President Joe Biden announced on Friday his determination to defeat Republican contender Donald Trump in the forthcoming November election.
Despite concerns raised by fellow Democrats over a less-than-stellar debate performance, Biden showed no intention of withdrawing from the race, as reported by Reuters.
“To state the obvious, I’m not a young man,” Biden, 81, admitted during a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, a day after his widely criticized debate with Trump, 78. “I don’t walk as easy as I used to, I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to, I don’t debate as well as I used to,” he acknowledged, while the crowd chanted “four more years.”
Biden affirmed, “I would not be running again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul that I could do this job. The stakes are too high.”
Biden’s verbal missteps and occasionally meandering responses during the debate sparked concerns among voters about his capability to serve another four-year term, prompting some Democrats to consider finding a new candidate for the November 5 election.
During a Friday meeting described as “all hands on deck,” the campaign assured staffers that Biden had no plans to exit the race, according to two individuals familiar with the discussion.
While Trump made several false claims throughout the debate, the post-debate focus was primarily on Biden, particularly among Democrats.
Nonetheless, several prominent party figures, including former President Barack Obama, expressed their continued support for Biden.
“Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know. But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and somebody who only cares about himself,” Obama wrote on X.
The New York Times editorial board, which endorsed Biden in 2020, suggested that Biden should step aside. “The greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election,” the editorial stated.
Simultaneously, questions about Trump’s suitability for office have arisen due to his recent conviction in New York for covering up a hush money payment to a porn star, his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, and his tumultuous tenure in office. He is set to be sentenced on July 11, just days before the Republican Party’s convention to officially nominate him.
