Biden-Harris campaign says it has raised $27 million since debate

President Biden's re-election campaign says it has raised a whopping $27 million since his difficult debate performance against former President Trump.

From the day of the debate through Friday evening, the Biden-Harris campaign told Fox News it had raised $27 million.

The updated figure comes after the campaign announced Friday that it had raised $14 million, “a sign of the strength of our grassroots support” on the day of the debate and the following morning.

The campaign also noted Friday that the period from 11 p.m. to midnight on Thursday — the first hour after the debate — was the best fundraising hour since the campaign launched in April 2023.

BIDEN AIMS TO CHANGE NEGATIVE NARRATIVE AFTER TEN-HARD DEBATE WITH TRUMP

President Biden's re-election campaign says it has raised $27 million since his heated debate against former President Trump. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP)

The big money comes as Biden's campaign seeks to address panic in the Democratic Party over whether he is mentally fit to become president after his disastrous showdown with Trump in Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday.

“I know I'm not a young man, to state the obvious,” Biden, who at 81 is the oldest president in the nation's history, told supporters at a rally Friday afternoon in the swing state of North Carolina.

“My friends, I no longer walk as easily as I used to. I don't speak as well as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to,” Biden admitted. “But I know what I know. I know how to tell the truth. I know how to distinguish good from bad. And I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done. And I know, as millions of Americans know, that when you are knocked down, you get back up. »

The president, pointing to his 2024 goal revenge with Trump, stressed: “I would not run again if I did not believe with all my heart and soul that I can do this job.”

Saddled with a hoarse voice and disjointed responses, Biden struggled during parts of the debate. Several political analysts noted, however, that the president refined his responses as the debate progressed.

HERITAGE FOUNDATION WORKING ON ELECTION LEGAL CHALLENGES IN CASE BIDEN WITHDRAWS DNC NOMINATION

President Biden participates in the CNN presidential debate on June 27, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Andrew Harnik)

Biden's uneven and sometimes faltering performance occupied the vast majority of debate headlines and sparked a new round of calls from political pundits, publications and some Democrats for the president to step down from his role party standard-bearer.

Biden's top allies pushed back on the remarks, defending the president and accusing Trump of “lying” throughout the debate.

Two Democratic sources confirmed to Fox News that top Biden campaign officials were working to allay concerns and fears as they met privately Friday during a previously scheduled meeting with major party donors.

“Biden’s fundraising record since the day of the debate is crucial. It helps mitigate criticism of Biden’s performance,” Maria Cardona, a veteran political strategist and Democratic National Committee member, told Fox News.

Cardona, a top Biden supporter, said highlighting the fundraiser “reminds Democrats that there is enthusiasm for the president and that there is an urgent need to make sure the liar and criminal Donald Trump does not come near the Oval Office.

Another Democratic strategist and presidential campaign veteran said the Biden team's focus on fundraising “is their best and perhaps only card to play.”

Trump campaign senior adviser Brian Hughes dismissed Biden's fundraising.

President Biden and former President Trump debated Thursday evening in Atlanta, Georgia. (Getty Images)

“Since last week, the Biden campaign has spent $100 million on cable, television and radio. They have spent money on a bloated organization. Yet President Trump's lead has grown in the states of battleground, and we're now seeing polls and enthusiasm on the ground putting Virginia and Minnesota in play for the GOP nominee for the first time in many election cycles,” Hughes told Fox News.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The Trump campaign — relishing the post-debate narrative — didn't need to immediately focus on its own fundraising, but told Fox News Friday afternoon that it had brought in $8 million on the day of the debate.