President Joe Biden used The highly anticipated press conference Obama on Thursday delivered a forceful defense of his foreign and domestic policies, fending off questions about his ability to remain in office for another four years even as he failed to mention Donald Trump in one of his first answers.
“I’m not here for my legacy. I’m here to finish the job I started,” Biden said, insisting that his support among voters is strong and that he will stay in the race and win.
Despite the stumbles, the president has rejected every suggestion that he is slowing down, showing significant signs of retreat, or no longer in charge of the job. But he has faced a growing chorus of calls from lawmakers, celebrities and other prominent Democrats to step down from the 2024 race.
“I’ve had a busy schedule,” he said. “So if I’m slowing down and not getting the job done, that’s a sign I shouldn’t be doing it. But there’s no indication of that yet.”
Democrats face An intractable problem. Major donors, supporters and key lawmakers are skeptical about Biden’s ability to continue his reelection bid after his disastrous June 27 debate performance, but the 81-year-old president is refusing to give up as he prepares to face trump card In the return match.
“I’m determined to run but I think it’s important that I remove the fears – let them see me there,” he said.
The first person to ask the question at Biden’s press conference asked about his loss of support among many of his fellow Democrats and union leaders, and asked about Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden was initially defiant, saying, “The UAW endorsed me, but come on,” referring to the United Auto Workers. But then he conflated Harris with Trump, saying, “I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump as my running mate if she wasn’t qualified.”
Trump participated in Biden’s press conference by posting a video on his social media network showing the president saying “Vice President Trump.”
“Great job, Joe!” Trump added sarcastically.
Much of the hour-long press conference was typical Biden: He gave long answers on foreign policy and reeled off well-worn anecdotes. Biden used teleprompters for his opening remarks on NATO, which lasted about eight minutes. Then he turned down the teleprompters and answered a wide range of questions from 10 reporters about his mental acuity, his foreign and domestic policies and — most of all — the future of his campaign.
“I think I’m the most qualified to govern. I think I’m the most qualified to win,” Biden said, adding that he would stay in the race until his aides said “there’s no way you can win.”
“Nobody says that,” he said. “There’s no poll that says that.”
Earlier, the Biden campaign laid out what it sees as its path to keeping the White House in a new memo, saying that winning the “blue wall” states of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan is the “most obvious path” to victory. And it declared that no other Democrat would be better than him against Trump.
“There is also no indication that anyone else will outbid the president in a challenge to Trump,” said a memo from campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon and campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez obtained by The Associated Press.
The memo sought to dismiss “hypothetical polls of alternative candidates” as unreliable, saying such polls “do not take into account the negative media environment that any Democratic candidate would face.”
Meanwhile, the campaign has been quietly polling voters about Harris to determine how she is viewed among voters, according to two people familiar with the campaign who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters.
The people said the survey wasn’t necessarily to show that she could be the nominee in Biden’s shoes, but to better understand how she sees them. The research came after Trump ramped up his attacks on Harris in the wake of the debate, according to another person familiar with the effort. The survey was first reported by The New York Times.
While Biden has expressed confidence in his chances, his campaign acknowledged Thursday that he is behind, and a growing number of the president’s aides in the White House and campaign have expressed private doubts about his ability to turn things around.
But they are taking their cues from Biden, saying he is 100 percent in charge unless he backs down, and there appears to be no organized domestic effort to persuade the president to step down. His allies were well aware that there would be more calls for him to step down before the start of the week, and they were prepared for it.
But in announcing a deal that would bring together NATO countries to support Ukraine, Biden referred to the country’s leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, as “President Putin,” to audible boos in the room. Then he quickly returned to the microphone: “President Putin — President Putin will defeat … President Zelensky,” Biden said.
“I am very interested in defeating Putin,” he said, trying to explain the mistake.
“I am better,” Zelensky replied. “You are much better,” Biden replied.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has invited Biden’s team to meet privately with senators over lunch to discuss concerns and the path forward, but some senators have complained that they would rather hear from the president himself. In the Senate, only Peter Welch of Vermont has so far called on Biden to drop out of the race.
The 90-minute conversation with the president’s team, which one person said did not include any new data, polls or a plan of action on how Biden could defeat Trump, did not appear to have changed the senators’ minds. The person was granted anonymity to discuss the closed-door session.
The meeting was frank, angry at times and somewhat painful, given that many of those in attendance know and like Biden, said one senator who asked not to be identified discussing the private briefing. Senators confronted advisers about Biden’s debate performance and its impact on Senate races this year.
Then one Democrat, Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, said: “My belief is that the president can win, but he has to be able to go out and address the concerns of voters. He has to be able to speak to voters directly over the next few days.”
At the same time, influential senators are firmly on Biden’s side, leaving the party at a dead end.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont, told The Associated Press he believes Biden “is going to win this election. I think he has a great chance to win it.”
Sanders said he has been publicly critical of the campaign, adding that Biden needs to speak more about the future and his plans for the country. “As we get closer to Election Day, the choices are becoming very clear,” he said.