John Heilemann: I can't overstate the amount of 'freak out' from Biden supporters

THIS MORNING ON ALL OF THAT. THAT'S ALL TRUE, BUT THAT IS NOT WHAT PEOPLE WILL REMEMBER COMING OUT OF LAST NIGHT. WHAT ARE YOU HEARING? YOU WERE THERE LAST NIGHT TALKING TO OFFICIALS, TALKING TO PEOPLE DOWN IN THE ROOM AFTER THE DEBATE. WHAT ARE YOU HEARING ABOUT LAST NIGHT AND ABOUT WHAT MAY HAPPEN FROM HERE? >> LET'S START HERE. THE STAKES OF THIS ELECTION COULDN'T BE HIGHER. THE LOUDEST VOICE SAYING THAT HAS BEEN THE BIDEN CAMPAIGN, SAYING DEMOCRACY ITSELF IS ON THE BALLOT. THEY LOOKED AT THIS RACE, SAW A FROZEN RACE, VERY STATIC RACE, AND, TO YOUR POINT, WILLIE, THEY'RE THE ONES WHO WANTED THIS EARLY DEBATE. THEY FELT THEY NEEDED TO GRAB AMERICANS' ATTENTION, TELL THEM, THIS IS YOUR CHOICE, BIDEN AND IT'S TRUMP. YOU MIGHT NOT BE HAPPY ABOUT IT, BUT HERE'S WHERE WE ARE. LISTEN TO DONALD TRUMP. LET'S REMIND YOU OF WHY ANOTHER FOUR YEARS OF HIM WOULD BE SO DI DISASTROUS TO THIS COUNTRY. THEY KNEW THE BAR THEY HAD TO CLEAR WAS ABOUT JOE BIDEN'S AGE AND COMPETENCY FOR THE JOB. HE CLEARED IT AT THE STATE OF THE UNION. HE DID NOT CLEAR IT LAST NIGHT. EVERY AIDE I'VE SPOKEN TO, DEMOCRATS ARE DEEPLY WORRIED ABOUT WHAT THEY SAW FROM THE PRESIDENT. YES, TRUMP LIED. WE WILL GET INTO THAT, BUT THE FUNDAMENTALS HERE LAST NIGHT WAS THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN DID NOT ANSWER THE BELL. I WAS HERE LAST NIGHT IN ATLANTA. DEMOCRATS SCRAMBLING. WE HAD VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS, NOT SCHEDULED TO DO INTERVIEWS LAST NIGHT, SUDDENLY SCRAMBLED TO DO THEM ON THE CABLE NETWORKS, INCLUDING MSNBC. WE HAD AIDES, ABOUT 45 MINUTES INTO THE DEBATE, SUDDENLY BLASTING REPORTERS TEXT MESSAGES, TELLING US FOR THE FIRST TIME THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN HAD A COLD. THAT WAS EXPLAINING WHY HE WASN'T DOING WELL. THEY POINTED TO HIS RALLY IN NORTH CAROLINA LATER TODAY, SAYING THAT'LL BE A MOMENT WHERE HE DOES DO BETTER. WE HAD THE MOMENTS AFTER THE DEBATE HERE IN THE SPIN ROOM, ON THE CAMPUS OF GEORGIA TECH UNIVERSITY, REPUBLICANS, TRUMP SURROGATES OUT INSTANTLY, WANTING TO TALK ABOUT HOW WELL THEIR GUY DID LAST NIGHT. WE HAD TO WAIT 15, 20 MINUTES FOR ANYBODY FROM THE BIDEN CAMPAIGN TO SHOW UP. WHEN THEY DID, THEY WERE SUBDUED. GAVIN NEWSOM, THE CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR, WAS FLAT OUT ASKED IF HE'D BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE INSTEAD OF JOE BIDEN. HE, OF COURSE, SAID NO. HE SAID HE STOOD WITH PRESIDENT BIDEN. JOHN HEILEMANN, THAT MOMENT SORT OF CAPTURES WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW. THIS WAS NOT JUST THE 2012 DEBATE. PRESIDENT OBAMA, YES, HE WAS BAD THAT NIGHT, BUT HE WENT INTO THE DEBATE AHEAD. JOE BIDEN WAS NOT AHEAD LAST NIGHT. HE WASN'T DOWN BY MUCH. IT WAS A CLOSE RACE, MARGIN OF ERROR RACE, BUT HE HAD TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS, AND HE DIDN'T. HE DIDN'T SHOW UP LAST NIGHT. NOW, WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? IT'S A TWO-PART QUESTION. HOW DOES THE BIDEN CAMPAIGN TRY TO RIGHT THE SHIP TO SAY, LOOK, HE'S OUR GUY? OR HOW DO DEMOCRATS MAKE THE PUSH TO HIM TO SAY, NO, YOU'RE NOT. WE NEED TO GO ANOTHER DIRECTION? >> WELL, I'LL START BY SAYING THAT, WITHOUT HAVING AN OPINION -- OPINIONIZING ABOUT THIS, COVERING PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES SINCE 1992, HAVING SEEN A FAIR NUMBER OF BAD NIGHTS FOR CANDIDATES ON FIRST DEBATES, BAD NIGHTS FOR INCUMBENTS, BAD NIGHTS FOR CHALLENGERS, IN TERMS OF MEASURING THE DEGREE OF ALARM OF A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE'S PARTY ABOUT THEIR PERFORMANCE, I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BY AN ORDER OF MAGNITUDE. >> YES. >> THIS IS A REPORTING MATTER. SITTING CONGRESSMEN, SITTING SENATORS, SITTING GOVERNORS, MILLIONAIRES, BILLIONAIRES, ACROSS THE SPECTRUM, PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN SUPPORTIVE AND LOYAL TO JOE BIDEN SINCE DAY ONE, AND CONTINUE IN SOME RESPECTS TO BE SUPPORTIVE AND LOYAL TO JOE BIDEN, FREAKING OUT LAST NIGHT. I CAN'T -- AS A REPORTING MATTER, I CAN'T OVERSTATE THE FREAKOUT OVER WHAT THEY WERE SEEING. THEY WERE WHAT WILL HAPPEN NOW, BUT I WILL TELL YOU, BY THE TIME YOU GOT TO THE FIRST COMMERCIAL BREAK, YOU HAD THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, SENATORS, GOVERNORS, CONGRESS PEOPLE, BIGGEST BUNDLERS, BIGGEST DONORS, THERE WERE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT, WHAT DO WE DO KNOW? WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW THAT WORKS. THERE WAS A STORY THE OTHER DAY IN THE TOTALLY NON-CREDIBLE, IN MANY RESPECTS, "DAILY MAIL," I THINK, COUPLE WEEKS AGO, ON MONDAY THAT SAID THAT THE CLINTONS, THE OBAMAS, SCHUMER, AND PELOSI WERE GOING TO WATCH THIS DEBATE, AND IF IT DID NOT GO WELL FOR JOE BIDEN, THEY'D TRY TO HAVE THE TALK WITH HIM ABOUT STEPPING BACK. MANY LAUGHED AT THAT. IT WAS NOT A CREDIBLE REPORT. "THE DAILY MAIL," BRITISH TABLOID, WHATEVER. I HAD SIX GOOD SOURCES AFTER THAT WHO SAID, THAT'S NOT TOTALLY FALSE. THE INTERESTING PART OF THAT WAS THE SCHUMER AND PELOSI PIECE. NO ONE THINKS JOE BIDEN WOULD THINK TO THE OBAMAS, THE CLINTONS ON THIS SUBJECT, BUT BECAUSE HE CARES SO MUCH ABOUT DEMOCRATS IN THE HOUSE AND SENATE, THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT WHETHER NANCY PELOSI AND CHUCK SCHUMER PRIVATELY WERE TAKING SOUNDINGS ON THIS QUESTION. I DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN NOW GOING FORWARD, BUT I WILL SAY, THESE ARE THE KINDS OF CONVERSATIONS THAT PEOPLE ARE HAVING NOW IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AS WE SPEAK. WHAT TO DO. THE LEVEL OF PANIC, FOR ME, IN MY TIME COVERING POLITICS, I'VE NEVER SEEN A LEVEL OF PANIC ON THIS SCALE. >> TO BE CLEAR, THE BIDEN CAMPAIGN DEFENDED THEIR CANDIDATE'S PERFORMANCE, SAYING HE DREW THE CONTRAST, SHOWING WHAT A DANGER TRUMP WOULD BE TO THE PRESIDENCY. TO ILLUSTRATE THE POINT, CONGRESSWOMAN DEBBIE DINGELL, WHO IS A DEAR FRIEND OF PRESIDENT BIDEN, KNOWS MICHIGAN BETTER THAN ANYONE, SHE WAS MY GUEST ON "WAY TOO EARLY." I PUT IT TO HER WHETHER PRESIDENT BIDEN