'Candidate Qualification Test' Biden Press Conference, Local Evaluations Say... "Mix of Policy Strengths and Mistakes"

On the last day of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit on the 11th (local time) in Washington DC, U.S. President Joe Biden's solo press conference was essentially a 'candidate qualification test' ahead of the upcoming November presidential election. Since last month's first televised debate, calls for Biden's withdrawal from the race have been growing stronger. Locally, the approximately one-hour-long press conference was seen as having no mistakes severe enough to make withdrawal the dominant opinion, but it also failed to overturn that narrative.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) diagnosed Biden's press conference as "a mix of policy strengths and mistakes." The outlet noted, "Mistakes such as calling Vice President Kamala Harris 'Vice President Trump' could influence many voters," but also analyzed that "President Biden was strong in his foreign policy evaluation." In conclusion, the WSJ summarized that there were many moments confirming Biden's strength to push him to the brink, but there were also enough mistakes to dispel all concerns surrounding him.

U.S. CNN described the event as "similar to the Rorschach test (a projective psychological test)," stating, "Those who want President Biden to resign can point to noticeable verbal mistakes, while his supporters will highlight his adept responses to various foreign policy questions." The New York Times (NYT) also reported, "(Biden sometimes wavered but showed insight in foreign policy)" and "(He did not repeat the worst moments like the presidential TV debate two weeks ago that ignited calls for his withdrawal)."

The political media outlet Politico reported, "Even after the press conference, at least two Democratic lawmakers demanded President Biden's resignation," adding, "While the press conference produced stable results, it failed to reassure anxious Democrats." The outlet stated, "Biden's problems are not over yet," and "painful questions (about replacing the presidential candidate) are prolonging across the entire Democratic Party."

Evaluations within the Democratic Party were somewhat divided. Democratic Representative Steve Cohen called the press conference "successful," saying, "He should persuade many people to stay in the presidential race." An anonymous Democratic lawmaker told Politico, "It was 100 times better than what he showed in the debate," adding, "If this had been the debate, nothing would have happened in the past two weeks." On the other hand, Democratic Representative Jim Himes, who called for Biden's resignation immediately after the press conference, assessed, "It was not a game-changer enough to break the calls for withdrawal." Another Democratic lawmaker remarked, "Overall, he sounded consistent," but criticized, "Verbal slips about President Putin and Vice President Trump overshadowed the rest of the press conference."

The press conference was regarded as a critical turning point in deciding President Biden's future as the Democratic presidential candidate. Facing a withdrawal crisis since last month's first televised debate, Biden aimed to demonstrate his resilience and dispel concerns about his age and cognitive decline through an unscripted press conference. The press conference, which started about an hour later than scheduled, lasted approximately one hour, with about 40 minutes dedicated to Q&A with reporters.

However, about two hours before the press conference, Biden was caught in a fatal verbal slip. At a Ukraine-related event held just before, he introduced President Zelenskyy by saying, "I want to hand over this stage to the Ukrainian president who has as much courage as decisiveness. Please welcome President Putin." The video was simultaneously broadcast on prime-time news by major U.S. networks such as ABC, CBS, and NBC.

Additionally, during the press conference, Biden made a mistake confusing Vice President Kamala Harris with former President Trump. When asked if he was concerned whether Harris could defeat former President Trump if she ran as a presidential candidate, he replied, "If I thought she was not qualified to be president, I wouldn't have chosen 'Vice President Trump' as vice president." Immediately after, former President Trump mocked the mistake in a post on Truth Social, saying, "Well done, Joe (Biden)," to which Biden responded on Twitter, "I know the difference. One is a prosecutor, and the other is a criminal."

Bloomberg News described it as "a series of noticeable mistakes," reporting that "concerns about his age and insight have resurfaced, and online ridicule continues."

Originally, President Zelenskyy's press conference was scheduled to follow the Ukraine event but was canceled. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, when asked about Biden's mistake, avoided a direct answer and only said, "I hope President Biden continues to strongly support Ukraine." French President Emmanuel Macron defended Biden, saying, "Anyone can make verbal slips."