Biden vowed Friday to “keep the campaign going” ahead of what is seen as a pivotal primetime interview after his performance at last week’s presidential debate prompted calls from some Democrats for him to resign.
Biden, speaking in Madison, Wisconsin, noted that he struggled during the debate and appeared to lose his train of thought at times, raising questions about the sharpness of his mind and leading to calls for him to be replaced as a 2024 Democratic presidential nominee.
Biden said he couldn’t say “this was my best performance,” and acknowledged that questions had been raised since then.
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President Biden speaks during a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School on Friday, July 5, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Senator)
“What’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out? There’s a lot of speculation about what he’s going to do,” Biden told the crowd. “Here’s my answer: I’m going to run and I’m going to win again.”
He later said some people were trying to “throw” him out of the election.
“Let me be as clear as I can: I’m continuing my campaign,” Biden said.
He then appeared to stumble again, saying he would beat Trump in 2020, but also adding that he would beat Trump again in 2024.
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“I’m going to defeat Donald Trump. I’m going to defeat him again in 2020. And, by the way, I’m going to defeat him again in 2024,” he said.
The comments came hours before the interview was set to air in primetime on Friday night on ABC News. Hosted by George Stephanopoulos, the interview will air at 8pm ET, with the network stating that “an unedited transcript of the interview will be made available the same day.”
According to a press release, the first clip will air on “World News Tonight” on Friday, and the full interview will air again on “This Week” on Sunday.
While a growing number of Democrats and liberal media figures are calling for Biden to step down, some have supported him. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey on Friday called on Biden to “listen to the American people and carefully evaluate whether he remains our best hope of defeating Donald Trump.”
What Biden said about his debate performance
Three House Democrats this week publicly called on Biden to step aside from his reelection effort, while more than a dozen Democratic lawmakers and governors have publicly expressed serious concerns about Biden’s ability to continue serving as the party’s standard-bearer.
But the White House and Biden’s campaign have repeatedly denied questions about his health.
“Does President Biden, who is 81 years old, have Alzheimer’s or some other form of dementia or degenerative disease that would cause such a gaffe? That’s a yes or no question,” a reporter asked. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Tuesday afternoon.
“Are you ready? The answer is no, and I hope you’re asking another person that exact same question,” Jean-Pierre replied, referring to former President Trump.
Get the latest 2024 election campaign updates, exclusive interviews and more on Fox News Digital’s Election Hub.
Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and Brian Flood contributed to this report.
