Former President Trump said he believes Biden “will be the nominee” for the Democratic Party, even as Biden’s performance in Thursday night’s debate prompted calls from the left for him to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.
Trump and Biden faced off in the first presidential debate on Thursday night in Atlanta.
“It’s a great honor to be on this stage representing the people of our country,” Trump said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital on Friday morning.
Former president uses his hands to communicate during debates (Andrew Caballero Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
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The Trump campaign declared victory immediately after the showdown ended, with the former president and Republican front-runner saying: Best debate performance And he won before the largest electorate in history, clearly demonstrating how he will improve life for all Americans.”
“Meanwhile, Joe Biden has demonstrated exactly why he deserves to be fired,” Trump campaign co-chairs Chris LaCivita and Suzie Wiles said in a statement Thursday night. “Despite taking a week-long break at Camp David to prepare for the debate, Biden has failed to defend his dismal record on the economy and the border.”
He added, “President Trump is right to say that if Joe Biden is too incompetent to stand trial, then he is too incompetent to be President.”
President Joe Biden watches as he participates in and debates the first presidential candidates for the 2024 election with former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at CNN studios in Atlanta, Georgia, June 27, 2024. (Andrew Caballero Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
These sentiments about Biden’s performance have been echoed by opponents as well as traditional allies, with many Democratic strategists, including former Biden administration officials such as White House press secretary Jen Psaki and White House communications director Kate Bedingfield, expressing concern about the future of the president’s reelection campaign.
Biden struggled during Thursday night’s debate, his voice croaking and his answers incoherent, and he lost his train of thought at times, sparking concern among his political and media aides.
Sources told Fox News that some Democrats have even suggested they may replace Biden as the candidate at the Democratic nominating convention in August.
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But in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Trump was asked if he thought Biden would be the Democratic nominee.
“Yes, I think he’ll be the nominee,” Trump said.
U.S. President Joe Biden (right) and Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, participate in the CNN presidential debate at CNN Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, June 27, 2024. (Getty Images)
Pressed further about Democratic concerns about Biden’s performance and rumors of a possible presidential transition, Trump told Fox News Digital that he doesn’t believe Biden will be removed from office.
“No, I don’t think so,” Trump said, bragging about his debate performance. “I couldn’t have done better than them. Nobody could have done better than them.”
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Trump said he “beat” Biden and suggested he and anyone else onstage could have won.
A preliminary CNN poll conducted after Thursday night’s presidential debate showed Trump winning by a large margin over Biden.
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A CNN poll released during the broadcast found that 67% of debate viewers felt Trump won the debate, while 33% thought Biden won.
But Biden told reporters after the CNN presidential debate that he felt he performed well against Trump.
“I think we did a good job,” Biden told reporters at a Waffle House near Atlanta.
Biden was asked if he had a cold, a clarification his campaign made after many people expressed concerns about the president’s voice sound during the debate.
“I’m sick,” Biden said.
Officials said during Thursday night’s debate that the president had been suffering from a cold.
