Biden stands firm on campaign trail amid mounting pressure to step aside

• Biden rejects speculation of quitting the US presidential race.
• “I am running and we’re going to win!,” Biden tells supporters. 
• Urges media to focus on Trump’s “lies” and on “Project 2025”.

United States President Joe Biden once again refused to back out of the presidential race despite Democrats increasingly urging him to step aside following a disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump.

While addressing a rally in Michigan on Friday, Biden, 81, rejected speculation of quitting the US presidential race and turned the spotlight yet again on his rival Trump, 78.

“There’s been a lot of speculation lately. What’s Joe Biden going to do, is he going to stay in the race, is he going to drop out?” Biden told supporters in the city of Detroit, to chants of “Don’t you quit!”

“Here’s my answer: I am running and we’re going to win! I’m not going to change that,” Biden said.

Despite growing opposition, a defiant Biden came out fighting at a high-stakes press conference at a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) summit in Washington on Thursday.

In the wake of the June 27 debate debacle, 19 Democratic lawmakers have now called on him to bow out of the race due to concerns over his health and mental acuity, AFP reported.

‘Over my dead body’

At the Detroit rally, Biden tried to brush off the blunders from the summit which include referring to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump” and mixing up Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with Russian strongman Vladimir Putin.

In scenes more reminiscent of rallies by his rival where the press are often abused, reporters in Detroit were booed after Biden addressed them and said they were “hammering me because I sometimes confuse names.”

Biden then urged the media to focus on Trump’s “lies” and on “Project 2025,” a blueprint for power by hardline conservatives that Democrats have said the former president would implement.

Trump denies he is involved with the program.

“Americans want a president not a dictator,” Biden said to cheers. Referring to Trump’s comment that he would only be a dictator on “day one” of his presidency, Biden said he would let that happen “over my dead body.”