Iran Press/ America: "It wasn't Biden's best night," Illinois Rep. Robin Kelly conceded to CBS News.
"It pains me to say the president's performance was bad," opined Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean. "He had a bad debate. There's no two ways about that."
"Look, it was a terrible debate," said Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig, who told reporters she's still "processing" what happened.
But for all the handwringing and Friday-morning quarterbacking about President Biden's raspy delivery, verbal stumbles and incomplete thoughts, many congressional Democrats aren't ready to give up on him, despite some reported calls within party ranks to consider another nominee.
"That was strike one," longtime Biden ally Rep. Jim Clyburn, of South Carolina told CBS News. "If this were a ball game, he's got two more swings."
Clyburn's message to nervous Democrats: "Stay the course."
Clyburn, whose 2020 endorsement of then-candidate Biden propelled him to victory in the presidential primary and nomination, said he planned to speak with the president and is campaigning on his behalf this weekend in Florida and Wisconsin.
"We should focus on the Biden record," said the veteran Democrat, who chalked up Biden's performance to "stylistic" difficulties. "Focus on substance. We have a workhorse on behalf of the American people. We've got a show horse that's trying to get him out of office."
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi concurred when asked about her impressions of President Biden's first matchup against former President Trump.
"Compared to a person who was lying the whole time, we saw integrity on one side and dishonesty on the other. That's how I saw it," Pelosi told CBS News.
Former President Barack Obama also weighed in with a similar message on social media.
"Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know," Obama posted. "But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself. Between someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will give it to the American people straight — and someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit. Last night didn't change that, and it's why so much is at stake in November."
Some Democrats were less forgiving.
"That's beyond my pay grade," said Rep. Tom Suozzi, who recently won a New York swing district, when asked if President Biden should step aside.
A Biden campaign memo penned by campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon and obtained by CBS News Saturday claimed that prior to Thursday's debate, the presidential race was "incredibly close," and "by every metric we've seen since" the debate, the race "remains just as close."
"On every metric that matters, data shows it did nothing to change the American people's perception, our supporters are more fired up than ever, and Donald Trump only reminded voters of why they fired him four years ago and failed to expand his appeal beyond his MAGA base," Dillon wrote.
Multiple sources also confirmed to CBS News that the Democratic National Committee held a call Saturday afternoon with members, and included DNC Chair Jaime Harrison. One DNC member told CBS News no questions were allowed at the conclusion of the call, and that Harrison only made a slight reference to Biden's debate performance.
According to DNC spokesperson Hannah Muldavin, the call did not focus on Biden's debate performance, but instead touched on various topics including fundraising numbers and grassroots campaign efforts.
Muldavin also said that the Biden campaign raised $27 million from when the debate concluded through Friday evening.
Meanwhile, Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, in an interview with WBUR declined to directly answer a question about whether Mr. Biden was fit to serve another term. Like other Democratic lawmakers, she said he had a "really bad night," but unlike them, she expressed some uncertainty about what lies ahead.
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