President Joe Biden’s first presser since his lackluster debate performance has received mixed reviews so far.
While there were no glaring flubs or stutters (save Vice President Trump), the president’s showing Thursday did not sway the public completely. After a week of some of the president’s closest confidants calling for him to step away from the nation’s top office, the president remained firm in his decision to “defeat Donald Trump.”
The former president among others criticized the president’s “big boy press conference,” with Trump even saying the president has “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
Others praised Biden for his composure and proficiency on foreign policy issues, a skill Biden was often lauded for as a senator, saying he was “in his element.” However, this did not excuse the president’s fumble earlier in the day, calling Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President Putin.
Not all democratic leaders were so impressed. One anti-Trump strategist told TheWrap: “this cannot continue.”
The press conference started 57 minutes after the announced time of 6:30 p.m. ET and lasted about an hour.
Commentator Charlotte Clymer was a fan and called the press conference “devastating for his critics.”
Bad news for many pundits and reporters: this has been a great presser for Pres. Biden. His answers have been deeply informed, nuanced, and assertive. He sounds like a commander-in-chief who can see the whole board and knows the right moves. Devastating for his critics.
— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) July 12, 2024
Democratic strategist Ameshia Cross was unsurprisingly pro as well, remarking “Biden is at his best on a world stage & his foreign policy chops are unmatched and decades deep
Yall should've known you had @JoeBiden in his element w/ a presser at the NATO conference. He was a foreign policy giant in the Senate , that's why Obama chose him as his VP. Biden is at his best on a world stage & his foreign policy chops are unmatched and decades deep
— Ameshia Cross (@AmeshiaCross) July 12, 2024
Read on for other responses.
Don Jr over on Rumble is praising Biden's performance, saying he's "doing OK" and "he could stay in if he wanted to. He's not too bad."
— David Gilbert (@daithaigilbert) July 11, 2024
This lines up with the narrative that the Trump campaign wants Biden to stay in because it has a strategy to beat him but Kamala Harris.
What did he just say? 😳 pic.twitter.com/sQCcpMrlB2
— Russell Brand (@rustyrockets) July 11, 2024
Honestly let these two just settle this thing on the golf course. https://t.co/hFyO4rz2iR
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) July 11, 2024
My main takeaway from this press conference is that President Biden and Vice President Trump have done a marvelous job supporting President Putin of Ukraine.
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) July 11, 2024
Biden brings out his creepy whisper before Karine Jean-Pierre desperately interjects to end the press conference pic.twitter.com/aYRle8535N
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 12, 2024
ABC has stayed with Biden, delaying the start of the ESPYs…
— Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) July 12, 2024
Everyone who is complaining Biden is going on too long is unserious. This man is fighting for his political life anything less than a lengthy and substantive presser wouldn’t have been acceptable.
— Symone D. Sanders Townsend (@SymoneDSanders) July 12, 2024
Maddow: President Biden showed a startlingly impressive command of the issues at his press conference. He is not only strong on foreign policy, he is just just fundamentally right on foreign policy in the way that he talks about it. It just shows you he is a master of the foreign… pic.twitter.com/gHhernZ7A6
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) July 12, 2024
I'm not sure this is any worse than any other Biden press conference over the past year or two. These are real answers, delivered kinda poorly, but that's how he is. Underscores the Kobayashi Maru dilemma that he's able to do the job, but might not be able to carry a campaign.
— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) July 12, 2024
