Joe Biden news conference fails to silence critics

A problem for Mr Biden going forward is that he will be under constant and intense scrutiny at every event.

Any slip or mistake will be seized on as evidence that he is not fit or capable enough to be running for a second term.

Shortly after he finished his press conference, Connecticut congressman Jim Himes posted on X praising Mr Biden’s record in public service, but calling on him to step away from the campaign.

The strongest candidate to confront the “threat” posed by Trump, he wrote, was not longer Joe Biden.

Illinois congressman Eric Sorensen also posted on social media that Mr Biden ran in 2020 “with the purpose of putting country over party. Today I am asking him to do that again”.

California congressman Scott Peters was the third to speak out, saying the “stakes are high, and we are losing course”.

They bring the tally of Democratic politicians calling on Mr Biden to go to 19.

During the briefing, Biden insisted to reporters that he’s in the race to “complete the job”.

“If I slow down and can’t get the job done, that’s a sign I shouldn’t be doing it,” he said. “But there’s no indication of that yet.”

Many of his supporters in Congress came out immediately after the news conference to echo his belief that he is the best candidate.

“We’ve got to stop the nitpicking and then focus on the work ahead. This guy has done it, he’s done it in the past,” said Democratic National Committee chairman Jaime Harrison.

US allies have also weighed in on Mr Biden’s side, with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer saying he had been on “very good form” when they met face-to-face at the summit.

French president Emmanuel Macron called the mistakes just a slip of the tongue and that Mr Biden was on top of matters.

But Trump was quick to mock Mr Biden for his Kamala Harris mistake. “Great job, Joe!” he wrote on Truth Social.