Illinois Democrat blasts Biden debate performance: ‘It wasn’t just a horrible night’

Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) went a bit further than most Democrats who have protected President Joe Biden in the days after his poor debate performance, saying that “it wasn’t just a horrible night.”

“We have to be honest with ourselves that it wasn’t just a horrible night,” Quigley told CNN host Kasie Hunt on Tuesday. “But I won’t go beyond that out of my respect and understanding for President Joe Biden, a very proud person who has served us extraordinarily for 50 years. I just want him to appreciate at this time just how much this impacts not just his race but all the other races coming in November.”

Quigley’s stance differs from many Democrats, most of whom have labeled Biden’s debate performance as just a bad night as opposed to a definitive sign that his age-related concerns have been confirmed by his performance, which showed the president struggling at times to put out coherent thoughts.

Quigley also said he believes a polling impact may be the only thing that will get Biden to drop out of the race and clear the way for a myriad of possible candidates, such as Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI).

“So, it’s clear that what took place last week isn’t — doesn’t seem to influence his decision. I don’t know what will,” he told Hunt. “I don’t know if his polling is — it probably takes what, three, four or five, up to a week to get decent polling. So, as I assess, we’ll probably get that starting today or tomorrow.”

“The holiday will make polling more difficult. But I do think that’s probably the only thing out there right now that could change his mind or influence, that critical decision that, again, only he can make,” the congressman added.

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CNN’s presidential debate rattled many Democrats, who saw that Biden wasn’t answering questions clearly and wasn’t dissuading voters who had concerns about his mental acuity. A recent poll found that 66% of voters have doubts about his fitness for office, including 40% of Democrats.

For now, Biden is the Democratic nominee for president, and he is trailing former President Donald Trump in FiveThirtyEight’s polling average by 1.4 percentage points. Three different polls conducted from Friday to Sunday, after the debate, have Trump leading.