On Tuesday, US President Joe Biden expressed confidence that he could defeat his predecessor Donald Trump in a rematch in 2024, even as he recognized that the nation would experience another recession under his watch.
The 79-year-old Democrat was questioned about if he would announce his candidacy for re-election after the midterm elections in November and whether Trump would have a role in that decision.
Biden said, “I think I can defeat Donald Trump again,” but he refrained from committing to running for president again in 2024.
Trump lost to Biden in the popular vote and the state-by-state “electoral college” in 2020, which prompted the defeated president to make repeated bogus allegations of massive voting fraud.
At a NATO conference in March, Biden told reporters he would welcome having Trump as his opponent again.
In the last year, increased violent crime in cities, surging inflation, and an unresolvable immigration issue at the southern border have all contributed to a decline in Biden’s popularity.
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Nevertheless, his popularity ratings remain higher than Trump’s, who often makes fun of Biden’s age despite being three years older.
CNN questioned Biden on what he would say to those who believe he is too old to run for office again.
“Who of the previous presidents has accomplished as much in the first two years as I have? No joke. Although the great majority of Americans approve of what I accomplished, you may not “Biden said.
“Therefore, the question is: Can you do the task? And I’m certain I’m up to the task.”
Biden was questioned about concerns for the economy amid rough growth estimates in a wide-ranging interview that included the conflict in Ukraine and Saudi-led oil production restrictions that are anticipated to send gas prices skyrocketing again.
While acknowledging a “slight” slump is likely, Biden minimized the chances of a recession.
“There won’t be a recession, in my opinion. It will be a very minor recession if it is. In other words, we’ll squat a little “said he.
Trump, 76, took office amid the country’s most extended economic upswing, but in 2020, as the Covid-19 epidemic seized the globe, the economy fell into recession.
Although Biden answers media inquiries often, he hasn’t given many news conferences or one-on-one broadcast interviews.
In the last weeks of the midterm election campaign, he has been increasingly noticeable as he travels to tout Democratic legislative accomplishments and criticize “MAGA Republicans” — supporters of former president Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” program.
In September, he also spoke with CBS, creating news for his declaration that the epidemic was finished and his affirmation of the US’s resolve to protect Taiwan against a Chinese invasion.