Joe Biden regrets ‘bullseye’ comment on Donald Trump as he promises new debate

The US President has broadly defended his attacks on his rival, despite a pushback after the weekend shooting, and vowed he won’t ‘screw up’ at the next debate | WATCH

Joe Biden talks with NBC’s Lester Holt.

US President Joe Biden accepted it was a “mistake” to call for former president Donald Trump to be put “in a bullseye” days before the attempted assassination attempt and committed to another debate with Mr Trump in September despite his June “screw-up”.

In Mr Biden’s interview with NBC broadcast today, the President however seemed to be undeterred after having called Mr Trump an “existential threat” to American democracy.

“The truth of the matter was, I guess I was talking about – at the time was – there’s very little focus on Trump’s agenda,” Mr Biden said.

“It was a mistake to use the word [bullseye] … I meant to focus on it, to focus on what he’s doing, focus on his policies, focus on the number of lies he told in the debate.

“I’m not the guy that said I want to be a dictator on day one, I’m not the guy that refused to accept the outcome of the election, I’m not the guy who said they wouldn’t accept the outcome of this election automatically. You can’t only love your country when you win.”

“How do you talk about the threat to democracy – which is real – when a president says things like he says?” Mr Biden asked.

“Do you just not say something because it may incite somebody? Look, I’m not engaged in that rhetoric.

“Now, my opponent is engaged in that rhetoric. He talks about how it’ll be a ‘bloodbath’ when he loses, talking about how he’s going to – I guess – suspend the sentences of all those who were arrested and sentenced to go to jail because of what happened in the Capitol.”

Mr Biden defended his decision to remain as the Democrat’s nominee for the US presidential election and downplayed concerns he can win the race to the White House.

Since his faltering debate performance, the US President has fended off calls among Democrats for him to stand aside over concerns for his mental acuity in his advanced age.

Mr Biden repeated that he wasn’t leaving the race despite calls from some Democratic leaders.

“I’m old, but I’m only three years older than Trump, number one. And number two, my mental acuity has been pretty damn good,” Mr Biden said.

“I’ve gotten more done than any president has in a long time in three-and-a-half years. I’m willing to be judged on that.”

Mr Biden also acknowledged the concerns with his age.

“I understand why people say, ‘God, he’s 81-years-old. Whoa. What’s he gonna be when he’s 83-years-old, 84 years?’ It’s a legitimate question to ask.”

Mr Biden has admitted he “screwed up” in his debate performance late last month.

“I had a bad night. I wasn’t feeling well at all. And I screwed up,” Mr Biden told NBC.

“Why don’t you ever talk about the 18 to 20 lies he told? Why don’t the press ever talk about that?”

Asked what would happen if he had another disappointing debate performance in his rematch with Mr Trump in September, Mr Biden dismissed the question.

“I don’t plan to have another performance like that,” he said.

Mr Biden also spoke about his phone call with Mr Trump in the hours after his attempted assassination, saying it was “very cordial”.

“I told him how concerned I was and wanted to make sure I knew how he was actually doing,” Mr Biden said.

“He sounded good, he said he was fine and he thanked me for calling him. I told him he was literally in the prayers of Jill and me, and that I hope his whole family is weathering this.”

In an earlier interview with the New York Post, Mr Trump said the call with Mr Biden was “very nice” and signalled the tone of debate between the pair should be less aggressive in the months prior to the election.

Today’s is the second major interview President Biden has sat down for since his disastrous debate performance three weeks ago.

Biden says documents case dismissal ‘specious’

Mr Biden voiced his disagreement with the dismissal of the classified documents case against former president Donald Trump, after a Florida Court ruled that the prosecutor leading the case was unlawfully appointed by US Attorney General Merrick Garland.

“I’m not surprised,” Mr Biden said in a lengthy interview with NBC.

“It comes from the immunity decision the Supreme Court had ruled on and Clarence Thomas, in his dissent, said that independent prosecutors appointed by the Attorney General aren’t legit. That’s the basis on which this judge moved to dismiss,” he said.

“The basis upon which the case was thrown out, I find specious, because I don’t agree with Clarence Thomas’ dissent and or the Supreme Court decision on immunity,” he said.

Justice Thomas’ opinion was in agreement with the majority of the Supreme Court bench which granted Mr Trump broad immunity.

Justice Thomas’s opinion however questioned whether the prosecutor’s appointment was lawful.

President expresses confidence in Secret Service

Mr Biden says he feels safe with the US Secret Service despite widespread accusations that the agency has failed in its responsibilities after an assassination attempt on Mr Trump.

“I feel safe with the Secret Service,” Mr Biden told NBC.

“What we did see was the Secret Service who responded, risked their lives. They were ready to give their lives to the president.”

But Mr Biden said there was an “open question” as to whether the attack on Mr Trump should have been anticipated.

“The question is should they have anticipated what happened? Should they have done what they needed to do to prevent this from happening? That’s a question – that’s an open question,” he said.

Mr Biden praised the efforts of local law enforcement officials who also helped protect the President.

“There’s a major piece of this [that] relates to domestic, local law enforcement. They play a large role.”

Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle has refused to resign from her role but said the security lapse was “unacceptable”.

In her first interview since the shooting, Ms Cheatle told US ABC News that the Saturday shooting was an event that “should never have happened”.

“The Secret Service is responsible for the protection of the former president,” she said.

“The buck stops with me. I am the director of the Secret Service.

“It was unacceptable and it’s something that should never happen again.”

Campaign links fund-raising to Vance

The campaign for Mr Biden has launched a fundraising bid after Mr Trump announced Ohio senator JD Vance as his running mate.

“How does a guy who used to say that Donald Trump and his policies were ‘reprehensible,’ become Donald Trump’s running mate? Through years of being a rubber-stamp for Donald Trump’s extreme, MAGA agenda,” the appeal says.

“You might even say he’s the poster child for Project 2025,” it read, referring to a controversial legislative agenda organised by conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation, which Mr Trump himself has distanced himself from.

Mr Biden’s running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris, also encouraged voters to pitch in.

“J.D. Vance might be Donald Trump’s running mate. But, with the help of supporters like you, he won’t be the next vice president of the United States,” she wrote.

Mr Biden said in his NBC interview the Vance announcement was “not unusual”.

“He’s going to surround himself with people who agree completely with him,” the President said.

Mr Biden also pointed to previous criticism Senator Vance had made of Mr Trump, encouraging viewers to “go back and listen” to what he had said.