President Joe Biden appeared by phone on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday, aiming to turn the tide of growing criticism from members of his own party and ease concerns about his age by offering more “improvised,” unscripted remarks.
A defiant Biden vowed he wasn’t going anywhere and mocked Democrats who called for him to step down as part of the “elite.”
Biden gave a confused response to a question about a letter calling on Democratic lawmakers to unite, including a slamming of former President Donald Trump, who was on the golf course after the debate. As Biden struggles with the news cycle, Trump has largely stayed out of the spotlight.
“Democrat Joe, let me put it this way: The reason I travel all over the country so much is because Trump is in a golf cart, filling out his golf card before he hits a ball, and he hasn’t gone anywhere for 10 days anyway, and I’m travelling all over the country. Number one,” he said.
He continued, “And I’ve traveled around the country for a couple of reasons. One is to confirm that my instincts were correct that the party still wanted me to be the nominee. And all the data, all the data shows that the average Democrat who voted, the 14 million people who voted for me, still want me to be the nominee, No. 1.”
The president was also asked to respond to criticism of his response to ABC News on Friday when asked how he would feel in January if Trump won.
“I feel like I’ve done my best and I’ve done the best job I know I can, and that’s what this is about,” Biden said Friday.
He dismissed growing concerns from people who said the answers were unsatisfactory.
“That’s not an option, and I never lost, and I’m not losing this time. I beat him last time, and I beat him this time. Look at his performance in the debates,” Biden said. “He’s just a liar and he hasn’t done anything since the debates.”
Asked how he would assure voters that there would never be another night like his debate performance, Trump replied, “Look at my career,” adding, “You don’t get many nights like that.”
