Operation Save Biden
Time|April 08, 2024
The President's campaign is in trouble. Will the turnaround plan work?
Charlotte Alter, Brian Bennett, and Philip Elliott
Operation Save Biden

Last June, Barack Obama slipped into the White House to deliver a warning to Joe Biden.

The state of Biden's re-election campaign was shaky, Obama told him over a private lunch, according to a Democrat briefed about the meeting. Defeating Donald Trump would be harder in 2024. The mood of the country was sour. Persuading unhappy voters was going to be difficult. Biden needed to move more aggressively to make the race a referendum on Trump, Obama advised.

The former President left believing the current one had gotten the memo. But over the next six months, Obama saw few signs of improvement. In December, he returned to the White House at Biden's invitation. This time, Obama's message was more urgent. He expressed concern the re-election campaign was behind schedule in building out its field operations, and bottlenecked by Biden's insistence on relying upon an insular group of advisers clustered in the West Wing, according to the same Democratic insider. Biden needed to get it together, or Trump would sweep the seven key battleground states in November, six of which Biden carried in 2020.

This story is from the April 08, 2024 edition of Time.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the April 08, 2024 edition of Time.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM TIMEView All
The World According to Biden
Time

The World According to Biden

Inside the President’s efforts to sustain the American century

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 24, 2024
Claudia Sheinbaum
Time

Claudia Sheinbaum

A first for Mexico

time-read
1 min  |
June 24, 2024
The future is in Judge Merchan's hands
Time

The future is in Judge Merchan's hands

Now that a jury has found Donald Trump guilty of 34 felony charges, nearly everything about what happens next is up to Judge Juan Merchan.

time-read
4 mins  |
June 24, 2024
Guilty on All Counts
Time

Guilty on All Counts

A historic verdict for Donald Trump

time-read
4 mins  |
June 24, 2024
As employers embrace Al, workers fret-and seek input
Time

As employers embrace Al, workers fret-and seek input

THE SWEDISH BUY-NOW-PAY-LATER COMPANY KLARNA has become something of a poster child for the potential benefits of generative artificial intelligence.

time-read
2 mins  |
June 24, 2024
Afghan women defying the Taliban
Time

Afghan women defying the Taliban

WHEN KABUL FELL TO THE TALIBAN, RETURNING Afghanistan to the fundamentalist group's control, women who did not flee faced a reality in which they could no longer be who they are: journalists deleted evidence of their work, artists destroyed their creations, and graduates set fire to their degrees.

time-read
5 mins  |
June 24, 2024
The way to a truly restful vacation
Time

The way to a truly restful vacation

TRAVEL CAN DO WONDERS FOR YOUR well-being: expanding your mind, bonding you to loved ones, and connecting you with nature.

time-read
1 min  |
June 24, 2024
SHARING GRIEF AMID WAR
Time

SHARING GRIEF AMID WAR

Spring and early summer are difficult times for both Israelis and Palestinians. Israeli Jews move from Passover, the holiday of freedom, to Holocaust Memorial Day, to Memorial Day for Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror, to the triumphant celebrations of Independence Day. The days pass with rituals intended to give us a shared meaning as a society and to inculcate and frame Israel's official narrative.

time-read
3 mins  |
June 24, 2024
WESTWARD HO, AGAIN
Time

WESTWARD HO, AGAIN

Kevin Costner's risky western epic, Horizon, celebrates the height of the genre without quite getting there itself

time-read
6 mins  |
June 24, 2024
DO LESS. IT'S GOOD FOR YOU
Time

DO LESS. IT'S GOOD FOR YOU

Unproductive moments can boost health and happiness

time-read
4 mins  |
June 24, 2024