On Thursday, President Joe Biden mistakenly confused the names of Vice President Kamala Harris and his Republican opponent Donald Trump but affirmed his commitment to continue his re-election campaign, even as more Democrats urged him to withdraw.
Biden, 81, emphasized his extensive experience, arguing he is uniquely qualified to defeat former President Trump, 78, and lead the U.S. for another term. He remarked, “The only thing age does is it creates a little bit of wisdom if you pay attention.”
Following a poor debate performance against Trump two weeks ago, Biden has faced growing skepticism from donors, supporters, and fellow Democrats about his ability to win the November 5 election and manage the job’s demands.
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“I’ve got to finish this job because there’s so much at stake,” he stated, adding, “There’s a long way to go in this campaign, and so I’m just going to keep moving.”
During a nearly hour-long news conference, Biden inadvertently referred to Vice President Harris as “Vice President Trump,” leading to further doubts. Despite frequent coughing and occasionally garbled responses, he provided detailed answers on topics such as the Israel-Gaza conflict and the need for Western countries to produce more military weaponry to counter Russia and China.
Earlier, at a NATO summit in Washington, Biden mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as “President Putin,” but corrected himself, explaining his focus on defeating Putin.
Biden also struggled to find the term “chiefs of staff,” instead referring to them as “commander in chief,” which he himself holds as president.
Since his debate performance, 17 Democratic lawmakers have called for Biden to step aside, with Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut joining that group. Himes stated, “We must put forth the strongest candidate possible to confront the threat posed by Trump’s promised MAGA authoritarianism. I no longer believe that is Joe Biden.”
Biden, who has a history of misspeaking, assured that his health is in good shape and he would take another neurological exam if recommended by his doctors.
While some Biden donors praised his performance, others doubted it would help given the heightened scrutiny of his verbal slip-ups. Biden acknowledged he needed to “pace myself” more and mentioned his aides sometimes overscheduled him.
The news conference allowed Biden to highlight his successes, such as bringing Sweden and Finland into NATO and garnering support for Ukraine. He also stressed that the Israel-Gaza war must end without Israel occupying the enclave, noting that both Israel and Hamas had agreed on his ceasefire framework but that gaps remained.
On social media, Trump mocked Biden’s stutter while others commented on his cough.
Separately on Thursday, United Auto Workers union officials met to discuss their concerns about Biden’s candidacy, according to three sources familiar with the matter. This comes after the 400,000-member union, which has significant influence in industrial states like Michigan, endorsed Biden in January. Biden needs to carry these states to win re-election.
No Democratic leaders in Congress have called for Biden to end his candidacy, though former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declined to say on Wednesday if he should remain in the race.
The campaign has commissioned a survey to assess how Vice President Kamala Harris would perform if she were to replace Biden as the candidate, according to a source. A poll last week indicated Harris would perform no better than Biden in a matchup against Trump.
Prominent donors, including actor George Clooney, have urged Biden to drop out, and concerns seem to be growing within Biden’s campaign. The News reported that some longtime advisers were exploring ways to persuade him to end his re-election bid, while News indicated that some campaign staffers believed he had no chance of winning.
The poll found Biden and Trump tied at 40% each. Other polls have shown Trump leading Biden, with some strategists warning that Trump could win traditionally Democratic states like New Hampshire and Minnesota.
In a strategy memo, the campaign stated it always expected a close election and could win by focusing on three battleground states: Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Winning these states, along with reliably Democratic ones, would give Biden 270 electoral votes, the minimum needed to secure the presidency. Biden won 306 electoral votes in 2020.
The campaign noted that other battleground states he won in 2020 are “not out of reach.”
