- By Mayukh Debnath
- Tue, 16 Jul 2024 09:15 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
US Presidential Race: US President Joe Biden has defended his decision to stay in the country's presidential race, claiming that his mental acuity is up to the mark. This is at least the second time in a week that the 81-year-old has publicly addressed concerns about his mental agility amid growing doubts from donors, supporters and fellow Democrats about his ability to win the November 5 election and keep up with the demands of the job.
"I'm old," Biden told US-based news broadcaster NBC on Monday (Pacific Daylight Time), according to a transcript cited by wire agency AFP. "But I'm only three years older than [Donald] Trump, number one. And number two, my mental acuity has been pretty damn good," he stated.
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Last week, the octogenarian Democrat had asserted that his health was in good shape, saying that he would take another neurological exam to ascertain his mental agility if his doctors recommended the same. The assertion from Biden about his mental fitness came during a press conference, at the outset of which he mixed up the names of his vice president, Kamala Harris, and his predecessor and the now-confirmed Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
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"Look, I wouldn't have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if she was not qualified to be president. So start there," Biden, who has frequently mangled names and misspoken throughout his political career, said as he responded to a question about his confidence in Harris. Biden's bid for reelection has been on the ropes since his poor performance against Trump in a presidential debate on June 28.
(With inputs from agencies)
