Gov. Beshear says Biden debate was ‘very bad night,’ but stands by president’s campaign

National Democratic politics has been awash with reaction, speculation and hand-wringing since President Joe Biden’s widely criticized debate performance against former GOP President Donald Trump last Thursday.

On Monday, Gov. Andy Beshear weighed in.

The Kentucky governor — who is frequently listed among several relatively young Democrats as contenders for the presidential nomination in the future — acknowledged the debate was “a very bad night for the president,” per media reports of a Monday press gaggle.

Democrats across the country cringed at several moments during the Thursday debate where the 81-year-old candidate frequently trailed off and struggled to speak coherently, sparking a new wave of concern over the president’s advanced age.

Beshear shared some of that negative assessment.

“The debate performance was rough,” Beshear said. “It was a very bad night for the president, but he is still the candidate. Only he can make decisions about his future candidacy, and so as long as he continues to be in the race, I support him.”

When asked if he’d consider jumping into the race should Biden drop out, Beshear stood by Biden “as long as” he remains the candidate.

“Only the president can determine his future as a candidate,” he said. “He is the candidate and as long as he is, I’m supporting him.”

When asked a similar question, he called back to his responses on how he’d approach the replacement process of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY, should the 82-year-old senator vacate his seat.

“I’m going to answer that question the same way when I was asked about Sen. McConnell: the president says he’s staying in, and I believe him,” Beshear said.

A handful in Democratic political circles and many in the media — including the editorial board of the New York Times — have called for Biden to drop out before the party’s August convention. Still, a sitting president choosing to forego the party nomination they won in the primary would be an unprecedented, and, many analysts say, unlikely move for Biden.

Beshear has repeatedly said that he intends to serve out his full second term, which ends in December 2027.

The governor has been the subject of much speculation regarding an open Democratic primary for president in 2028 given his five-point win in a state that regularly elects Republicans by wide margins and recent creation of political groups like a political action committee and nonprofit.

The governor is not at the very top of most politico’s minds when it comes to either replacing Biden.

A handful of Democrats from more populous states have larger donor bases and more national name recognition, such as Vice President Kamala Harris, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock or California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

But Beshear is on the list.

A journalist from the Washington Post ranked Beshear as the tenth-best option should Biden need to be replaced. The New York Times and The Economist listed him among several Democratic governors who could make the leap. One unnamed Democratic donor told Reuters they thought Beshear would “be the likely winner” among several contenders for the throne.

According to POLITICO, the knives are already out between some Democratic governors eager to jockey for positioning.

To add to the speculation, Beshear has recently been on the move in a way that suggest serious political network-building.

According to a CNN report, the governor attended a Thursday night debate watch party in Los Angeles with Doug Emhoff, Harris’ husband; Whitmer; Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker; and major Hollywood Democrats like Rob Reiner and Jane Fonda.

Beshear’s team confirmed his attendance to the Herald-Leader, adding that he left for another engagement before the debate began.

Beshear has also spoken at major Democratic events in Montana, Tennessee and Virginia. He also has a keynote address to Democrats in Iowa on the schedule later this summer, a move that raised many eyebrows given the Hawkeye State’s political relevance.