Biden to Hold Rare Solo News Conference to Demonstrate Readiness for Campaign
President Biden addresses the audience at a NATO 75th anniversary event at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., on July 9.
President Biden is set to face another high-profile public test of his sharpness as he takes questions from reporters on Thursday, a crucial moment as he campaigns for a second term.
This comes as Biden concludes a summit of NATO leaders in Washington, D.C., an event his campaign had hoped would highlight his leadership on the global stage. Instead, it has been overshadowed by doubts about his readiness for a grueling campaign and another four years in office — doubts voiced by elected Democrats, donors, and voters.
These questions have intensified since Biden's poor performance in the June 27 debate against former President Donald Trump. Biden struggled to answer questions during the debate, attributing his difficulties to a cold, lingering jet lag, overpreparation, and interruptions from Trump. He dismissed it as just one bad night, but many in his party remain unconvinced.
Since then, Biden and his team have been working to demonstrate his stamina and mental acuity for the campaign. They've added campaign stops in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. He completed a full television interview on ABC News, has another scheduled for Monday with NBC, and called into MSNBC's Morning Joe this week as well.
Biden told his party to stop talking about whether he should quit because he's staying in
Biden has become resolute, asserting to his party that he is committed to staying in the race and urging an end to discussions about his potential withdrawal. He has garnered strong support from some key figures within the party, yet others have voiced concerns about his chances against Trump.
Notably, actor George Clooney, who recently hosted a high-profile fundraiser for Biden in Los Angeles, penned an op-ed in The New York Times advocating for Democrats to select a different candidate.
Biden's last formal solo press conference was in November 2023
Biden rarely holds formal solo press conferences. His last one took place in November 2023 in California, following his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Martha Joynt Kumar, a political science professor emeritus from Towson University, has extensively studied the interactions between the press corps and presidents. She describes solo press conferences, particularly those held at the White House, as the "crown jewel of presidential interchanges" because they often involve rigorous questioning and test a president’s grasp of policy and politics.
According to her detailed records, which date back to the Reagan administration, Biden has held fewer press conferences at this point in his presidency compared to his predecessors.
"I think it's something that has not benefited [Biden]," Kumar said, emphasizing that more press conferences would have allowed the public to better assess "the measure of the president" well before the June debate.
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