ADVERTISEMENT

Biden Won't Commit to Serving Only One Term

April 26, 2019

Former Vice President Joe Biden is seeking the White House in 2020, and again in 2024 if he's elected, he told The View on Friday.

On the ABC talk show, the freshly declared 2020 Democratic candidate addressed concerns about his age. If he defeated President Donald Trump, he would be 78 when he took office in 2021, making him the oldest president ever.

"Would you do one term?" co-host Abby Huntsman asked.

"No," Biden said. "Let me put it this way ... I think it's important for people. It's a legitimate question to ask about my age ... Hopefully I can demonstrate not only with age has come wisdom and experience that make things a lot better, but that's for you all to decide."

If Biden served until 2029, he would be 86 years old when he left office.

Trump was the oldest president ever elected when he won in 2016 at age 70, and he told reporters he was "vibrant" compared to Biden, who is four years his senior.

"If he looks young and vibrant compared to me, I should probably go home," Biden said in response. "Everyone knows who Donald Trump is, and the best way to judge me is to watch. See if I have the energy and the capacity. It's a show-me business."

Trump called him "Sleepy Joe" in a tweet welcoming him to the primary race Thursday and questioned his intelligence, calling it "long in doubt."

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1121388967444799488

Biden said it was the first time he'd been referenced that way and touted his views and accomplishments in the Senate, such as writing the Violence Against Women Act.

Although he didn't officially declare his candidacy until Thursday, Biden has consistently led early polling thanks to his name recognition and popularity within the party. However, he has also been put on his back foot with questions about his interactions with women, his handling of Anita Hill's testimony during the Clarence Thomas confirmation process, and his support for criminal justice reform in the 1990s that is now reviled on the left.