EAST HAMPTON, NY — Jill Biden was close to her husband on Saturday as they left Air Force One at for a few campaign stops in luxury vacation homes on Long Island. And she got straight to the point when it was her turn to introduce the president at a tony fundraiser.
“Joe is not only the right person for the job. He is the only person for the job,” she said.
The first lady also told donors: “Anyone can tell you what they want to do, but Joe Biden can tell you what he has done with his judgment, his experience and his relationships with leaders around the world.”
The first lady is trying to rally support for her husband after a terrible performance in the US Thursday’s presidential debate raised new concerns about President Joe Biden’s age and his ability to participate in the November election and serve another four years.
The community college professor has been at her husband’s side since he left the debate stage as he faces a potentially decisive challenge to his presidency: The president says democracy itself is at stake in his race against former President Donald Trump.
It’s a reflection of the first lady’s influence, her love for her husband and the pressures facing an 81-year-old candidate. many voters worry he is too old to serve another term as president. While Trump’s wife has been conspicuously absent from the campaign trail, Jill Biden has taken a leadership role, wearing a dress emblazoned with the word “Vote” on Friday.
Less than 24 hours after her husband’s disastrous debate, she stood before a crowd in Greenwich Village and praised her husband, without any nod to the swirling controversy over whether he should seek another term.
“Joe will never stop fighting for this country and for communities like this,” she said at an event at Stonewall National Monument, a symbol of LGBTQ+ pride. “That’s who Joe is. He wakes up every morning and thinks about how he can improve the lives of Americans.”
Later in the day, however, she was more candid at an LGBTQ fundraiser in the city, saying of her husband’s debate performance, “I know it’s on your mind.”
“Like Joe said earlier today, he’s not a young man,” she admitted. “And you know, after last night’s debate he said, ‘You know, Jill, I don’t know what happened. I didn’t feel that great.’ And I said, ‘Look, Joe, we’re not going to let 90 minutes define the four years you’re president.’”
The first lady then went on to deliver a spirited defense of the president’s capabilities, indicating that she could not discount his intentions — their intentions, really — to continue his campaign.
“What my husband does know is to tell the truth,” she said. “When Joe gets knocked down, Joe gets back up, and that’s what we’re doing today.”
Jill Biden, 73, has long been her husband’s top confidant and public defender, but her role is expanding this year and drawing increasing attention from Trump supporters, some of whom are questioning whether she is the one taking charge these days .
When the first lady grabbed the president’s hand Thursday night as he left the debate stage after his halting performance, Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas reposted the video on X with the question, “Who is the commander in chief?”
Jill Biden, who was hesitant early on to embrace the role of political spouse, is all in.
Earlier this year, when voters were still denying that Biden was actually seeking another term, it was Jill Biden who squashed the idea that he might not.
“How many times does he have to say it before you believe it?” the first lady told The Associated Press in an interview in February during a trip to Africa. She added: ‘He says he’s not done. He hasn’t finished what he started. And that’s what’s important.’
A Philadelphia-area native, her tone has become increasingly heated as she has told supporters that Trump has “redecorated my Philly.” But the race with the former Republican is tight, and she told Friday’s fundraiser, “We have to work harder than ever before.”
She not only discusses her husband’s best qualities, she regularly regales supporters with stories about their courtship and life together. During Friday’s events, she told LGBTQ+ rallies that Trump is a “threat” to their rights and “we can’t let him win,” a sign that she’s not afraid of hard-nosed politics.
Last month the first lady a starting address delivered to students at a community college in Arizona, where she talked about ignoring doubters and following through on their goals.
“The next time someone tells you ‘you can’t,’ you’ll say, ‘Oh yeah? Pay attention to me,” she said.
It was an echo of the words her husband has used several times when asked if he could do the job for another four years: “Look at me.”
