President Biden dismissed concerns about his debate performance against former President Trump on Thursday, despite widespread panic among Democrats about how the night played out.
The president and first lady Jill Biden stopped by a Waffle House in Atlanta after the debate and answered some questions from reporters after placing their order.
“I think we did well,” Biden said.
Asked about calls from some Democrats for him to drop out of the race or if he had any concerns about his performance, Biden said no.
“No. It’s hard to debate a liar. The New York Times noted that he lied 26 times,” he said, although he also acknowledged that he had a sore throat.
Biden’s performance on Thursday was widely criticized by Democrats, some of whom acknowledged it will fuel discussions about whether he should be replaced at the top of the Democratic ticket before the August convention.
“The talk is very distracting and will be very draining on the campaign,” Biden’s former press secretary Jen Psaki said on MSNBC. “Should he be replaced? They’re going to answer that question instead of attacking Trump.”
The president’s voice was often hoarse, which the White House later attributed to a cold, and he sometimes lost his train of thought or struggled to make his point clear.
A quick CNN poll of debate watchers found that 67% of respondents said Trump won the debate, compared to 33% who said Biden won.
Vice President Harris defended Biden’s debate performance during a round of interviews Thursday night, although she admitted he got off to a “slow start.”
“Yes, there was a slow start, but it was a strong finish,” she told CNN. “And what became very clear throughout the night is that Joe Biden is fighting on behalf of the American people.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
