Desperate Biden, 81, laughs at getting tests to explain why he 'can't finish sentences', insists he 'doesn't care' about calls for him to drop out and dares Democrats to challenge him in rambling interview
- President Joe Biden dialed into MSNBC's Morning Joe on Monday morning
- He railed against his critics as members of an out-of-touch elite
- READ MORE: Follow along with our politics live blog here
President Joe Biden, 81, pulled a Trump trick on Monday, dialing into a sympathetic TV show to defend himself amid calls to step aside and to dare critics to run against him at his party's convention next month.
He laughed off suggestions that he be tested to explain his stumbling debate performance and insisted he was not going to drop out of the election.
Instead he listed his administration's achievements and painted his critics as an out-of-touch elite as he fights for his political life.
And he chuckled when Morning Joe host Mika Brzezinski asked whether he had been tested for pre-Parkinson's or other diseases that might explain why he had been unable to finish sentence in his debate showdown with Donald Trump.
'I had before. I was feeling so badly before the debate,' he said. 'When I came back, they tested me before. I thought maybe I had COVID. Maybe there was something wrong ... I had an infection or something.
President Joe Biden, 81, pulled a Trump trick on Monday, dialing into a sympathetic TV show to defend himself amid calls to step aside and to dare critics to run against him
'They tested me they gave me those tests. I was clear. But I had a bad night.'
A growing chorus of Democratic donors, officials and elected representatives have urged Biden to give up on reelection in favor of someone else who might be better placed to beat Trump.
A DailyMail.com poll revealed Trump had extended his lead over the president to six points last week.
Biden launched a fightback last week with radio interviews, a prime-time television appearance and a weekend of campaign events .
But the push raised as many concerns as it answered, with flubbed lines and the revelation that a radio interviewer had been sent approved questions.
Things are expected to intensify this week as members of Congress return to Capitol Hill from their July 4 holiday. Nine have already called from him to step aside.
Biden wrote them a two-page letter Monday calling for an end to intraparty drama.
And he told Morning Joe that the big names calling for him to stand aside—from The New York Times editorial board to Rep Jerry Nadler and former presidential candidate Tim Ryan—were out of touch.
'I don't care about what those big names think. They were wrong in 2020, they were wrong in 2022 about the red wave. They're wrong in 2024,' he said, urging them to come out with him on the campaign trail to see how black voters in particular were still behind him.'
Biden makes a campaign stop at a local AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees) union in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Biden was leading Trump this time last year, but has seen the former president steal a lead since then. Trump now has a six point advantage, according to our exclusive poll
Supporters said it was a fluent interview and his voice was strong. But his tendency to mumble meant his words were sometimes hard to follow via the telephone.
And Republicans said it sounded as if he was reading his lines from notes.
Biden insisted he remained the choice of his party for the nomination.
'I'm getting so frustrated by the elites. Not talking about you guys by the way ... the elites in the party,' he said.
'They know so much more? If any of these guys don't think I should run ... run against me. Announce for president. Challenge me at the convention.'
Earlier his campaign released the two-page letter to congressional Democrats.
'We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election,' he said.
'Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It's time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump.'
