'I'm staying in the race': A defiant Joe Biden rallies support to his campaign in Madison

MADISON – As Joe Biden faces calls from within his own party to abandon a reelection bid, the 81-year-old Democratic president made a critical stop in this battleground state Friday in a show of commitment to see his campaign through — defiantly declaring, "I'm staying in the race."

Biden visited Wisconsin's Democratic voting powerhouse of Madison, where he forcefully rejected pressure to drop out in an 18-minute speech in the gymnasium of a city middle school following a stunning debate performance during which Biden lost his train of thought and at times made nonsensical statements.

He closed his rally with Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down" just before taping a primetime interview with ABC that was organized to help overturn public fears of a lagging mental acuity.

As he left Madison, supporters held signs along the side of the road that read, "Save your legacy drop out," "I heart you Joe, Bow out," “Pass the torch” and “Pres Biden- serve your country - not your ego… exit now.

But he told reporters he was "completely" ruling out leaving the race.

More: 'I screwed up': Joe Biden addresses debate performance with Milwaukee radio host

The stop, perhaps the most important for Biden this campaign cycle, came as the president continued to deflect concerns from Democratic donors and his political colleagues over the president's ability to defeat Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and to carry out the duties of president for the next four years.

To a crowd of invited supporters, Biden displayed more vigor and clarity than in his recent debate performance and loudly rejected such discussions while still stumbling over some words during his speech and at one point declaring he would beat Trump "again in 2020" before correcting himself.

"You probably heard we had a little debate last week. Can't say it's my best performance, but ever since then, there's been a lot of speculation. What's Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? What's he going to do? Here's my answer: I am running and am going to win again," Biden said in the gymnasium of Sherman Middle School on Madison's north side. "They're trying to push me out of the race. Let me say this clearly as I can, I'm staying in the race."

"I'm not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work," he said.

More: Bice: From softball questions to a bungled attack, takeaways from Biden's first post-debate interview

Democratic governors who met with Biden on Wednesday in a meeting to assess the president said they would stand by the president, including Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers who was the only governor to not participate in the meeting. But on Thursday, the New York Times reported major Democratic donors are launching a pressure campaign to get Biden to step aside.

Biden's campaign, however, is portraying a unified team that is ignoring efforts to replace the candidate. In Friday's speech, Biden outlined the stakes of the race and again characterized his Republican opponent Donald Trump as a threat to democracy while addressing concerns about his age.

"You probably also noticed a lot of discussion about my age. I know I look 40," he joked. "I keep seeing all those stories about being too old. Let me say something ... I wasn't too old to create over 15 million new jobs, to make sure 21 million Americans are insured under the Affordable Care Act."

"Was I too old to erase student debt for nearly 5 million Americans? Too old to put the first Black woman on the Supreme Court in the United States of America?"

Evers, who introduced Biden, is a key ally for Biden, recently scoring a 51% job approval rating from Wisconsin voters in a Marquette University Law School poll — nearly unheard of in a state that is evenly split politically.

“The thing about me and Joe, we're not flashy, nor are we fancy. We're not for political drama or fanfare, we put our heads down and do the work,” Evers said before Biden took the stage Friday. "We always try to do the right thing, and we're always going to say it straight. Now, compare this to the other guy."

Ahead of the rally, a group of local reporters were assembled to accompany the president's motorcade from the Dane County Regional Airport to the rally event and elsewhere. But the campaign scuttled the plan while reporters were waiting at the airport without explanation. A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter was unable to cover Friday's rally because of the situation.

Absent Friday was the state's top Democrat: U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin. Baldwin has avoided appearing with Biden in the president's recent visits and had already scheduled a campaign stop in northern Wisconsin for Friday.

The last time Baldwin appeared with Biden was at the State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. in March, when she was among a group of lawmakers who walked the president into the House chamber.

Speaking to reporters in a coffee shop after a campaign event about 200 miles from Madison in Marinette, Baldwin repeatedly declined to say even if she thought Biden should remain on the ballot in November.

"I will tell you that I am focused on my own campaign," said Baldwin, who is running against Republican millionaire Eric Hovde.

She made no mention of Biden in her talk.

In Madison, Biden arrived to both protesters and supporters holding signs that read, “Save your legacy drop out," “Three generations for Biden” and "Be a hero one more time.”

Biden also faced protests from about 75 pro-Palestinian activists on Madison's Sherman Avenue who shouted discontent over Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza into speakerphones, chanting “Biden, Biden you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide” and “Free, free Palestine.” Voters held signs including “Pres. Biden, Serve your country — not your ego. Exit now” and “Pass the torch.”

But supporters invited to the Madison event did not display much doubt about Biden remaining the presidential nominee for their party ahead of his speech.

“I don’t even understand why this is a talking point,” Nancy Locante of Kenosha told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We’re all behind Joe.”Amber Cohen, 41, of Madison, said she would vote for the Democratic candidate no matter what, but said putting in anyone else is “a terrible idea this late in the race.”“I've been a Democrat since I understood what a Democrat was, and I just feel like this is really important,” Cohen said. “I'm pretty tired of people just constantly questioning Biden's age as if that's the issue and not focusing on the utter barrage of lies he was faced with.”

Following the rally, supporters with concerns said they were assuaged by the president's appearance.

James Tinjum, an engineering professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison who said he had concerns about Biden’s energy levels during the debate, was reassured Friday. He said he has faith in Biden’s ability to “get things done” and noted concerns about Trump’s age, as well.

“He had more confidence, more strength in his voice and a positive message that I'm looking for,” Tinjum said.

Connie Koberle said Biden looked “very confused” during the debate but “seemed fine today.”

“I had a little bit of concern but was very much reassured,” Koberle said, adding his stamina stood out and that she felt “energized” in the crowd.

Ahead of the Madison visit, Wisconsin GOP Chairman Brian Schimming said the Biden campaign has gone from one of “confidence to calamity to crisis” over the past 10 days, citing Biden’s debate performance and the Democratic scramble since to shore up support for the president.

“The Democratic Party, nationally and in Wisconsin, is in disarray right now.”

Schimming said Biden’s visit to one of the state’s biggest Democratic strongholds isn’t an effort to expand his support, but rather an effort to “rescue his campaign.” He hinted at calls from Democrats to replace Biden at the top of the ticket.

“As this is playing out right now, this may be Joe Biden’s last appearance in Madison and in Wisconsin as a candidate, even, with the mess that they have going on in the campaign and the Democratic Party right now.”

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler in an interview with the Journal Sentinel ahead of the event predicted Biden would be “knocking it out the park” with his speech.“My message to voters who are trying to figure out the path forward is to pay attention to the President's speech here in Madison today. Watch him on the campaign trail. See the fire and the energy that the voters saw in North Carolina last week,” Wikler said.

Lawrence Andrea and Daniel Bice of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 'I'm staying in the race': A defiant Joe Biden rallies support to his campaign in Madison