President Joe Biden said he was “distracted” by former President Donald Trump’s “screaming” during last week’s presidential debate.
In an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos aired Friday, Biden asked about his first complicated function at the debate, in which the president said he was suffering from a “very bad cold” and was exhausted after a few weeks at work on international travel.
Biden also said he didn’t “believe” he had seen footage of the debate, but told Stephanopoulos he was having “a bad night. “When asked when it “occurred to him” that he was suffering from the event, Biden replied, “When I found out that even as he was answering the question, when they turned off [Trump’s] microphone, he kept yelling and I let it distract me. “
“I don’t blame him for that, but I learned that he just wasn’t in control,” the president added.
Trump made more than two dozen false statements in last Thursday’s debate, according to CNN’s fact-checking team, and continually attacked Biden while dodging questions from moderators. As Politico reported last week, many of Trump’s attacks were baseless or misleading, adding that he claimed Biden “takes money from China” and that Democrats help late-term abortions, even “after birth. “
ABC News said he also showed up for an interview with Trump after Thursday’s debate, but the former president declined. The network will host the second presidential debate on September 10 at nine p. m. AND.
Newsweek contacted the Trump campaign on Friday night for comment on Biden’s interview.
Stephanopoulos was also continually under pressure Friday about the president’s confidence as November approaches, given that last week was filled with speculation about whether Biden will remain the party’s nominee. Biden, however, remained steadfast in his reelection bid and said he was “the most qualified user to beat” Trump.
When asked about his declining approval rating, which stood at 36. 9% on Friday, according to polling site FiveThirtyEight, Biden said it’s not “more difficult” to win a second term “when you’re running against a pathological liar. ” “.
“Not when you haven’t been challenged in the way you’re about to be,” Biden continued.
“You’ve had months with him,” Stephanopoulos chimed in.
“Oh, sure, but I do a lot of other things as well,” Biden said.
Several Democrats, including four members of the House of Representatives, have called on Biden to resign as the party’s nominee over the past week. Biden on Friday cast doubt on reports that talks were taking place among Democrats to inform him that he believed the “vast majority” supported his re-election bid.
While polls show Biden and Trump facing each other for much of the 2024 election cycle, the former president has maintained a slight lead over Biden in several polls since last week’s debate. According to the FiveThirtyEight polling average, Trump averaged 2. 5 points ahead of Biden in national polls as of Friday.
In a New York Times and Siena College ballot released earlier this week, Democratic voters indicated they were divided on whether Biden deserves to remain the party’s nominee. Of the 1,532 most likely voters surveyed between June 28 and July 2, 49% of Democrats said Biden deserves to be replaced before November. On the other hand, 45% of the president deserves to remain in office.
Kaitlin Lewis is a Newsweek reporter on the Night Team founded in Boston, Massachusetts. She focuses on national news and politics, where she has covered occasions such as the 2022 midterm elections, live election rallies, and candidate debates for Newsweek. She also covers legal issues. and stories of criminals. Kaitlin joined Newsweek in May 2022 as an intern before starting work full-time in September 2022. She graduated from the University of Dayton and in the past she worked as a news intern at the Cincinnati Enquirer. You can contact Kaitlin by emailing k. lewis@newsweek. com. Languages: English.
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