President Joe Biden kicked off the question portion of what staff promoted as his “Big Boy press conference” by mistakenly referring to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump.”
“Look, I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president [if] I think she is not qualified to be president,” Biden told a reporter with the Associated Press who asked about his No. 2’s ability to defeat former President Donald Trump this fall.
The gaffe was delivered Thursday night as the president desperately attempts to repair the fallout from a catastrophic debate performance exactly two weeks ago. The 81-year-old commander-in-chief’s frailty on national television triggered a steady crescendo of calls from Democrats and donors for Biden to bow out of the quadrennial contest. Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, was spotted nervously putting a hand over his mouth when the president made his mistake.
Trump immediately mocked Biden on Truth Social.
“Crooked Joe begins his “Big Boy” Press Conference with, “I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president, though I think she was not qualified to be president,” Trump wrote. “Great job, Joe!”
The post happened fast enough for Biden to get a question about it by the end of the press conference.
“Earlier you referred to Vice President Harris as Vice President Trump. Right now Donald Trump is using that to mock your age and your memory. How do you combat that criticism from tonight?” a reporter asked.
“Listen to him,” Biden said, before walking off.
An ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll out Thursday found that 67 percent of voters believe Biden should drop out of the 2024 race. Similar polls from CBS News and the Morning Consult, found that 72 percent and 60 percent of voters, respectively, “believe Biden should not be running,” according to Axios. Biden, however, remains defiant against growing calls within his own party to finally retire a decades-long career.
“I’ve got to finish the job,” he said repeatedly Thursday night.
The president’s adamant pledge to remain in the race followed another gaffe made at an earlier event, when Biden referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin.”
Federalist Senior Editor Mark Hemingway pointed out that while the press repeatedly questioned the president about whether he would step down, there were none raised about the absence of cabinet meetings for nine months, no questions about a Parkinson’s expert visiting the White House, and nothing said about Hunter Biden’s newfound presence in the West Wing.
