President Joe Biden responded with a pregnant pause before eventually answering if the first lady supported his 2024 reelection bid.
The president was asked about his reelection plans during a Friday interview with MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart.
President Biden said he has not declared his candidacy yet.
“The reason I’m not making a judgement about formally running or not running is because, once I make that judgement, a whole slew of regulations kick in,” the president responded to a question about his presumed candidacy.
He added that, informally, his intention is to run again in 2024.
When Capehart asked whether Jill Biden is onboard with the bid, Biden sat silent for enough time that the interviewer prompted him to respond.
“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 replied haltingly.
The septuagenarian president is the oldest man to hold the office of U.S. president and would be 82 upon Inauguration if he was reelected in 2024. Despite that, the White House has declared the president will run for reelection in 2024.
First Lady Jill Biden apparently did not get the memo about her husband’s intention to run again. Ms. Biden said she and the president had not discussed whether he will run for a second term.
“Not yet. We’ve been a little bit too busy. So, not yet,” Ms. Biden said to NBC’s “Today” during a sit-down interview that aired in September. “But, I’m sure it will be a discussion.”
Many Democrats do not want the president to run for a second term. In a September 22 poll by Marquette University, Biden was not favored to run.
“Among all adults, majorities would like neither Biden nor Trump to run in 2024,” the poll takers said. “For Biden 28% want him to run and 72% do not, while for Trump 31% want him to run and 69% do not.”
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