U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday night that he’s seeking a second term in the Oval Office “to complete the job I started,” pushing back against calls for him to drop out of the upcoming election in favour of another candidate.
“I’m not in this for my legacy,” Biden said, answering a question about the possibility that he could lose to Donald Trump in November.
Biden, 81, the presumptive Democratic nominee, maintained he’s the “best-qualified person” to be in the White House but also said it was important to “allay fears” voters may have about his abilities.
The news conference came on the tail end of a NATO summit in Washington. But the focus on the president’s appearance before the media took on added importance amid the pressure he is facing surrounding his re-election bid.
During the news conference, Biden, who took the stage about an hour later than expected, reiterated the need for a strong NATO military alliance to deter aggression and prevent war.
He also played up his background in foreign policy, providing long answers to journalists’ questions, speaking about issues involving China, Russia and Ukraine.
Confronted by his statements in 2020 about being a ‘bridge candidate’ to prepare the way for a new generation of Democratic leaders, U.S. President Joe Biden said the ‘gravity of the situation’ was what convinced him to seek re-election. He said he would only step aside for Vice-President Kamala Harris if he saw data that there was no way he could defeat former president Donald Trump. But, he concluded: ‘No one’s saying that. No poll says that.’
Yet he also made an attention-grabbing gaffe when he referred to Trump when speaking about U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris.
“I wouldn’t have picked Vice-President Trump to be vice-president if she was not qualified to be president,” Biden said, answering a question from Reuters about his confidence in Harris.
That mix-up came a few hours after Biden, while at the NATO summit, mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin before correcting himself.
More Democrats call for ballot exit
Biden has been fighting to keep his re-election bid alive in the wake of a much-panned June 27 debate performance against Trump, his 78-year-old presidential predecessor and Republican rival.
They are the oldest contenders to ever seek the Oval Office. Biden is already the oldest American to serve as president.
The pressure on Biden continued to build earlier in the day as more House Democrats came forward urging him to exit to the ballot — now totalling at least 12 — along with one Democrat senator.
Rep. Hillary Scholten of Michigan said on social media Thursday that Biden should “pass the torch.”
Similarly, Rep. Brad Schneider of Illinois said in a statement that “the time has come … for President Biden to heroically pass the torch to a new generation of leadership.”
Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona made a similar public appeal for Biden’s departure, as did Rep. Ed Case of Hawaii.
Donors contributing to pressure
Biden has also seen key Democrat donors and supporters demanding the same, including Hollywood actor George Clooney who earlier this week wrote an op-ed calling for the president to step aside.
So far, Biden has resisted the calls to go, arguing he is best-placed to defeat Trump in the November election.
Some of the president’s closest advisers — including Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon — met with Democrat senators on Thursday to shore up support for his re-election bid. That did not seem to assuage all who attended.
“Some of my concerns are allayed, some others have been deepened,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said afterward.
Yet Biden still retains support among some prominent senators.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent, told The Associated Press he thinks Biden “is going to win this election. I think he has a chance to win it big.”