MSNBC's Joe Scarborough defended President Joe Biden amidst growing calls for his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race.
Scarborough, a former Florida representative and host of MSNBC's Morning Joe, appeared to back-track on his previous criticism of Biden's debate performance and threw support behind the president during a Monday broadcast of his show. Scarborough took issue with "media elites and billionaire donors … [that] think that they can substitute their judgment for the judgment of millions of Democratic primary voters.”
"It may happen. And this isn’t about what ought to be, this is about what is," Scarborough said. "Joe Biden has a fired up, angry Democratic base in parts, and he’s gotten a lot of elites putting him in a position where he can look strong, staring them down." Joe Scarborough Blasts ‘Media Elite’ for Pressuring Biden to Drop Out — Just 10 Days After He Called for a Change https://t.co/zQcP6iYEps
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) July 8, 2024
Later in the program, Biden called in and expressed frustration with those encouraging him to bow out of the presidential race.
“I had a bad night,” Biden said, claiming he was ill during the debate. “But the fact of the matter is … look at what I’m doing, I mean, let me put it this way. If there was something that was wrong that night, it’s not like it’s ... that’s one night and goes away, that’s why I’ve been out. I’ve been testing myself everywhere I go. Going out and making the case. The night of that debate I went out, I was out until two o’clock in the morning. That very night! That very night! It drives me nuts people talking about this!”
“I’m getting so frustrated by the elites in the party. … They know so much more,” Biden added. “If any of these guys don’t think I should run, run against me. Go ahead. Announce for president — challenge me at the convention!”
During a broadcast of Morning Joe following last month's debate, the MSNBC host said he feared a second Trump term was imminent "unless things changed."
“He couldn’t fact-check anything Donald Trump said. Not only that, but he missed one layup after another," Scarborough said at the time. "And I think what surprised me, and what surprised a lot of people very close to Joe Biden, is the fact that this man always rises to the occasion.”
Scarborough has previously touted Biden's mental capabilities, saying the president was "better than he’s ever been."
"Eff you if you can't handle the truth," the MSNBC host declared during a March broadcast of his program. "This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever."
The MSNBC host also claimed Biden was "sharper" than former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy in early June.
Biden also issued a letter to Congress on Monday vowing to see the race through the November election.
"Despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," Biden wrote.
“Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us,” he continued. “It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump.”
