Biden Draws Mixed Reviews for Rare Solo Press Conference

President Joe Biden fielded questions from reporters at a press conference Thursday night amid intense scrutiny over his remaining in the presidential race.

Key Details: Towards the beginning of the press conference – a rare, unscripted solo appearance for the president – Biden mistakenly referred to Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump.” As many reporters pressed him with incisive questions about his campaign’s troubles with allies and voters, Biden strongly reaffirmed his commitment to stay in the race.

Biden’s Missteps Widely Covered: Outlets from across the spectrum prominently highlighted the Harris-Trump blunder; many also tied it to a moment earlier in the day when he confused Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Reuters (Center bias) called some of Biden’s answers “garbled,” and CNBC (Center) said he “appeared to lose his train of thought several times.” New York Times (Lean Left) and National Review News (Lean Right) both noted that Biden began the press conference reading prepared remarks from a teleprompter. New York Post (Lean Right) said “Biden spoke with a soft, raspy voice, frequently paused to cough, and at points lost his train of thought” in the “error-laden” performance.

Some Mixed Reviews From the Left: The Times called Biden’s answers “sometimes shaky,” but said he “demonstrated a command of foreign policy.” CNN (Lean Left) called Biden’s performance  “a Rorschach test for nervous Democrats” and predicted that it “likely won’t change many minds.”