During a closely watched news conference on Thursday night, U.S. President Joe Biden reaffirmed his intent to seek a second term in the Oval Office, stating his desire “to complete the job I started.” This declaration comes amid increasing calls from some Democrats, party supporters, and wealthy Hollywood donors for him to step aside.
Biden, 81, the presumptive Democratic nominee, emphasized that he is the “best-qualified person” to be in the White House. However, he acknowledged the need to “allay fears” voters may have about his abilities. The news conference, held after a NATO summit in Washington, took on added significance due to the mounting pressure surrounding his re-election bid.
During the event, Biden reiterated the importance of a strong NATO military alliance to deter aggression and prevent war. He also highlighted his extensive background in foreign policy, addressing issues involving China, Russia, and Ukraine in detail. Despite his confidence, Biden made a notable gaffe, mistakenly referring to Vice-President Kamala Harris as “Vice-President Trump” while answering a question about her qualifications.
This slip-up followed another error earlier in the day at the NATO summit, where Biden mistakenly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin before correcting himself. Such mistakes have been a recurring issue for Biden, who has previously admitted to being “a gaffe machine.”
The pressure on Biden to drop his re-election bid has been intensifying, especially after a poorly received debate performance against his 78-year-old Republican rival and predecessor, Donald Trump. Biden, who has served 36 years in the U.S. Senate and two terms as Barack Obama’s vice-president, is already the oldest American to serve as president.
Calls for Biden to step aside have come from various quarters, including Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, who stated that the party needs the strongest candidate possible to confront the threat posed by Trump’s “MAGA authoritarianism.” Himes joined other Democrats, such as Rep. Hillary Scholten of Michigan, Rep. Brad Schneider of Illinois, Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona, and Rep. Ed Case of Hawaii, in urging Biden to end his candidacy.
In a statement released after Biden’s news conference, Rep. Scott Peters of California expressed concern that the Democrats were on “a losing course” with Biden at the helm and called for him to abandon his re-election bid. More than a dozen congressional Democrats, including one senator, have now called for Biden to move aside.
Hollywood donors have also added to the pressure. Actor George Clooney recently wrote an op-ed urging Biden to step aside, arguing that the stakes are too high if Biden loses to Trump in the upcoming election. Despite these calls, Biden has resisted, maintaining that he is best-placed to defeat Trump in November.
During the news conference, Biden admitted that there are probably other people “who can beat Trump,” but he noted that those individuals would have “to start from scratch” compared to where his campaign is today. Some of Biden’s closest advisers, including campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon, met with Democrat senators earlier on Thursday to shore up support for his re-election bid. However, this did not seem to assuage all who attended, with Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal stating that some of his concerns were allayed while others were deepened.
Despite the growing calls for him to step aside, Biden still retains support among some prominent senators. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent, expressed confidence that Biden “is going to win this election” and has a chance to win it big.
The Democratic National Convention is set to begin on August 19, but the party announced in May that it will hold a virtual roll call ahead of that time to nominate Biden. The November 5 election is now less than four months away, and the pressure on Biden from wealthy Hollywood donors and other influential figures continues to mount.
Source: BBC News, The Associated Press, Reuters
