(New York) From the very first question, Joe Biden stumbled.
A reporter asked him if he believed Kamala Harris had the ability to beat Donald Trump if he decided to withdraw from the race for the White House, a scenario he rejects.
“I would not have chosen Vice President Trump to be vice president if I thought she was not qualified to be president,” he said after opening his first solo news conference since last November by touting her record on foreign policy, the economy and immigration.
“Good job, Joe!” Donald Trump immediately mocked on Truth Social, where he also posted a clip showing the president slurring his speech while discussing information he declassified before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Another slip of the tongue
The press conference, which was scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m., was pushed back to 6:30 p.m., then to 7:30 p.m. The 24-hour news channels had plenty of time to broadcast Biden’s first verbal gaffe of the day on a loop.
At the end of the afternoon, after the last meeting of the 75e At the NATO summit he hosted in Washington, Joe Biden introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin.”
“I would like to turn the floor over to the President of Ukraine, who has both courage and determination,” Biden said from behind a lectern. “Ladies and gentlemen: President Putin.”
He walked away from the lectern before realizing his mistake.
“President Putin? We’re going to beat President Putin,” he said, returning behind the lectern.
President Zelensky. I am so focused on beating Putin. We have to worry about that. Anyway.
Joe Biden
Anyway. Joe Biden used the word to get out of verbal dead ends repeatedly during a nearly hour-long news conference that was meant to reassure Democratic voters, lawmakers and donors panicked by his disastrous performance in the first presidential debate.
Although his voice was husky and he had to clear his throat several times at the start, he delivered a more solid and assured performance than in Atlanta two weeks earlier, especially in the second part of the press conference, where he demonstrated his mastery of the complex China issue.
Lingering doubts
“I think I’m the most qualified person to run for president,” he repeatedly said. Referring to Donald Trump, he added: “I beat him once and I’ll beat him again.”
I’m going to keep moving forward. We still have work to do. I’m not here for my legacy. I’m here to finish the job I started.
Joe Biden
Whether this performance will be enough to end calls for his withdrawal from the White House race remains to be seen. His press conference had barely ended when a new Democratic representative added his name to the list of those calling for another presidential candidate.
“The 2024 election will define the future of American democracy, and we must run the strongest candidate possible to confront the threat posed by Trump’s promised MAGA authoritarianism,” wrote Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, on X.
“I no longer believe that it is Joe Biden, and I hope that, as he has done throughout a lifetime of public service, he will continue to put our nation first and, as he has promised, make way for a new generation of leaders.”
Rep. Himes was the sixth member of the House Democratic caucus to express that wish on Thursday and the 14th.e in total. According to CBS News, dozens of Democratic representatives are preparing to join this group. CNN reported that Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi have spoken about Joe Biden’s future. Neither is sure what to do.
Joe Biden says he is “determined”
Joe Biden, for his part, no longer denies the doubts he has inspired in many Democrats since the Atlanta fiasco. According to a poll Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos released Thursday, a whopping 85 percent of voters think he’s too old to lead the United States for four more years. And a whopping 67 percent of voters, including 56 percent of Democrats, want him to withdraw from the race.
“I’m determined to run, but it’s important that I allay fears,” he said, promising to step up campaign activity. He will be in Michigan on Friday.
At the same time, Joe Biden acknowledged that he had to pace himself. He made this admission after a journalist mentioned information from the New York Times that he recently told Democratic governors that he should avoid activities after 8 p.m. so he could have more time to sleep.
“That’s false,” he said at first, before more or less confirming the story.
I love my team, but they add things. They add things all the time. I get scolded by my wife.
Joe Biden
And he added, in a dig at his rival: “My schedule is full. Where was Trump? He was driving around in his golf cart, filling out his scorecard before hitting the ball. He did almost nothing.”
Asked whether he would have a cognitive evaluation before the November election, he said: “I’ve had three major, intense neurological exams, including one in February. If the doctors say I need a cognitive evaluation, I’ll have it.”
Answering another question about his health, he adopted a philosophical tone: “The only thing age does is create a little wisdom if you are careful.”
And at the very end, when a reporter informed him that Donald Trump had mocked his slip of the tongue at the beginning of the press conference, he replied: “Listen to him.”