President Joe Biden was in good spirits as he returned to The View for his 10th appearance on the ABC daytime program and first live TV interview since he left the White House.
The former commander-in-chief was brought out early in the show for a solo interview before he was joined by his wife, former first lady Dr. Jill Biden. And the show devoted its full hour to its interview with the Bidens.
President Biden was peppered by questions about the 2024 presidential election, which saw the president drop out in July after a poor performance at a late June debate with then-Republican candidate Donald Trump led to growing calls for him to end his reelection bid. He endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic candidate and she won the support to become the Democratic nominee. But Harris ended up losing the election to Trump, who won all seven swing states.
When asked if he was surprised by the outcome, Biden said he wasn’t not because Harris isn’t qualified to be president — she is qualified to be president, he insisted. But he blamed misogyny and negative campaigning by the Trump team for Harris’ loss.
“They went the sexist route — this is a woman, this and that,” Biden said. “I’ve never seen such a successful and consistent campaign undercutting the notion that a woman of color couldn’t win.”
Biden added that he speaks to Harris “frequently” and has sought his opinion (“not going to tell you what it is”) and said she’s got a “difficult decision” about her political future, as she’s been reportedly pondering a run for California governor but is also seen as a potential 2028 presidential candidate.
“I hope she stays fully engaged; I think she’s first rate,” Biden said of Harris while adding that there are “other great candidates” in the Democratic party, leaving him “optimistic about the future not pessimistic.”
Still, Biden continues to maintain, as he told USA Today shortly after the election, that he would’ve beaten Trump, highlighting how though Trump won he received a smaller popular vote total than the more than 80 million people who voted for Biden in 2020. “A lot of people didn’t show up,” Biden said, referring to the 2024 voter turnout.
When asked about his late exit from the 2024 presidential race and whether that hampered Harris’ campaign, Biden dismissed that argument saying that Harris was with him “in every decision we made,” touting his administration’s legislative and economic achievements and how “she was every single part of it.”
“It was a very tough year, but look what happened in the meantime,” he said in part.
As for Trump, when asked why the president, who keeps invoking Biden’s name, can’t keep talking about him, Biden was quick to say it was “because I beat him,” adding quietly, “I’m used to dealing with bullies.”
Still Biden said he “takes responsiblity” for Trump’s re-election.
“I was in charge and he won,” he said, going on to talk about the border legislation that Democrats have said Trump scuttled.
More to come.