The US president says his recent meltdown in a televised debate with Donald Trump was due to “exhaustion” and a “bad cold”.
US President Joe Biden used a highly anticipated interview with ABC News to reiterate that he is the candidate to beat Donald Trump in the November presidential election and again called his recent disastrous debate against Trump “a bad episode.”
Biden, 81, told ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos in a taped interview that “I have a cognitive test every day,” referring to the tasks he faces daily as president.
“I’ve been tested every day. In everything I do,” he said. “I just had a bad night. I don’t know why.”
Stephanopoulos asked whether the debate debacle “was a bad episode or a sign of a more serious condition” and whether Biden was being realistic in his belief that he could beat Trump, 78, given the gap opening in opinion polls between the two candidates and growing concern among Democrats that Biden should step aside.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that one in three Democrats want Biden to drop out of the race.
“I don't think anybody is more qualified,” Biden said in the interview, attributing his debate performance to exhaustion and a “very bad cold.”
The polls, Biden said, were inaccurate.
Asked if he was more fragile, Biden said: “No.”
Asked whether he would withdraw if fellow Democrats in Congress said he was hurting his re-election chances in November, Biden said: “If the Lord Almighty comes out and tells me that, I might do that.”
The 22-minute interview, which ABC said was not cut or edited, was closely watched by Democrats concerned about the president's ability to remain in office for four more years or beat Trump, a Republican, in the election after his shaky performance in the June 27 debate.
The interview, even before it aired in full, appeared to do little to reassure viewers about Biden's age and fitness to run.
A handful of Democratic Party donors and business leaders are openly expressing dissatisfaction with Biden’s candidacy, suspending funding or considering possible alternative candidates. Some of Biden’s closest political allies, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have raised questions about his health.
“It’s hard to imagine this good man beating Trump and serving four more years in the most demanding job in the world,” former White House correspondent Ron Fournier said on social media alongside a clip of the ABC interview.
I've seen enough: It's hard to imagine this good man defeating Trump and serving four more years in the most demanding job on the planet.
You see it too, Biden Democrats. You've seen it for months. You're doing your boss and your country a huge disservice.
— Ron Fournier (@ron_fournier) July 5, 2024
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued a statement Friday calling on Biden to carefully consider his decision to run, the rare Democratic governor not to issue a statement of support for the president in recent days.
“President Biden saved our democracy in 2020 and has done an extraordinary job over the past four years,” he said.
“The best way forward at this point is for the president to make a decision. In the days ahead, I urge him to listen to the American people and carefully assess whether this remains our best hope for defeating Donald Trump.”
