Joe Biden proclaims he’s STAYING in the race and will beat Donald Trump ‘again in 2020’
President Joe Biden announced Friday that he is staying in the race for president, telling a crowd in Madison, Wisconsin, that he would beat rival Donald Trump “again in 2020.”
Biden cannot afford to make a misstep this weekend after last week’s disastrous debate in Atlanta.
He will also speak with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos in Madison. The interview will air tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
“Well, let me say this as clearly as I can — I’m staying in the race,” Biden said at the rally. “I will beat Donald Trump. I will beat him again in 2020. And by the way, we’re going to do it again in 2024.”
Biden — using a teleprompter — grew enthusiastic during his 17-minute speech, which was scheduled to take place during his peak hours, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. according to Axios.
President Joe Biden announced Friday that he is staying in the presidential race — before telling a crowd in Madison, Wisconsin that he would beat rival Donald Trump “again in 2020”
The speech began with Biden asking the audience if they enjoyed the Fourth of July, then mocking Trump for his Independence Day gaffe.
“By the way, if you’re wondering whether Trump has it all together, did you ever hear how he explained the Fourth of July when he was president?” Biden asked. “No, I’m serious. This is true.”
During Trump’s 2019 Salute to America speech at the Lincoln Memorial, the Republican said George Washington’s Continental Army was successful because it had “taken over the airfields” from the British.
“And they claim I misspoke,” Biden, 81, said.
“It’s true, this man is a stable genius,” the president continued.
He then told the crowd — over and over again — that he resisted calls to step aside.
“You probably heard we had a little debate last week,” Biden said. “I can’t say it was my best performance.”
“But since then, there’s been a lot of speculation — what’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out? What’s he going to do?” the president continued.
“Well, here’s my answer: I’m in and I’m going to win again,” Biden declared.
The president has publicly expressed no doubt about his commitment to staying in the race, while Democrats behind the scenes are mulling whether they can persuade Biden to consider that option.
While Biden was speaking in Wisconsin, The Washington Post reported that Virginia Senator Mark Warner wanted to form a group of Democratic senators to pressure Biden to withdraw from the race.
A handful of House Democrats have already publicly said Biden should resign.
Biden stressed that his departure would be contrary to the wishes of Democratic voters who supported him in the primaries, during which he only led in a handful of states against self-help guru Marianne Williamson and Representative Dean Phillips.
“You voted for me to be your nominee. No one else,” Biden said.
“You vote – the voters did. And despite, despite that, some people don’t seem to care who you voted for,” he said. “But guess what, they’re trying to push me out of the race.”
He reiterated his resolve to stay in the race, adding: “I learned a long time ago that if you fall, you have to get back up.”
“I will not let one 90-minute debate undo three and a half years of work,” Biden said.
The 81-year-old president, who told a group of governors at the White House this week that he would no longer schedule events after 8 p.m. so he could get more sleep, joked about his age in his speech.
“I know I look like I’m 40,” Biden said, laughing.
“I keep seeing all these stories about how I’m too old,” Biden continued. “I wasn’t too old to create over 50 million new jobs.”
He emphasized the same thing when going through other parts of his resume.