Joe Biden downplays New Hampshire amid last-minute scramble

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his top backers are downplaying expectations on the eve of New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary, while his rivals for the nomination look to the Granite State for a new springboard.

“You’ve got to get 1,900 delegates or more, and this is just getting started,” Biden said Monday on CBS, repeating his argument that the first two overwhelmingly white states in Democrats’ nominating process will not determine the nominee of a racially diverse party.

Yet Biden’s challenge in the opening states highlights a larger concern for Democrats as they look for a standard-bearer to take on President Donald Trump: No would-be nominee has proved an ability to build a strong coalition across the party’s various racial, ethnic and ideological factions, and that situation is muddled further by the vote-tabulation melee in last week’s Iowa caucuses that left both Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg claiming victory.

Trump, meanwhile, is eager to cast a shadow over the entire Democratic field as he heads to Manchester for a Monday evening rally to continue his victory-and-vengeance tour following Senate votes last Wednesday that acquitted Trump on two impeachment charges. Trump lost New Hampshire in 2016 by fewer than 3,000 votes out of more than 743,000 cast, and the state is among several his reelection campaign believes it can flip in November.

The Republican president’s supporters began lining up Sunday, and the crowd was growing Monday morning despite freezing, wet weather. Trump managed a similar scene in Iowa days ahead of the caucuses, drawing thousands of boisterous supporters who contrasted with a lower-than-expected caucus turnout for Democrats.

Against that backdrop, Biden insisted Monday that he remains well-positioned for the...