President Biden on Friday told supporters at a rally in Michigan that he’s not dropping his bid because voters made him the Democratic presidential nominee, taking a jab at the press, pundits, and other Democrats.
“I’m the nominee of this party because 14 million Democrats like you voted for me in the primaries,” Biden said. “You made me the nominee, no one else. Not the press, not the pundits, not the insiders, not donors, you the voters. You decided, no one else, and I’m not going anywhere.”
The energetic crowd, which the Biden campaign said consisted of 2,000 people, chanted “Don’t you quit” and “We’ve got your back” at the beginning of his remarks. Biden insisted at the rally that he’s staying in the race and continued his remarks about the press amid ongoing reporting about the growing calls from Democratic lawmakers to drop out of the 2024 race.
“There’s so much… narrative, my campaign is falling apart, they say. I‘m the nominee of the Democratic party and the only Democrat or Republican who has beaten Donald Trump, ever. And I’m going to beat him again,” Biden said.
He said the press has been “hammering me” to boos from the crowd, which Biden responded with, “No, no, it’s okay.” He said he sometimes confuses names but “guess what, Donald Trump has gotten a free pass.”
“I guess they don’t remember that Trump called Nikki Haley Nancy Pelosi,” Biden said. “Donald, no more free passes. Today we’re going to shine a spotlight on Donald Trump. We’re going to do what the press so far hasn’t but I think they’re going to soon.”
Biden on Thursday made a couple gaffs, confusing Vice President Harris with former President Trump shortly after he mistakenly introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin” before quickly correcting himself.
Biden hit Trump over being found liable for sexual assault, highlighting that the judge in the former president’s New York case that found him liable for sexual battery and defamation said that Trump “raped her.” He also called Trump “a business fraud” and highlighted that he’s been fined for giving false information to banks.
He then bashed Trump over the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, calling it the “biggest attack” on the U.S. system of government. Trump has sought to distance himself from the conservative vision for his next administration, though many of his former staff and advisers are involved in the effort.
“I am running and we’re going to win. I’m not going to change that,” Biden told the rally.
He pointed to a new survey from Marist National Poll for NPR and PBS News that showed him beating Trump 50 to 48.
“I know him, Donald Trump is a loser,” the president said.
The crowd started chanting “Lock him up” and Biden laughed for a second before starting again.
Biden said he’s running again to finish the job, which he said the night before at his high-stakes press conference at the end of the NATO summit in Washington, D.C.
The president said that to kick off his second term in office, he would codify Roe v. Wade and sign voting rights legislation. He added, “Listen press” before he said that he will make “the rich pay their fair share” in order to expand and strengthen Social Security and Medicare.
Biden visited the pivotal swing state of Michigan, which he won in 2020, as he is defending his decision to stay in the 2024 race.
He started his speech by calling out a sign at the rally that read, “Motown is Joetown,” noting that his father sold automobiles and calling out the support he has received from the United Auto Workers.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) was not at the rally; she kicked off a book tour this week. But, she has been making the rounds in recent days to tout her support for the president and is a national co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign.
“It’s always great to have President @JoeBiden in Detroit! Motor City is all in for Biden-Harris,” Whitmer posted on X earlier on Friday.
Before the rally, Biden joined Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) at a restaurant in Northville, Mich., for a campaign event, during which he told backers, “I promise you, I’m OK.”
Dingell traveled with the president from Washington to Michigan and briefed reporters on the plane on the trip. Michigan Democratic Reps. Haley Stevens and Shri Thanedar also traveled with Biden aboard Air Force One, as well as AFL-CIO president Liz Schuler.
Biden was greeted when he landed at the Detroit airport by Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Michigan House of Representatives Speaker Joe Tate, former Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-Mich.), as well as actor Octavia Spencer.