US President Joe Biden said on Friday that only “the Lord Almighty” could convince him to give up on his effort for re-election, despite growing calls from fellow Democrats to do so following a disastrous debate against his Republican opponent Donald Trump.
During a prime time interview, Mr Biden blamed a cold and exhaustion for his “bad night” last week, insisting that he was mentally and physically fit for a second term.
He did, however, refuse to commit to taking a cognitive test and having the results released to the public.
“I wouldn’t be running if I didn’t think I did” have the capacity for a second term, he said, but that he is staying in the race “because I think I understand best what has to be done”
He contested the accuracy of current polling, saying “I remember them telling me the same thing in 2020, I can’t win, the polls show I can’t win” before he was ultimately successful.
Mr Biden said that all the pollsters he has talked to have said the election is “a toss-up”.
“I don’t think anyone is as qualified to be president or win the race as me,” he said, adding that he would only step aside if the “Lord Almighty” came down and told him to.
The President projected similar strength during an earlier event in Wisconsin, telling supporters he had beaten Republican candidate Trump once and “I will beat him again”.
“You probably heard we had a little debate last week. Can’t say it was my best performance,” he said, referring to his frequent stumbles and meandering answers when he faced off against Trump in Atlanta at the end of last month.
“But ever since then, there’s been a lot of speculation. ‘What’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out? What’s he going to do? Well, here’s my answer: I am running and going to win again.”
The Biden campaign announced it would be putting $50 million towards advertising for the month of July, according to Politico, with the President scheduled to headline the NAACP and UnidosUS conferences in Las Vegas, Nevada, during the Republican National Convention.
The announcement came as a report showed that a group of Democrats – led by Senator Mark Warner – was forming, with the aim of asking Mr Biden to step down
