While the American president made two new slips of the tongue during the NATO summit on Thursday July 11, many Democrats are asking him not to run again in the presidential election.
The White House had made this press conference a moment of clarification by letting Joe Biden answer journalists without a teleprompter and without knowing the questions in advance. It hoped to silence doubts about the state of health of the President of the United States and his ability to run for president at the end of the year. And if, on Thursday, July 11, after the NATO summit, Joe Biden showed that he had mastered the majority of the issues discussed, two slips of the tongue tarnished this moment.
Right from the first answer, the occupant of the Oval Office made a mistake: “I would not have chosen Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn’t think she was qualified to be president,” he said, thinking he was referring to Kamala Harris. Earlier in the day, while welcoming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Joe Biden called him “President Putin,” before quickly correcting himself: “I’m so focused on beating Putin!” he justified himself.
Repeated errors that tarnish the image of the Democratic candidate expected for the American presidential election. But Joe Biden, who is a former stutterer, repeats: “I am not in the race to (preserve) my (political) legacy. I am there to finish the work that I started,” he defended. Questioned at length about his state of health, the Democrat, aged 81, recalls that he has had “three intense and substantial neurological examinations” carried out by a neurologist, the last of which dates back to “February”, and according to him, “they say that I am in good shape”. “I am fine. I am tested every day on my neurological capacities” by “the decisions that I make every day”, defended Joe Biden, who says he is ready to take more tests before the elections if the doctors advise him.
Is the American president “the most qualified person to run for president,” as he reiterated during the NATO summit? The name of his vice-president, Kamala Harris, is regularly proposed to replace him. ““There are other people who could beat Trump, too, but it’s awfully hard to start from scratch,” the president conceded. The New York Times even claims that the campaign team of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris (his running mate) have commissioned polls on the latter’s chances if she ran against Donald Trump.
Dozens of elected officials demand its withdrawal
Another Ipsos poll estimates that 67% of respondents think that the American president should withdraw his candidacy. Only 56% of Democratic voters want this. Calls for withdrawal are therefore increasing even within his camp. Jim Himes, a Democratic representative, has asked the president to withdraw from the race, as have nearly 20 other elected officials. According to CBS, “dozens” of other political figures could follow Jim Himes’ call in the coming hours. Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi are also said to have recently discussed Joe Biden’s candidacy, according to CNN.
The fate of the Democratic campaign will be sealed next month: the official election of the party’s nominee is scheduled for August 5, ahead of the nominating convention, which will be held from August 19 to 22.