President Biden called into his campaign’s all-staff meeting today and unequivocally declared that he was “in this race to the end.” His press secretary also told reporters that Biden was “absolutely not” considering withdrawal.

But Biden has privately confided to key allies that he knows he may not be able to salvage his campaign if he cannot convince the public in the coming days that he is up for the job after his disastrous debate performance. A new Times poll showed that the president’s support slipped in the days after the debate.

Nationally, Donald Trump now leads Biden 49 percent to 43 percent among likely voters, a three-point swing for Trump from just a week ago. The poll also found that 74 percent of voters now view Biden as too old for the presidency.

Tonight, Biden is scheduled to meet at the White House with more than 20 Democratic governors in an effort to reassure them that he can still win in November. In the coming days, the president is looking to prove his acuity by sitting down for an interview on Friday with ABC News and holding campaign events in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The president knows the appearances must go well. “He knows if he has two more events like that, we’re in a different place” by the end of the weekend, one of the allies said, referring to Biden’s showing in the debate. Democrats, meanwhile, are weighing the potential risks and rewards of a new candidate.