Almost a week after the New York Times asked President Joe Biden to step down to allow a better candidate to face Donald Trump in the November 5 race, the American president has insisted he is “staying in the race.” 

“Let me say this as clearly as I can: I’m the sitting President of the United States,” Mr Biden said in a tweet on Friday. 
“I’m the nominee of the Democratic party. I’m staying in the race.”

Following Mr Biden’s below-par performance against Mr Trump during the presidential debate last Thursday, The New York Times editorial board asked Mr Biden to step down for a better candidate to contest against the Republican presidential candidate, Mr Trump. 

The Times said, “the greatest public service Mr Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election.”
It added, “The clearest path for Democrats to defeat a candidate defined by his lies is to deal truthfully with the American public: acknowledge that Mr Biden can’t continue his race, and create a process to select someone more capable to stand in his place to defeat Mr Trump in November.”

The debate, which availed Mr Biden, 81, the opportunity to sell himself and dismiss fears and worries about his mental acuity, turned out to expose his frailties, eliciting criticism from even his party men. 

Since the debate, reports have it that in some quarters in Mr Biden’s Democratic party, there are worries about his cognitive decline vividly revealed during last week’s debate. 

Mr Biden fumbled during the debate, sounding incoherent, appearing lost and unable to articulate his thoughts at some point, raising more questions about whether he is fit for office.

Even Mr Biden admitted he was almost sleeping on stage as he debated with Mr Trump but blamed his poor performance on jet lag.

Hosted by CNN, it was a historic debate for America as it was the first to feature a sitting president and a former president. For the duo of Mr Biden and Mr Trump, it was a rematch, having debated back in the 2020 presidential election season. 

CNN’s poll on who won the debate showed 67 per cent chose Mr Trump as the winner, while 33 per cent voted Mr Biden winner of the debate.