(NEXSTAR) – President Joe Biden opened his highly anticipated press conference Thursday with a forceful defense of his foreign and domestic policies, and batted away questions about his ability to serve another four years even as he flubbed a reference to Donald Trump in one of his first answers.
“I’m not in this for my legacy. I’m in this to complete the job I started,” Biden said as he insisted his support among the electorate was strong and he would stay in the race and would win.
Amid questions about his ability to win the 2024 election and serve another term, Biden repeatedly mentioned his record as president and spoke confidently about his chances in November.
“I think I’m the most qualified person to run for president. I’ve beat him once and I will beat him again,” Biden said.
Democrats are facing an intractable problem. Top donors, supporters and key lawmakers are doubtful of Biden’s abilities to carry on his reelection bid after his disastrous June 27 debate performance, but the hard-fighting 81-year-old president refuses to give up as he prepares to take on Trump in a rematch.
“My schedule has been full bore,” he declared. “So if I slow down and I cant get the job done, that’s a sign that I shouldn’t be doing it. But there’s no indication of that yet — none.”
When asked about his 2020 campaign and why he no longer sees himself as a “transitional” figure, Biden blamed the “gravity of the situation” the country faces.
“What changed was the gravity of the situation I inherited in terms of the economy, our foreign policy and domestic division,” Biden said.
At one point, President Biden let slip a gaffe that delighted former President Trump and prompted a flurry of headlines. In response to one of the first questions from the media, Biden mistakenly referred to Kamala Harris as Trump.
When asked by Jeff Mason, of Reuters, if he was worried about Vice President Harris’ chances against Trump if she ended up becoming the Democratic presidential candidate, Biden replied, “Look, I wouldn‘t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn’t think she was qualified to be President.”
Trump weighed in live on Biden’s news conference with a post on his social media network of a video clip of the president saying “Vice President Trump.”
Trump added sarcastically, “Great job, Joe!”
The gaffe came after another notable name mix-up earlier in the day.
In announcing a compact that would bring together NATO countries to support Ukraine, Biden referred to the nation’s leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “President Putin” to audible gasps in the room. He quickly returned to the microphone: “President Putin – he’s going to beat President Putin … President Zelenskyy,” Biden said.
Then he said: “I’m so focused on beating Putin,” in an effort to explain the gaffe.
“I’m better,” Zelenskyy replied. “You’re a hell of a lot better,” Biden said back.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited Biden’s team to meet with senators privately at the lunch hour to discuss concerns and the path forward, but some senators groused they would prefer to hear from the president himself. In the Senate, only Peter Welch, of Vermont, has so far called for Biden to step out of the race.
The 90-minute conversation with the president’s team, which one person said included no new data, polling or game plan on how Biden would beat Trump, did not appear to change senators’ minds. The person was granted anonymity to discuss the closed door session.
The meeting was frank, angry at times and also somewhat painful, since many in the room know and love Biden, said one senator who requested anonymity to discuss the private briefing. Senators confronted the advisers over Biden’s performance at the debate and the effect on Senate races this year
One Democrat, Sen. Chris Murphy, of Connecticut, said afterward, “My belief is that the president can win, but he’s got to be able to go out and answer voters’ concerns. He’s got to be able to talk to voters directly over the next few day.”
At the same time, influential senators are standing strongly with Biden, leaving the party at an impasse.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent, told AP he thinks Biden “is going to win this election. I think he has a chance to win it big.”
Sanders said he has been publicly critical of the campaign, and said Biden needs to talk more about the future and his plans for the country. “As we come closer to Election Day, the choices are very clear,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.