WASHINGTON • Mr Joe Biden's presidential campaign, which has faced criticism from some Democrats worried about his team's general-election readiness, is planning a substantial expansion of its operation and eyeing an ambitious battleground map, even as the question of when he will resume in-person campaigning remains unclear.
In an hour-long briefing with reporters on Friday, senior campaign officials pledged to have "over 600 organising staff responsible for battleground states" in place by next month as they pursue an "expanded map" with Arizona at the "top of the list" of new opportunities.
They also said they had doubled the size of the digital team, "and it is growing", and that they planned to implement a new livestreaming platform as they navigate the challenges of campaigning virtually during the coronavirus crisis.
The campaign, which is seeking to cast the election as a referendum on President Donald Trump, expects traditional, on-the-ground organising to take place some time this year, said Mr Biden's campaign manager, Ms Jennifer O'Malley Dillon.
But when that begins - or when Mr Biden leaves his Wilmington, Delaware, home to campaign - will be determined by public health recommendations, she said.
"The most important thing for us and for the campaign is public safety and the safety of the (former) vice-president, the people around him, the staff, the press corps, the Secret Service," Ms O'Malley Dillon said, noting Delaware's stay-at-home order. Mr Biden previously served as vice-president for eight years.
"We will travel physically to places when the time is right, driven by the experts and the guidelines that come and not a day before.
"I truly believe voters, our volunteers, our activists, our supporters, get as much on hearing from the V-P and connecting with him in a virtual setting now as they would if he was out in person. So I really feel like we're doing the business of campaigning in an aggressive way".
Yet news of the campaign expansion comes as some Democrats expressed anxiety about Mr Biden's visibility and the campaign's agility, heading into a general election in which Mr Trump has an enormous cash advantage and the bully pulpit of the presidency.
The Biden campaign, which is now raising funds with the Democratic National Committee, has US$103 million (S$147.19 million) in cash on hand, according to a campaign presentation slide show.
The Trump campaign announced last week that, in conjunction with Republican fund-raising committees, it had US$255 million on hand.
Billionaire and former presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg is considering a major spending blitz to back Mr Biden's White House bid, CNBC reported on Friday.
Some Democrats have been dismayed by the poor quality of Mr Biden's online appearances, citing glitches in some of his livestreams, and have urged him to upgrade his digital operation.
Ms O'Malley Dillon and Biden campaign chief strategist Mike Donilon argued that Mr Biden continues to lead in many polls because he cuts strong positive contrasts with Mr Trump on matters from empathy to governing style.
The President also faces a historically challenging environment amid disapproval of his handling of a pandemic that is killing tens of thousands of Americans and leaving millions unemployed.
Ms O'Malley Dillon sketched out the Biden campaign's view of the battleground map, echoing Mr Biden, who privately told supporters at a virtual meeting of his finance committee last Thursday that he expected a major expansion of the playing field, according to two participants. She indicated the campaign sees Arizona, Texas and Georgia as being in play.
A night earlier, Mr Biden again addressed the biggest controversy his campaign has faced, saying he did not remember Ms Tara Reade, who has accused him of sexual assault. He added that Americans "probably shouldn't vote for me" if they believe the accusation, which he has strenuously denied.
NYTIMES, REUTERS
