Comment on The Presidential Race Isn’t a Toss Up

Ivanka Trump will be in attendance to support her father when he officially accepts the Republican nomination for president, the New York Post reports.

Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “President Biden’s debate performance was so bad that it has forced us to reassess some of our assumptions about the race.” “Michigan and Minnesota move to more competitive categories in our ratings. This is the second time in less than a month that we’ve downgraded Democrats in our Electoral College ratings.”

Playbook: “For the first time in years, Harris seems to be having a genuine moment — fueled by speculation that she, not Biden, would be the more competitive nominee.” “The vibe shift solidified over the course of several hours yesterday — from when former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) called on Biden to “rip the band aid off” and hand the baton to his VP, to the release of a CNN poll that showed Harris outperforming Biden in a head-to-head with Donald Trump, to a parade of pundits online and off recognizing that maybe their wishcasting about certain ambitious governors had actually been misplaced.” “What’s clear is that the strange new respect developed without any nudge from Harris herself, who at every turn since Thursday’s debate has defended Biden and batted away questions about a bow-out.” “While Biden has been slow to reach out to key Democratic allies, he has spoken multiple times with Harris since the debate, we’re told.

Nate Silver: “After last week’s debate disaster, some Democrats are trying to circle the wagons to protect President Biden, noting that Barack Obama lost his first debate as an incumbent president, too.” “But this one doesn’t pass the smell test. Mr. Obama wasn’t 81 years old at the time of his debate debacle.

New York Times: “For days, the Biden campaign has insisted privately to donors and party activists and in memos that the race remains unchanged. But a private set of polls from a pro-Biden super PAC leaked to the news site Puck showed the president losing ground — around two percentage points — across all the most important battleground states.

“Wealthy Democratic donors who believe a different nominee would be the party’s best chance to hold the White House are increasingly gritting their teeth in silence about President Biden, fearful that any move against him could backfire,” the New York Times reports. “As of late Tuesday, the party’s moneyed class was carefully monitoring post-debate poll results and the positioning of elected Democrats for signs that support for Mr.