U.S. President Joe Biden, facing intense scrutiny over his age, introduced Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin at a NATO event on Thursday. He later mistakenly called Vice President Kamala Harris by Republican candidate Donald Trump’s name during a solo news conference.
At the NATO summit in Washington on July 10, Biden said: “And now I want to turn the floor over to the president of Ukraine, who has both courage and determination, ladies and gentlemen, President Putin.” After a brief pause, he corrected himself and added: “I am going to defeat President Putin, President Zelensky. I am very focused on defeating Putin.”
Zelensky responded with humor, saying, “I’m better (than Putin),” to which Biden replied, “You’re much better,” prompting laughter in the room. French President Emmanuel Macron sympathized with Biden’s gaffe, noting that “we all make mistakes sometimes.”
During a subsequent press conference, Biden was repeatedly questioned about concerns about his candidacy because of his age. In defending Vice President Harris, he slipped up again, referring to her as “Vice President Trump.”
“Look, I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump as vice president if she wasn’t qualified to be president,” Biden said, sparking criticism from Trump on Truth Social. Biden’s campaign has since faced calls from some House Democrats to end his reelection bid in favor of new leadership.
Despite support from some Senate Democrats, concerns remain about Biden’s ability to pull off a victory, following consultations with his campaign aides.
(Disclaimer: With contributions from agencies).
