President Joe Biden is running for re-election, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed Monday after being pressured at a briefing on record inflation following a report containing Democratic concerns about the president’s age.
Jeane-Pierre began her response by mentioning limitations on what she can say about politics when speaking from the White House podium when asked directly whether the president is running for re-election.
“He didn’t – first, let’s back up for a second,” she began. “I can’t talk about elections. I can’t be a political analyst from here, or, you know, or the midterms or anything, including 2024. As you know, the President has been asked this question many times and he has answered it
“His answer was pretty simple. Which is yes, he’s running for re-election. That’s all I can say,’ she said.
“His answer was pretty simple. Which is yes, he’s running for re-election. That’s all I can say,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at Monday’s news conference
Biden told ABC in December 2021 he would run if he was “in good health.” When asked if he would run against his predecessor Donald Trump, he replied: “Why shouldn’t I run as a candidate against Donald Trump? That would increase the chance of running.”
When asked about Biden’s persistently low approval ratings, which have fallen below 40 percent, Jean-Pierre had a terse answer.
“The president’s focus on working for the American people, that’s his focus right now,” she said.
Biden’s approval rating is 39 percent in the RealClearPolitics poll average. He has been under water since August 2021 and now faces record inflation, food shortages, gun violence, a war in Ukraine and a host of other issues, along with concerns about his age that party allegiance would have tended to overlook had he had better numbers en route to midterm elections, where the party in power usually suffers losses.
A new round of inquiries into Biden’s age erupted earlier in the week after the New York Times cited a mix of humble Democrats and senior figures raising concerns about the issue as the midterm election drew near.
Sunday’s front-page coverage of the issue, which dogged the 79-year-old Biden during his last presidential campaign, comes amid low approval ratings and fears by some Democrats that he remains vulnerable to a restoration effort by former President Donald Trump.
“I need an equivalent of Ron DeSantis, a Democrat, but not a 70- or 80-year-old — a younger person,” Alex Wyshyvanuk, 33, a Maryland-based data analyst, told the paper. “Someone who knows what worked for you in 1980 won’t work for you in 2022 or 2024,” he said.
A new report has raised concerns about President Joe Biden’s age as his party faces serious headwinds ahead of the Midterms
DeSantis, 43, is the Florida governor whose ability to make headlines and rise in the polls has caught the attention of Trump circles.
The newspaper also quoted Florida Democratic National Committee member Steve Simionidis as saying Biden “should announce his intention not to seek re-election 24 straight after the midterms.”
However, the publication cited “deep concerns” about Biden’s political viability among dozens of officials who would not comment on the record. Biden would be 82 by the time of the next inauguration day. The expression of concern comes at a time when the Jan. 6 House Committee was busy collating evidence from hundreds of interviews about Trump’s campaign efforts.
“The presidency is a tremendously tiring job, and the stark reality is that by the end of a second term, the president would be more likely to be 90 than 80, and that would be a big problem,” said David Axelrod, 67, who helped push Barack Obama has rise with a campaign with youthful energy and the slogan “Hope”. Obama was 47 when he took office, having failed to complete his first term in the Senate.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has hammered political enemies and turned attention to Trump as a possible GOP presidential nominee or challenger
President Donald Trump has repeatedly raised questions about Biden’s mental capacity, though the former AG has testified about Trump’s belief in allegations of voter fraud: “He’s detached from reality if he really believes in this stuff.”
Biden would be 86 years old at the end of a second term
The story sparked a fresh round of speculation about Biden’s age amid concerns his age could jeopardize efforts to hit Trump back amid record inflation, a war in Ukraine and a now-slumping stock market.
Axios chimed in with a story about America’s gerontocracy, noting that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is 82 and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer is 71.
Even longtime commentator David Gergen, 80, told PBS NewsHour, “I think people like Biden and Trump should both step down and leave the door open to younger people.”
The Times has previously published similar articles, including one in 2019 in which Democrats engaged in a debate in which then-Sen. Kamala Harris. He went on to win the nomination and win the presidency.
Biden has the incumbent’s powers on his side, along with similar polling issues for Vice President Kamala Harris, his 57-year partner in office.