Joe Biden referred to his running mate Kamala Harris as “vice president Trump” during the first question from reporters at his high-stakes press conference after the Nato Summit in Washington.
The address was seen by some as a make-or-break moment for Biden, and comes as the president attempts to play down concerns about his age and capabilities following his disastrous presidential debate against Donald Trump last month.
The president made it through the first scripted portion of his address on Thursday relatively smoothly, though slipped up after he was asked about Harris’ ability to govern should she take over the top of the ticket in his stead.
“I wouldn’t have picked vice president Trump...” he said, without correcting himself.
But Mr Biden’s performance is unlikely to stem the pressure he faces, with 15 members of Congress having publicly called for him to step aside in favor of a younger candidate for the 2024 election.
Hours earlier, Biden made another serious gaffe, introducing Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky onstage at the Nato Summit as “president Putin”.
Key Points
- Biden confuses Kamala Harris... for Trump
- Trump mocks Biden slip-up on Truth Social
- The 15 House and Senate Democrats who say Biden needs to step aside
- Pelosi evasive on Biden’s future: ‘Whatever he decides, we go with’
Biden remains adamant that he is the one to win
04:30
Mike Bedigan
Biden addresses his poll numbers: "I believe I'm the best qualified to govern, and I think I'm the best qualified to win." pic.twitter.com/dLa0XeiGI9
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 12, 2024
Biden scorches Trump for ‘riding around in his golf cart’ during question on his schedule
04:01
Mike Bedigan
Joe Biden mocked White House rival Donald Trump’s workload of ‘driving around on his golf cart, filling out his score card before he hits the ball’ as he defended his fitness to beat his Republican rival during a high-stakes solo press conference.
Read the full story here:
More talk about golf
03:20
Mike Bedigan
Lindsey Graham: I'm tired of talking about golf. Go play nine holes with President Trump. I’m playing with him Sunday. President Trump is a very good golfer pic.twitter.com/VUWWaCECz8
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 12, 2024
Biden opens high-stakes presser by calling Kamala ‘VP Trump’ but doubles down on running in November
02:35
Mike Bedigan
President Joe Biden accidentally referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump” as he answered his first question at a closely watched, high-stakes press conference while under pressure from Democratic officials to end his re-election campaign against his Republican rival.
Read the full story from Alex Woodward here:
Eric Trump blasts Biden’s presser performance
02:15
Mike Bedigan
Wow! That wasn’t good!
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) July 11, 2024
“I didn’t pick Trump to be Vice President…”
Biden press conference whispers return
01:55
Mike Bedigan
Biden finds burst of angry energy
01:45
Mike Bedigan
After fairly steady answers to questions from reporters, Joe Biden displayed a random burst of energy.
“I’m going to be going around and making the case for things that we have to finish. Control guns not girls,” he said, in response to a reporter question.
Then, becoming visibly and audibly angry he added: “More children are killed by a bullet than any other cause of death. In the United States of America. What are we doing?”
In 2020, firearm-related injuries surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death among US children and adolescents, according to previous analysis from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What will people remember from Biden address?
01:35
Mike Bedigan
.@POTUS giving an extensive answer on perhaps the most important foreign policy issue of our time - China as an emerging power. And yet if this platform is any guide, all worried Dems will remember is “Vice President Trump”
— Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) July 12, 2024
Biden hits out at Trump: ‘Where’s he been?'
01:25
Mike Bedigan
Joe Biden hit out at Donald Trump, after being asked about his “limits” that he reportedly acknowledged – including needing to end his working day by 8pm.
After acknowledging his “stupid mistake” during the debate, he said: :My schedule has been full. Where has Trump been? Riding around in his golf cart, filling out his scorecard before he hits the ball. Look, he’s done virtually nothing.”
Biden: I mean, my schedule has been full. Where has Trump been? Riding around in his golf cart, filling out his scorecard before he hits the ball. Look, he's done virtually nothing. pic.twitter.com/LxFT2wiiE6
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 11, 2024
Trump mocks Biden slip-up on Truth Social
01:15
Mike Bedigan
Donald Trump mocked Joe Biden’s slip up at his “Big Boy” press conference on Thursday, in which the president referred to Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump”.
“Great job, Joe!” he wrote.
Biden laughs at several questions from reporters
Friday 12 July 2024 00:50
Mike Bedigan
Joe Biden laughed at several questions from reporters that concerned his mental capacity.
The first question concerned a gaffe made shortly before the high stakes press conference on Thursday evening, where he introduced Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky onstage at the Nato Summit as “president Putin”.
Biden chuckled before responding.
Later, he laughed again in response to a question over reports he wanted to finish his working day earlier and be in bed by 8pm.
“That’s not true,” he said.
Watch the Harris/ Trump mix up
Friday 12 July 2024 00:45
Mike Bedigan
Yikes. Biden refers to Harris as "Vice President Trump" pic.twitter.com/CrbsqJimRa
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 11, 2024
Biden confuses Kamala Harris... for Trump
Friday 12 July 2024 00:40
Mike Bedigan
Facing his first question from reporters, Biden appeared to confuse vice president Kamala Harris, with his political rival Donald Trump.
Asked if he had any concerns about Harris’ ability to rule should she take over the race in his stead, he replied: “I wouldn’t have picked vice president Trump...” before quickly correcting himself.
He continued: “The fact it is I think I am the right person to run for president. I beat [Trump] once and I’ll beat him again.”
Biden makes it through scripted remarks with few stumbles
Friday 12 July 2024 00:36
Mike Bedigan
Joe Biden made it through the first portion of his Nato Summit address relatively smoothly, despite high levels of scrutiny.
The president coughed several times, but was coherent with his words as he spoke of the US committment to Ukraine and its ongoing battle with Russia.
He will now face questions from reporters.
Biden begins high-stakes press conference at Nato summit
Friday 12 July 2024 00:28
Mike Bedigan
Joe Biden is speaking in his first press conference in eight months, in a high-stakes appearance at the Nato Summit in Washington as he attempts to claw back support from skeptical members of the Democratic party.
The address is being seen by some as make-or-break, and comes as the president continues to attempt to play down concerns about his age and capability, following his disastrous presidential debate against Donald Trump last month.
Biden was scheduled to begin at 6.30pm eastern, but the president did not take to the stage until around an hour later.
Moments before the news conference, Biden made yet another serious gaffe, introducing Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky onstage at the Nato Summit as “president Putin”.
World waits for Biden. Trump posts about his shoes.
Friday 12 July 2024 00:21
Mike Bedigan
How to watch president Biden’s high stakes press conference
Friday 12 July 2024 00:11
Mike Bedigan
You can watch live coverage of Joe Biden’s high stakes press conference here:
Biden press conference delayed by over 30 minutes
Friday 12 July 2024 00:08
Mike Bedigan
President Joe Biden’s high stakes press conference has been delayed by over 30 minutes.
The address at the Nato Summit on Thursday evening was originally scheduled to start at 6.30pm eastern.
By 7.07pm the president had still not appeared. The reason for the delay was not immediately clear.
Watch: Biden mistakenly calls Zelensky ‘Putin’ while introducing him at NATO summit
Friday 12 July 2024 00:00
Mike Bedigan
X users react to Biden’s ‘president Putin’ gaffe
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:46
Mike Bedigan
In his presser, Macron defended Biden saying “slips of the tongue happen, it’s happened to me.” He also said France, Europe & Ukraine were lucky to have the Biden admin. #NATO #F24
— Kethevane Gorjestani (@ketgorjestani) July 11, 2024
If Trump was president, he would actually be introducing Putin.
— davidrlurie (@davidrlurie) July 11, 2024
Trump confused Haley & Pelosi. He constantly misstates names & facts.
— Alyssa Farah Griffin (@Alyssafarah) July 11, 2024
But in a moment when the whole world is watching Biden to prove he’s up for the job & he’s presumably highly prepped to perform well - he called Zelensky by the name of the man slaughtering Zelensky’s people. https://t.co/0fHZxOy33D
Fellow leaders are shrugging off Biden's Putin/Zelenskiy misspeak.
— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) July 11, 2024
Macron told reporters that we all make lapses.
Scholz : "Slips of tongue do happen."
Starmer urged people to "look at the substance of what's been achieved" and said Biden "deserves credit" as host.
Obama adviser claims Biden trying to ‘run out the clock’ so it’s too late to change the nominee
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:20
Oliver O'Connell
A former advisor to Barack Obama has claimed that President Joe Biden is trying to “run out the clock” so it winds up being too late to nominate a new candidate to replace him on the Democratic ticket.
Quite a statement.
James Liddell reports.
Full story: Biden introduces Ukrainian leader Zelensky as Putin in latest gaffe
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:14
Oliver O'Connell
Moments before a high-stakes press conference to allay fears about his capacity as president, Joe Biden made another serious gaffe, introducing Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky as “president Putin”.
Mike Bedigan watched.
Which Senator publicly called for Biden to step aside
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:10
Mike Bedigan
Vermont’s Peter Welch has become the first Democratic senator to call for Joe Bidento step down as the party’s presidential nominee, saying that the stakes “could not be higher.”
In an op-ed, published on Wednesday in the Washington Post, Welch said that “valid questions” raised following the president’s diastrous debate performance could not be “ignored or dismissed.”
He will doubtless be watching closely tonight.
Melania Trump to reportedly attend GOP convention
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:08
Oliver O'Connell
Former first lady Melania Trump will reportedly attend next week’s Republican National Convention in Wisconsin, according to CNN, citing two sources familiar with her plans.
Josh Marcus reports.
Trump files immunity motion to vacate New York hush money conviction
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:02
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump and his legal team have filed a motion to vacate the conviction in his New York hush money trial following the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity for official acts.
“Because of the implications for the institution of the Presidency, the use of official-acts evidence was a structural error under the federal Constitution that tainted the [Manhattan District Attorney’s] grand jury proceedings as well as the trial.”
Trump argues that his communications with his White House aides violated the SCOTUS ruling.
Trump argues that his communications with his White House aides violated the newly-minted SCOTUS presidential immunity doctrine. pic.twitter.com/GukjUELYRD
— Frank G. Runyeon (@frankrunyeon) July 11, 2024
A summary of Trump's legal arguments in the table of contents & his kicker is *both* grand jury indictment & trial verdict must be dismissed.
— Frank G. Runyeon (@frankrunyeon) July 11, 2024
Justice Merchan cannot say it was "harmless error," Trump argues. pic.twitter.com/zQbPkVPlil
Democrats go all in against Project 2025 and Trump’s link to plan
Thursday 11 July 2024 23:00
Oliver O'Connell
Democrats are pressing ahead in an uncertain political moment and seizing what they see as an opportunity: Donald Trump’s attempt to distance himself from a blueprint for a narrowing of the federal government that would eliminate major agencies like the Department of Education.
With president Joe Biden vowing to stay in the race amid calls from his own party to quit and the Republican nominating convention on the calendar next week, Democrats are sharpening a line of attack against a policy agenda laid out by conservative groups and personalities including many with direct ties to Trump’s first term in the White House.
John Bowden explains.
Watch: Biden accidentally introduces Zelensky as Putin
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:52
Oliver O'Connell
President Joe Biden introduces Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky as President Putin.
Biden quickly caught himself and said they were going to beat Putin.
Biden just introduced President Zelenskyy as "President Putin," but immediately caught himself
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 11, 2024
"I'm better," Zelenskyy joked in response pic.twitter.com/8MgZHj2cf1
Why AOC is behind Biden — while Nancy Pelosi is not
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:45
Oliver O'Connell
Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are perhaps the two most well-known Democratic members of Congress. Along with Vice President Kamala Harris, they are arguably the most well-known Democratic women in Washington.
Since Democrats have split on whether President Joe Biden should step aside after his debacle of a debate performance, the two have taken divergent approaches. Ocasio-Cortez has firmly stood behind Biden despite his performance. Pelosi is the one who’s been more equivocal.
Eric Garcia reports.
Rep Marie Gluesenkamp Perez suggests Biden should resign
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:36
Oliver O'Connell
Democratic Rep Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington has raised her concerns about President Joe Biden's age and capabilities implying that he should resign from office and drop out of the 2024 presidential race — though she stopped short of directly saying so.
“I’ve spent the past two weeks listening to my constituents express their concerns about the President’s age and health. Like most people I represent in Southwest Washington, I doubt the President’s judgment about his health, his fitness to do the job, and whether he is the one making important decisions about our country, rather than unelected advisors,” she wrote in an email to NBC affiliate KGW.
“Americans deserve to feel their president is fit enough to do the job. The crisis of confidence in the President’s leadership needs to come to an end. The President should do what he knows is right for the country and put the national interest first.”
Top Democrat: ‘This is going to get worse'
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:30
Oliver O'Connell
Per CNN:
“There’s this general sense of just, unbelievable holding your breath every time he does an event, every time he’s with people,” one top Democrat in close touch with Biden’s inner circle of advisers told CNN. This person added that some of those advisers have privately acknowledged: “This is going to get worse.”
That Democrat was blunt about how the president’s closest advisers have responded to any criticism or concerns expressed about the president – including his age and fitness: “Everyone who expresses any level of suspicion or contrary views? They call everyone and they beat the s*** out of them and say: ‘Stay on message.’”
Inside the fallout at ABC News over George Stephanopoulos’ comments on Biden
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:20
Oliver O'Connell
Strolling down a New York City street sporting a T-shirt and shorts, George Stephanopoulos uttered nine words which he appeared to quickly regret.
“Do you think Biden should step down? You’ve talked to him more than anyone else has lately... you can be honest,” a pedestrian asked the off-duty ABC News anchor.
James Liddell has the story of what was said next and the fallout...
‘Head-to-head matchups’ of Harris against Trump, being tested by Biden campaign
Thursday 11 July 2024 22:05
Oliver O'Connell
The Biden campaign is reportedly test-polling head-to-head matchups between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump as the president struggles to shore up support for his re-election bid.
The survey comes as President Joe Biden is under increasing pressure to step aside as the party’s nominee following his dismal debate performance on June 27 in Atlanta, where he repeatedly lost his train of thought and stumbled over words. Biden is set to hold a highly anticipated press conference at the end of the NATO summit in Washington on Thursday night, a critical appearance as he hopes to quell concerns about his health and show that the debate was nothing more than one bad night.
The poll is being quietly conducted this week and was commissioned by the campaign’s analytics team, according toThe New York Times. The Independent has contacted the Biden campaign for comment.
Gustaf Kilander reports.
Trump campaign debuts how they’ll run against a Biden replacement
Thursday 11 July 2024 21:40
Oliver O'Connell
In today’s Trump campaign Palm Beach Playbook, the Trump campaign offered a glimpse of how they might run against any replacement candidate of President Joe Biden, should he step aside.
Here’s what they wrote:
So the scale of panic on Team Biden has reached the stage where Biden’s own campaign aides say “he needs to drop out.” What’s astonishing is that it took 3 and half years for Democrats and the mainstream media to admit publicly what we’ve all known – Joe Biden is unfit for office.
The ultimate problem for Democrats, though, is that they have no real alternative. President Trump will win in a landslide no matter who they put up. Each of the Democrats being discussed has the same failed Biden-agenda and is complicit in the cover-up of Biden’s decline, which has severely threatened our national security.
For those reasons and more, they should all be considered unfit for office, whether it be Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, or someone else.
One of Biden’s earliest 2020 supporters say time for him to step aside
Thursday 11 July 2024 21:28
Oliver O'Connell
Democrat Congressman Greg Stanton, who represents Arizona’s 4th district and was formerly the mayor of Phoenix, adds his name to the roster of lawmakers calling on Joe Biden to step aside for a younger generation of candidate.
He wrote on X: “I was one of President Biden's earliest supporters in 2020, and I'm proud of the progress we've made for Arizona.
“However the stakes in this election could not be higher. For our country's sake, it is time for the President to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders.”
Read his full statement here:
I was one of President Biden's earliest supporters in 2020, and I'm proud of the progress we've made for Arizona.
— Greg Stanton (@gregstantonaz) July 11, 2024
However the stakes in this election could not be higher. For our country's sake, it is time for the President to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders. pic.twitter.com/KSX1jd0O6m
California rep says he’s ‘all-in’ for Kamala ‘if/when’ Biden passes torch
Thursday 11 July 2024 21:25
Oliver O'Connell
California Rep Jared Huffman tweets: “VP Harris is on fire. She's vetted, tested, and has been Democrats' strongest messenger throughout this campaign. She's next up if we need her, and we might.”
He adds: “Let me be very clear: if/when President Biden passes the torch, I'm all-in for Kamala Harris!”
VP Harris is on fire. She's vetted, tested, and has been Democrats' strongest messenger throughout this campaign. She's next up if we need her, and we might. Let me be very clear: if/when President Biden passes the torch, I'm all-in for Kamala Harris! https://t.co/cXAQdYdUzY
— Rep. Jared Huffman (@JaredHuffman) July 11, 2024
Another House Democrat joins calls for Biden to drop out
Thursday 11 July 2024 21:13
Oliver O'Connell
Hawaii Democrat Rep Ed Case of Hawaii is the twelfth House Democrat to call on President Joe Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race as the party’s candidate, John Parkinson of ABC News reports.
“My guidepost is what is the best way forward for our country. I do not believe President Biden should continue his candidacy for re-election as President,” Case says.
Hawaii Democrat @EdCaseHawaii is 12th House Democrat to call on President Biden to withdraw from the race: "My guidepost is what is the best way forward for our country. I do not believe President Biden should continue his candidacy for re-election as President."
— John R Parkinson (@jparkABC) July 11, 2024
Watch: Harris says Trump makes America weak by bowing to dictators
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:45
Oliver O'Connell
VP: Understand as Trump bows down to dictators, he makes America weak and that is disqualifying for someone who wants to be commander-in-chief of the United States of America pic.twitter.com/n55nBCgLfn
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 11, 2024
New York Times editorial board declares Donald Trump ‘unfit to lead’
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:40
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump is “dangerous” and “unfit to lead” the country, the New York Times editorial board argued in a scathing, multi-part article ahead of next week’s GOP convention.
“He has demonstrated an utter lack of respect for the Constitution, the rule of law and the American people,” the article on Thursday argued. “Instead of a cogent vision for the country’s future, Mr. Trump is animated by a thirst for political power: to use the levers of government to advance his interests, satisfy his impulses and exact retribution against those who he thinks have wronged him.”
Josh Marcus reports as we all await the response from Mar-a-Lago...
Don Jr to speak before Trump VP pick at RNC, report says
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:34
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump Jr is set to speak before his father’s choice for vice president as his running mate at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Wednesday next week, according to reporting by Axios.
The significance of this is that it may indicate that Donald Trump is about to choose Senator JD Vance of Ohio as his choice given that his eldest son has been a booster of Vance over other favorite contenders North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida.
Here’s Don Jr posting about Vance just yesterday:
Stop what you're doing and watch this right now if you want to know what America First is all about
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) July 11, 2024
“America is not just an idea. America is a nation. America is a group of people with a common history and a common future.” - @JDVance1 pic.twitter.com/1zQEv9u1Mm
Watch: Minority leader Jeffries say Democrats will win back control of House
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:25
Oliver O'Connell
Q: Are you worried that Biden is a liability for your most vulnerable members?@RepJeffries: No.
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 11, 2024
Q: Do you think that Democrats still have a path to winning back the House if Biden stays at the top the ticket?
Jeffries: House Democrats will win back control of the House... pic.twitter.com/NurkyYCVeu
After saying Clooney has ‘valid point’, Michael Douglas admits it’s ‘hard to imagine’ Biden in a second term
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:20
Oliver O'Connell
Michael Douglas said that it’s “hard” for him to imagine Joe Biden serving another term in office after he praised George Clooney for making a “valid point” in his scathing op-ed in The New York Times, calling for the president to stand down.
The 79-year-old Hollywood actor voiced his concerns over Biden’s re-election bid while on the red carpet at the premiere of his upcoming documentary America’s Burning in New York City. It marks a complete U-turn from his formerly staunch support of the president — including hosting a fundraiser for Biden in April.
James Liddell and Joe Sommerlad report.
What happened inside the meeting between Senate Democrats and the Biden campaign?
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:11
Oliver O'Connell
Andrew Desiderio of Punchbowl News tweeted out what Senate Democrats told him of their closed-door meeting with Biden campaign officials.
“A significant majority of the Democratic senators feel that the president’s not going to be able to win.”
INSIDE THE ROOM — Senate Democrats got “heated” with Biden advisers, according to two Dem senators who were present. A number of Dems told the Biden team that they’re “being put in an untenable position defending something that so many of their constituents felt was obvious.”
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) July 11, 2024
Biden advisers presented what they see is Biden’s path to victory. Nobody in the room openly called for Biden to withdraw from the race.
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) July 11, 2024
Dem sen: “A significant majority of the Democratic senators feel that the president’s not going to be able to win.”
w/ @bresreports
Watch: As NATO summit draws to an end Biden campaign slams Trump in new ad
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:03
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump is Putin’s lap dog.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 11, 2024
I will never bow down to dictators. Watch our new ad. pic.twitter.com/4QUVH6j7Ad
Jon Stewart accuses Biden of being ‘Trumpian’
Thursday 11 July 2024 20:00
Oliver O'Connell
Daily Show host Jon Stewart has accused President Joe Biden of being “Trumpian” by refusing to even discuss the possibility of giving up the Democratic presidential nomination after his dismal debate performance last month in Atlanta.
On his podcast The Weekly Show, Stewart slammed Biden during a conversation with former Obama aides and Pod Save America hosts Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor as well as CNN commentator and former member of the South Carolina statehouse Bakari Sellers.
While Stewart hasn’t explicitly called for Biden to step aside, he criticized the president for not being open for discussion on the matter.
Gustaf Kilander has the story.
Illinois congressman joins calls for Biden to step aside
Thursday 11 July 2024 19:56
Oliver O'Connell
Representative Brad Schneider of Illinois, a leading New Democrats member, says Joe Biden should “heroically pass the torch to a new generation of leadership”.
In a statement, before listing Biden’s accomplishments, he writes: “If the history books were to be closed today, he would unquestionably be recorded as one of our great presidents.”
“I fear if he fails to make the right choice, our democracy will hang in the balance.”
