President Joe Biden has affirmed his commitment to running for re-election, vowing to challenge rival Donald Trump amidst managing the repercussions of his recent COVID-19 diagnosis and facing increasing pressure from some Democrats to withdraw from the race.
Biden, who tested positive for COVID-19 a few days ago, is currently in isolation at his residence in Delaware, where he is expected to remain for the rest of the week. In a statement released by his campaign on Friday, Biden, 81, addressed the nation: “Donald Trump’s dark vision for the future is not who we are as Americans. Together, as a party and as a country, we can and will defeat him at the ballot box.”
This declaration came a day after Trump, 78, officially accepted his party’s presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Biden emphasized his eagerness to return to the campaign trail next week. “I look forward to getting back on the campaign trail next week to continue exposing the threat of Donald Trump’s Project 2025 agenda while making the case for my own record and the vision that I have for America: one where we save our democracy, protect our rights and freedoms and create opportunity for everyone,” he stated.
The president also took the opportunity to critique Trump’s keynote speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night. “For over 90 minutes, he focused on his own grievances, with no plan to unite us and no plan to make life better for working people,” Biden remarked. “He avoided mentioning his Project 2025 agenda, but still proudly flaunted the worst of MAGA (Make America Great Again) extremism.”
The Biden-Harris campaign highlighted that despite Trump’s promises of unity and moderated rhetoric, his speech was a 90-minute showcase of his greatest hits, centered entirely on himself, attacking his enemies, airing his grievances, and inciting his base with inflammatory extremism. “Trump is still the same twice-impeached, 34-time convicted felon consumed by revenge and hellbent on seeking retribution in a second term. He did not turn a new leaf; he did not usher in a new era of civility; and he certainly did not change course,” the campaign asserted.
Biden’s diagnosis came on Wednesday, moments before he was scheduled to deliver remarks in Las Vegas, forcing him to abruptly cut his trip short and return to his beach home. The president’s illness has intensified an already contentious atmosphere within the Democratic Party. On Friday, at least ten Democratic voices joined the growing call for Biden to step down, questioning his ability to defeat Trump in the upcoming November election.
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