President Biden in a new interview said he intends to run for re-election but has not yet made a “firm decision.”
“Look, my intention as I said to begin with is that I would run again,” Biden said in an interview with “60 Minutes” that aired Sunday. “But it’s just an intention. But is it a firm decision that I run again? That remains to be seen.”
Biden and his advisers have repeatedly said he intends to run in 2024, when he would be 81 years old. They have refrained from definitively saying Biden will seek re-election, something Biden said is due in part to campaign finance laws that would require him to disclose donors and cap his fundraising once he officially declares his candidacy.
“I’m a great respecter of fate. And so, what I’m doing is I’m doing my job. I’m gonna do that job. And within the timeframe that makes sense after this next election cycle here, going into next year, make a judgment on what to do,” Biden said.
Speculation has swirled about whether Biden would seek a second term dating back to when he first won election. He indicated during the 2020 campaign that he was seeking to be a bridge to the next generation of Democratic Party leaders, and a dip in his approval ratings this year in the face of rampant inflation has only fueled talk about whether he should step aside in 2024.
Even as his approval ratings have rebounded after a productive August, the questions have persisted about his future plans.
But Biden in his interview with “60 Minutes” pushed back on concerns about his fitness for the job.
“Watch me. If you think I don’t have the energy level or the mental acuity, then, you know, that’s one thing. It’s another thing, you just watch and, you know, keep my schedule. Do what I’m doing,” Biden said.
“I respect the fact that people would say, you know, ‘You’re old,’” Biden continued. “And — but I think it relates to how much energy you have, and whether or not the job you’re doing is one consistent with what any person of any age would be able to do.”