Biden confuses Harris for Trump, Zelensky for Putin amid re-election doubts
- The US president mistook two of his biggest allies for his greatest enemies at a vital moment in his campaign
US President Joe Biden vowed he would remain in the 2024 presidential race, but two critical mistakes in the span of two hours deepened concerns about his mental acuity that threaten his campaign.
Biden, 81, saw the culmination of this week’s Nato summit as a chance to reassure allies who for two weeks had fretted about his abilities following his first debate performance against Donald Trump.
Over a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a nearly hour-long news conference, he spoke confidently on a range of complex issues from the tax code and trade policy to Russia and the Israel-Gaza war.
But with virtually no margin for error, Biden mistook two of his biggest allies for his greatest enemies.
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US President Biden confuses Harris for Trump, Zelensky for Putin amid campaign scrutiny
The president drew gasps – and instant mockery online – when he mistakenly introduced Zelensky as Russian President Vladimir Putin at an event in the late afternoon.
Then, at the opening of the press conference, he fumbled a question about Vice-President Kamala Harris by saying he “wouldn’t have picked Vice-President Trump to be vice-president” if he did not have confidence in her.