country’s?” Axelrod posted on X.
The president took umbrage with David Axelrod’s comments about his 2024 campaign.REUTERS
Only @JoeBiden can make this decision. If he continues to run, he will be the candidate of the Democratic Party. What he had to decide was whether that was wise; either for HIS interests or the country?
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) November 5, 2023
Joe Biden speaks with senior adviser David Axelrod during a 2009 Oval Office meeting. Pete Souza – White House via CNP
That prescription didn’t sit well with Biden’s allies
Former White House chief of staff Ron Klain, who enjoys talking trash on social media, responded to Axelrod’s attacks that day.
“The guy who called Biden ‘Mr Magoo’ in August 2019 is still doing it,” Klain wrote, referring to the revered cartoon character.
Axelrod has publicly questioned whether Biden should run again in 2024.AP
On CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday, Axelrod insisted that he wasn’t telling Biden to drop out of the 2024 race, just that he “should think about it.”
“I have no concerns about voting a year out. I mean, you have to look at them and analyze them and adapt,” he said. “But I was in a situation as a strategist for Barack Obama in 2011 where we faced some tough elections.
“One number in the poll that is alarming, and in the CNN poll that followed the New York Times poll, has to do with age. And that’s one thing you can’t reverse. And no matter how effective Joe Biden is behind the scenes, in front of the camera, what he’s showing is causing people to worry.”
President Joe Biden holds a hockey stick during a celebration with the Vegas Golden Knights for their 2023 Stanley Cup victory.AP
Biden is reportedly sensitive about his age and fitness to serve, telling an acquaintance last year: “You think I don’t know how old I am?”, according to Politico.
The president also ruled out voting in a rare audience with a group of reporters outside the White House last week.
“You don’t read the polls,” Biden said on November 9. “Ten polls. Eight of them, I beat him [Trump] in those places. Eight of them. You only make two. CNN and the New York Times. Check it out. Check it out. We will give you copies of all the other polls.”
When asked if he believed he was behind in the primary state, Biden repeated: “No, I don’t.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
