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It almost seemed like a typical campaign rally.
A fiery Joe Biden finished his long week with an enthusiastic crowd at a Detroit, Michigan, high school whose cheers he struggled to contain. He touted his administration’s accomplishments, repeatedly attacked and ridiculed Donald Trump and laid out his vision for a second term. He basked in chants of “four more years.”
But Biden couldn’t avoid the darkening clouds hanging over his candidacy as an increasing number of prominent Democrats called for him to step aside, two weeks after a flailing debate with Trump unleashed a flood of concerns about his age and fitness for office.
In Detroit, he again vowed to stay in the race.
“You’ve probably noticed a lot of speculation lately. What’s Joe Biden going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out?” Biden yelled. “Here’s my answer. I am running, and we’re going to win.”
Biden, speaking before what his campaign said was a crowd of 2,000 people at Renaissance High School, used the rally to dig in even more, fueled by chants of “don’t you quit” and “we’ve got your back.” He sounded forceful and angry at times, as he said he’ll “be damned” if he’s going to let Trump return to the White House.
“I’m the nominee of this party because 14 million Democrats like you voted for me in the primaries. You made me the nominee. No one else. Not the press, not the pundits, not the press, not the donors. You, the voters. You decided. No one else, and I’m not going anywhere,” he said.
Biden repeatedly criticized the press for “hammering” him because at times he garbles or confuses names — while ignoring the same or worse from his opponent. The crowd then booed the media — something more often seen at a Trump rally — before the president urged them to stop.
“No more free passes. Today we’re gonna shine a spotlight on Donald Trump. We’re gonna do what the press so far hasn’t, but I think they’re going to soon. We’re gonna say who he is. What he intends to do,” he said.
The rally capped a tumultuous week for the president. He presided over a successful NATO Summit, and pulled every political lever — from media interviews to meetings with groups of lawmakers to a lengthy news conference — to beat back critics in his party. But the Democrats remain in political limbo with no clear path forward as the divide widens between the president’s closest advisers, who continue to insist he has a path to victory, and other party leaders.
The president’s week, which included a closely watched press conference on Thursday, appeared to assuage some nervous Democrats even as more members of Congress came out with calls for him to end his campaign.
Biden used the Detroit rally to spotlight Project 2025, the collection of far-right policies from The Heritage Foundation to reshape the government should a Republican return to power.
Biden called it “Trump 2025,” as his campaign seeks to connect Trump to policy proposals, including an expansion of presidential power and eliminating the Department of Education, that would be pursued by former and likely future leaders in his administration. Trump has tried recently to distance himself from Project 2025, criticizing some of the policies as “absolutely ridiculous and abysmal” and insisting that neither he nor his campaign are involved with it.
“Project 2025 is the biggest attack on our system of government and our personal freedom that has ever been proposed in the history of this country,” Biden said. “Another four years of Donald Trump is deadly serious. Deadly serious.”
The president’s speech offered a preview of how his campaign plans to counter-program next week’s Republican National Convention, when Trump will officially become the GOP nominee. Biden’s aides are hyper focused on drawing a connection between Trump and Project 2025. Biden has three national media interviews next week and will travel to Texas and Nevada for events.
