President Joe Biden on Friday downplayed his poor performance in last week’s debate, offering additional excuses for the showing and adding that it was his fault alone.
The president said in an interview on ABC that he was “sick” and “feeling terrible” before the debate. Asked whether it was a bad episode or a sign of a more serious condition, Biden dismissed those concerns.
“It was a bad episode. No indication of any serious condition. I didn’t listen to my instincts in terms of preparing, and I had a bad night,” he said.
In the interview, Biden also gave more details about how he was feeling at the time of the debate, saying he was fatigued from illness and had even been tested for Covid-19. The White House did not immediately respond to CNN’s inquiry as to whether the president took the test before or after the debate.
He said, “Because I was sick – I was feeling terrible. As a matter of fact, the docs with me I asked if they did a Covid test, they were trying to figure out what’s wrong. They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn’t. I just had a really bad cold.”
The conversation was Biden’s first televised interview since his debate performance, a high-stakes moment for his political future as a mounting list of Democrats – lawmakers, donors and voters – express concerns about the viability of his candidacy.
Four Democratic members of Congress have called on Biden to step down. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued a statement Friday asking Biden to “carefully evaluate” whether he is the party’s best choice to defeat Donald Trump. And Virginia Sen. Mark Warner is looking to get Senate Democrats on the same page about the future of Biden’s reelection bid, sources told CNN, putting further pressure on the White House. Warner, who is taking on a leadership role in the effort, is reaching a place where he thinks it is time for Biden to suspend his reelection campaign, a source familiar with his efforts told CNN.
The comment about his illness marked the latest turn in the White House’s description of the president’s physical condition during the debate. White House officials told reporters during the debate that the president had a cold, and then on Wednesday, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dismissed the idea that Biden had been seen by his doctor, repeatedly saying that the president has had no medical exams since his February physical.
“It’s a cold, guys. It’s a cold.” she said at the time. “I know that it affects everybody differently. We’ve all had colds, and so no, he was not checked out by the doctor.”
