Biden’s next big test is the NATO summit

Some Democrats and allies of the White House believe that President Biden can use next week’s NATO summit in Washington to turn the page on his dismal debate performance that has spiked anxiety across the party.

“My hope is that over the next seven to ten days the president is out there aggressively meeting with people in different parts of the country making his case, doing things that show his international stature, like the NATO event,” said Jim Kessler, vice president for policy at the centrist Democratic think tank Third Way. “Certainly, something on the international stage is a place where he can help himself.”

Biden will gather leaders from across Europe at the celebration of 75 years of the alliance, a gathering full of photo ops, remarks, and celebrations — though also typically unscripted Q&As with leaders that Biden has recently avoided.

A person familiar with the administration’s thinking said that the summit would present a good opportunity for Biden to showcase his leadership and diplomatic achievements on the world stage. The person noted that because the summit will be in Washington — rather than a European city, like last year’s Vilnius summit — his engagements will get more press attention.

The Biden campaign declined to comment.

While an official event, the NATO summit in a normal moment carries political upsides for a president searching for a win. Biden can cheer the expansion of the alliance during his tenure while seeking a contrast with Donald Trump, who suggested the US not defend allies who do not meet NATO’s spending targets.

But the president’s condition will now be closely scrutinized, including by America’s military allies. European officials took note of his debate performance last week, and are now more expectant of Trump returning to power.

“People are curious as to the future of the Democratic campaign,” one European official told me. “If Biden continues to underperform like he did on Thursday, I think we are headed to Trump’s victory.”

Some in Europe are worried about that prospect.

“They’re not concerned about Joe Biden,” Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told my colleague Kadia Goba. “They’ve dealt with Joe Biden. They’ve worked with Joe Biden. They’ve seen Joe Biden right across the table as I have. What they’re concerned about is a Donald Trump, who does not understand what democracy really is all about.”

The White House has been meticulously planning the celebratory summit to ensure the US and its European allies appear united, especially as Russia presses on with the war in Ukraine.

“The White House said from very early on in the preparations of this summit, like a year ago already, that they do not want any issues that are divisive,” another European official told my colleague Mathias Hammer. “It’s part of maintaining this positive narrative, the unity,” the official said, noting that the focus on unity has taken priority over more divisive issues like burden sharing.

Asked about the discussion following the presidential debate, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a longtime Biden adviser, offered a ringing endorsement of Biden’s foreign policy moves during a Brookings Institution event.

US allies have “seen a president who has reinvested America, reinvested America in the world, reinvested in these alliances, in these partnerships in ways that they seek and want,” he said at the event in Washington on Monday. Biden has been responsible for “dramatically” boosting confidence in US leadership around the world since taking office, Blinken added.

• Biden is considering doing more interviews and press conferences in order to recover from the debate, Axios reported.
• Biden’s performance last week sparked concerns in Europe about US stability, CNN wrote.
• German Chancellor Olaf Scholz insisted that Biden “knows exactly what he is doing” during an interview with Axel Springer media outlets in mid-June.

Mathias Hammer and Kadia Goba contributed reporting.