President Joe Biden made his first major appearance since his panic-inspiring debate performance Monday to give brief remarks on the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision that was released earlier in the day.
Biden spoke for five minutes, from a teleprompter, on the court finding that presidents have immunity from criminal prosecution for “official acts” taken in office. After Biden criticized the decision, calling it a “dangerous precedent,” he quickly left without taking a single question as reporters shouted inquiries his way. (RELATED: Panicked Dems Scramble For Biden Replacement After ‘Disaster’ Debate Performance)
“Mr. President, will you drop out of the race?” one reporter can be heard shouting. Another seemingly asked how he can assure Democrats that he is the best man to defeat former President Donald Trump.
“There are no kings in America. Each, each of us is equal before the law,” Biden said. “No one, no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States.”
“With today’s Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity, that fundamentally changed, for all, for all practical purposes, today’s decision almost certainly means that there are virtually no limits on what the president can do,” he continued. “This is a fundamentally new principle, and it’s a dangerous precedent, because the power of the office will no longer be constrained by the law, even including the Supreme Court of the United States — the only limits will be self-imposed by the president alone.”
Biden’s Monday speech was his first major appearance since scores of Democrats began calling for him to drop out of the presidential race. The calls began just thirty minutes after Biden took the debate stage last Thursday night and began stumbling over answers and sounding confused.
Biden malfunctions, Jake Tapper saves him pic.twitter.com/oUkv5vqKeR
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) June 28, 2024
As the Biden campaign did damage control, the president appeared at campaign events over the weekend and briefly addressed his debate performance to donors.
“I know I’m not a young man. I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but I know what I do know — I know how to tell the truth,” Biden said at a North Carolina rally on Friday.
The president later admitted at a Saturday rally that he knew it wasn’t his best debate and understood the “concern.”
Biden and his family gathered at Camp David over the weekend to reportedly discuss his presidential bid. After the weekend, “the entire family is united” and the president’s son, Hunter Biden, is pushing the hardest for his dad to stay in the race, sources close to the situation told the New York Times.
“I know I will respect the limits of the presidential powers I have for three and a half years, but any president including Donald Trump, will now be free to ignore the law. I concur with Justice Sotomayor’s dissent today. Here’s what she said: she said ‘in every use of official power, the president is now a king above the law. With fear for our democracy, I dissent.’ End of quote. So should the American people dissent — I dissent,” Biden concluded.
BIDEN: “I know I will respect the limits of the presidential power as I have for 3.5 years.”
ALSO BIDEN: “The Supreme Court blocked it (student loan scheme) but that didn’t stop me.”
If he’s breathing he’s lying. pic.twitter.com/zJv7LW9ny1
— L A R R Y (@LarryOConnor) July 2, 2024
Critics rushed to point out that Biden himself usurped the Supreme Court by erasing billions of dollars in student loan debt during his term despite the court ruling that he lacked the power to do so.
“The Supreme Court blocked it, but that didn’t stop me,” he once said of his loan forgiveness plans.
