Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Sept. 24 defended calling another lid, meaning the candidate will not appear in public in person.
Biden’s campaign has called a lid in the morning nine times this month.
“More often than not, there’s an inverse relationship between how panicked editors are about something and how much voters care,” Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates wrote on Twitter.
“This is almost universally true when it concerns process & it *is* universally true when it has to do with both inside jargon *&* process - e.g, ‘lid.’
“Hello to the introspection-allergic and chronically wrong tiny percent of America who have proudly chosen to learn nothing from this election cycle in the name of ease, clicks, and above all, luxurious self absorption.”
Bates also shared a tweet that stated a lid means Biden’s travel pool, or gaggle of reporters covering him, won’t see him, but it doesn’t mean he won’t be seen by the public in virtual events.
Biden, 77, stayed at his home for months starting in March, citing the harsh restrictions imposed across the country because of the COVID-19 pandemic. His campaign restart lagged behind President Donald Trump’s, and his schedule has remained less full than that of his rival, though he has been opting for more virtual events than Trump, who prefers campaigning in person.
Some defenders of Biden pointed to how he told reporters on the morning of Sept. 23 that he had not started to prepare heavily for the upcoming Sept. 29 debate, the first between him and Trump.
“I’ve started to prepare, but I haven’t gotten into it really heavily. I will beginning tomorrow,” Biden said.
Biden spent time campaigning in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Sept. 23.
Trump took to Twitter after the lid was called to goad his challenger, saying: “Sleepy Joe Biden just closed down his campaign for the day (Again). Wants to rest!”
“He is a very LOW ENERGY INDIVIDUAL, and our Country cannot make it in these exciting, but complex and competitive times, with a Low Energy President !!!” Trump added.
Tim Murtaugh, the Trump campaign’s communications director, said Biden is “invisible,” with just 39 days before the election.
Trump paid his respects to deceased Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the morning on Sept. 24 before traveling to Charlotte for a speech. He also had a rally planned in Jacksonville, Florida.
