‘Defensive’ Biden turns on Harris and insists he would’ve beat Trump in election but ‘wasn’t looking to be president’
OUTGOING President Joe Biden has continued to insist he would beaten Donald Trump had he not ended his reelection bid.
President-elect Donald Trump, who defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in a landslide Electoral College victory in November, is set to take the oath of office on January 20.
Now, with 12 days remaining in his presidency, Biden firmly believes he would’ve secured a second term.
However, the president admitted he was uncertain if he would have had the capability to complete four more years in the White House.
“It’s presumptuous to say that, but I think yes,” Biden told USA Today when asked if he could have won the 2024 election against his predecessor and soon-to-be successor.
“I had no intention of running after Beau died – for real, not a joke,” the president said.
His son Beau died in 2015 at age 46 of brain cancer, leading Biden to stay out of the 2016 presidential race.
“[Then, in 2020], when Trump was running again for reelection, I really thought I had the best chance of beating him.
“But I also wasn’t looking to be president when I was 85 years old, 86 years old. And so I did talk about passing the baton.
“But I don’t know. Who the hell knows? So far, so good. But who knows what I’m going to be when I’m 86 years old.”
Biden added that he had an “advantage” due to being an “old guy.”
“I think the only advantage of being an old guy is that I’ve known every major world leader for a long time,” he said.
“And, so, I had a perspective on each of them and their interests.
“And, so, I think it helped me navigate some of the fundamental changes taking place, whether it’s in Europe, in Latin America, in the Middle East, in the far East.”
President Biden has held a strong belief that he would have succeeded if he had followed through with his reelection plans.
Biden ended his reelection campaign in July and immediately endorsed Vice President Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee.
‘WITHIN RANGE’ OF A WIN
In an interview on The View in September, Biden said his polling always had him “within range of beating” Trump despite a disastrous presidential debate in June.
“I never fully believed the assertions that somehow there was this overwhelming reluctance of my running again, I didn’t sense that,” Biden said on the morning talk show.
“There were some folks who liked to see me step aside so they have a chance to move on.
“I get that, that’s just human nature, but that wasn’t the reason I stepped down.”
Despite his decision to bow out of the race, Biden said he was at “peace” with his decision.
“As vice president, there wasn’t a single thing that I did that she couldn’t do,” Biden said of Harris at the time.
In December, The Washington Post reported that President Biden and several of his aides still believe he should have remained in the race.
“Biden and these aides have told people in recent days that he could have defeated Trump,” the outlet reported.
During his exit interview with USA Today, Biden shared a sneak peek of his close door meeting with President-elect Trump at the White House a week after Election Day.
Biden said his rival praised him on some of his policies as president.
“He was very complimentary about some of the economic things I had done,” the outgoing president said.
“And he talked about – he thought I was leaving with a good record.”