President Joe Biden continues to insist he would have beaten President-elect Donald Trump in the November election had he remained in the race.
Despite polls showing a majority of Americans say his time in office will be viewed negatively by history, and despite Democratic Party leaders forcing him off the party's national ticket in July after a pathetic debate performance, Biden told USA Today he could have done what Vice President Kamala Harris failed to do — defeat Trump.
"It's presumptuous to say that, but I think yes," the 82-year-old Biden said.
However, when asked whether he had the vigor to serve another four years in office, he responded: "I don't know."
"So far, so good… but who knows what I'm going to be when I'm 86 years old?" Biden told the outlet.
In late-December, The Washington Post reported Biden believed he should have stayed in the presidential race despite both his debate effort and low job approval ratings. In fact, he and some of his aides have told people recently he could have defeated Trump, according to the Post.
Biden used the USA Today exit interview with the media outlet to discuss his time in the White House, what he might do in his final weeks in office, and what he old Trump when the two men met after the election.
The president said he's considering preemptive pardons for anti-Trump public figures such as former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and former senior health official Dr. Anthony Fauci. At the time, Biden added that his decision would be based "a little bit" on whom Trump named to top administration roles.
Trump is nominating Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to head the Justice Department and former federal prosecutor Kash Patel to head the FBI.
Biden said he urged Trump not to go forward with threats of retribution against his enemies.
"I tried to make clear that there was no need, and it was counterintuitive for his interest to go back and try to settle scores," Biden said.
He was asked for Trump's response.
"He didn't say, 'No, I'm going to ...' You know. He didn't reinforce it. He just basically listened," Biden said.
Biden has held relatively few press conferences and individual media interviews during his term, and now appears to be conducting select sessions to help affect his legacy.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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