President Joe Biden was briefly lost for words when asked if First Lady Jill Biden would back him running for president again.
The president was asked about his re-election plans during an interview with MSNBC, and while he quickly pointed out he has not officially decided whether he will throw his hat in the ring, it is currently his intention to run again in 2024. However, when the interviewer asked whether Jill is onboard with the bid, Biden sat in a seemingly stunned silence for a few moments.
“I have not made that formal decision but it’s my intention,” Biden told MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart, “to run again and we’ll have time to make that decision.”
BIDEN SAYS DECISION ON 2024 REELECTION BID TO COME AFTER MIDTERM ELECTIONS
“Dr. Biden is for it?” Capehart quipped, prompting the extended silence from Biden. “Mr. President —,” he then follow up when the president appeared to space out.
“Dr. Biden thinks that — my wife thinks that — that we’re doing something very important and that I shouldn’t walk away from it,” Biden eventually replied.
BIDEN: “It’s my intention to run again.”
Q: “Dr. Biden is for it?”
BIDEN: *silence*
Q: “Mr. President?”
BIDEN: “Dr. Biden thinks that uh, my wife thinks that uh, that I uh, that, that we’re, that we’re doing something very important.”
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 21, 2022
The White House has long insisted that he plans to run again in 2024 and Biden recently explained that an official decision will come after the midterm elections. However, the first lady appears to have been less committed on the matter.
She recently told NBC that she has not discussed a second run with her husband.
“Not yet. We’ve been a little bit too busy. So, not yet,” she told the news outlet last month. But, I’m sure it will be a discussion.”
At 79, Biden is the oldest president in United States history. He would be 86 years old at the end of a hypothetical second term should he win the presidency again in 2024. The president has been dogged by questions about his age.
Last month, for example, he had a mishap in which he called out for the late Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN), during an event, which raised fresh questions about his age from critics. The White House later defended the episode, by insisting she was “top of mind” for the former president at the event.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
During a visit to the White House last month, Biden reportedly informed Rev. Al Sharpton that he will run for re-election.
Meanwhile, Biden’s 2020 foe, former President Donald Trump has been speculated to enter the fray, setting the stage for a possible rematch. Trump previously told New York Magazine that his mind has already been made up about 2024 and that he is waiting to make the announcement. Trump is 76.
