A newly installed top British government official has a history of anti-Israel, pro-Gaza sentiments that could impact how the UK’s new ruling Labour Party will approach Israel’s war with Hamas.

As early as March, Secretary of State for Justice Shabana Mahmood called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and has accused Israel of killing innocent civilians. But pro-Palestinian Muslim voters have nonetheless questioned her commitment to their cause.

‘I have always supported a diplomatic process to stop the killing of innocent civilians, get humanitarian aid in and get the hostages out,’ Mahmoud wrote in a March letter to constituents. ‘But it is clear that diplomatic processes have not made sufficient progress. The conduct of this war has been intolerable, with a disproportionate level of attacks on innocent people that has rightly been the deliberations in international courts.’

Mahmood won reelection in her constituency of Birmingham Ladywood, against a pro-Palestine Independent candidate Akmed Yakoob. She has faced criticism from the Muslim community for abstaining on a Gaza ceasefire vote in November and her refusal to resign from the shadow cabinet over her party’s support for Israel. 

As a Muslim woman and representative from a heavily Muslim city – the 2021 census found 29.9% of Birmingham’s residents identify as Muslim – Mahmood has kept atop the issue.

She acknowledged in February that the party had lost the trust of Muslim voters in Britain due to Labour’s support for Israel, Middle East Eye reported. Later that month, she signed and backed a new bill calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. 

While the party has shown strong support for Israel, Mahmood’s own views have run counter to that. In 2014, she posted on Twitter urging people to gather at a demonstration outside a Sainsbury grocery store in Birmingham City Center to support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, also posting ‘#FreePalestine.’  

Mahmood also wrote to her constituents shortly after the Oct. 7 attack to stress her record as a ‘life-time supporter of the rights of Palestinians,’ but she denounced the Hamas attack and insisted that ‘international humanitarian laws’ must be followed ‘at all times.’ 

Labour swept into power with a historic victory, securing the second-largest majority in Parliament after Tony Blair’s record-breaking win in 1997. However, the party’s win comes on the back of some faulty numbers – namely record-low turnout and the fact that the ruling Conservative party had to face split votes with the more right-wing Reform UK Party. 

The Conservatives lost more than 200 seats and ended up securing just 121 seats as the main opposition to Labour. The Liberal-Democrats (LibDems) secured 72 seats, marking the biggest win for a third party in over 100 years. 

Now Labour has to govern, and one of the chief issues still at the heart of British politics is the Gaza question: Muslim voters en masse abandoned Labour, voting for Independent candidates who were Labour rebels running against Labour candidates due to their stances on Israel and Gaza. 

Labour candidate Jonathan Ashworth lost to pro-Palestine independent candidate Shockat Adam, marking one of the biggest upsets in the election, according to The Guardian. Adam won by just 979 votes. 

Ashworth had held his seat since 2011 and served as shadow paymaster general, a post he would have taken in the official cabinet if he had won his race. Instead, the residents of Leicester South rejected him for a candidate who has spoken out against Israel and dedicated his victory to ‘The people of Gaza,’ Sky News reported. 

Districts with a 20% or greater Muslim population saw a 23-point drop in support for Labour, leading to five seats lost in the landslide victory, including in Birmingham districts and Blackburn. In areas with significant Muslim populations – but below the 20% threshold – Labour candidates notched very narrow wins. 

Some in the party have not hidden their dissatisfaction with the party’s stance on Gaza, including new British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who told the BBC that his party will ‘work with partners to seek Palestinian recognition.’ 

Polling expert Nate Silver is calling for President Biden to step down following his Friday night ABC News interview. 

The 22-minute interview with George Stephanopoulos was intended to calm the president’s critics following his disastrous debate performance last month — but Silver claimed the back-and-forth made him look even worse.

‘This is a pretty incoherent answer including a non-sequitur [complaining] about a New York Times poll, which he incorrectly claims had him down 10 points before the debate (it was actually 3 or 4 points, depending on which version you look at),’ Silver said about a clip of Biden describing how he felt throughout the debate.

Silver — who had written a morning column about Biden’s campaign earlier that Friday — claimed he had ‘wimped out’ and deleted a line urging the president to begin transitioning the campaign to Vice President Kamala Harris.

But the pollster said that following the ABC interview, he believed it was time to begin preparations for a new candidate.

‘I wimped out in today’s column and deleted a line saying he should formulate a plan to transition the presidency to Harris within 30-60 days, but I’m there now,’ Silver said. ‘Something is clearly wrong here.’

‘The most generous way to put it is that he doesn’t seem in command, and that’s an extremely hard sell when you’re Commander in Chief,’ Silver concluded — adding that he believes ‘Democrats will apply incredible amounts of pressure’ to make the president resign.

Biden claimed during his interview that his poor performance and concerning disposition was caused by a mix of fatigue and illness.

The president spent almost an entire week at Camp David in preparation for the debate following a long trip to Europe that included an event in France to honor the anniversary of D-Day.

Democratic allies continue to press Biden to step down from the 2024 presidential race, claiming he is suffering a mental decline that jeopardizes the election.

The Biden administration and lawmakers loyal to the president have rejected such claims, repeatedly telling critics that the president remains sharp and only suffered a one-time episode during the debate.

France is set to elect the right-wing National Rally (RN) as the largest party in government, yet no party may emerge with a clear majority in this tightly contested election as the second round of voting kicks off this weekend. 

The first round, which occurred June 30, resulted in just 76 of the 577 constituencies in the French National Assembly determining their representative. Any candidate who did not receive an outright majority in the first round of voting heads on to the second-round runoff, which is set for July 7.

Those few contests that concluded in the first round revealed a lot about voter sentiment and indicated trouble for the current government after RN took one-third of the vote, the most by any party.

The current government is an ‘ensemble,’ a coalition of parties, including French President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance (RE), Democratic Movement, Horizons, En Commun and the Progressive federation. Despite the assembly election results, Macron will retain his mandate as president until the 2027 election. 

Macron called the snap election after RN scored enormous success in the European Parliamentary elections in June. Polling before the first round of voting indicated RN would continue to dominate, but more recent polling ahead of the runoff indicates those returns have diminished and RN will fall short of a clear majority. 

Wednesday’s poll indicates RN will end up taking between 190 and 220 seats, but it would need 289 seats to control the assembly, according to Reuters. Additionally, its closest ally, the Republicans, are projected to win – at most – around 50 seats, ruling out some kind of right-wing coalition to take control of the assembly.

The next largest share would go to the New Popular Front alliance, which could net between 159 and 183 seats, leaving Macron’s ensemble third with around 110 to 135 seats. Macron has already ruled out making a new alliance with the left-wing party France Unbowed (LFI), according to French daily Le Figaro.

Many candidates from Macron’s alliance who reached the runoff have already stood down in an effort to focus voters and support behind the strongest non-RN candidate in any given constituency. Former French Prime Minister Edouard Phillippe told French network TF1 TV he would vote for a Communist candidate to stop RN from winning the seat. 

Macron insisted, however, that ‘withdrawing today for left-wing elected officials in the face of National Rally does not mean governing tomorrow with LFI.’

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal last month blasted LFI as equally extreme and just as dangerous to French society as RN, writing on social media platform X that ‘Insoumise France fuels the National Rally and the National Rally fuels Insoumise France.

‘They fuel hatred, fears and divisions between the French,’ Attal added. ‘On June 30 and July 7, against the extremes and for the Republic, vote!’ 

Opposition to RN stems from its roots as National Front, headed up by Marine Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie Le Pen, who was repeatedly convicted for racist and antisemitic remarks, including elements of Holocaust denial, such as when he referred to Nazi gas chambers as a ‘detail’ of history.

But Marine Le Pen has found support among some of France’s Jewish voters as antisemitism continues to grow in Europe.

Her anti-Islam views and comments, however, have raised concerns among other voters, as well. In 2017, she suggested France expel any foreigners convicted of a crime or suspected of being radicalized and said convicted extremists with dual nationality should be stripped of their French passports, Radio France Internationale reported. 

‘The measures that I want to put in place would mean that many of these people (Islamist attackers) would not have been on our territory or living freely,’ she said in an interview with BFM TV. 

In the event the votes should fall as the polls predict, the most likely outcome for France will be a hung parliament with some kind of begrudging alliance created to get a leader in place. The Conservative Party in Britain regained power from Labour in 2010 through a hung parliament alliance with the Liberal-Democrats, ultimately establishing an outright majority in the following election.

But, at that time, the Conservatives had 306 of 650 seats, making it far easier to broker such a deal. For France, RN would need support from two other parties or would need to form some kind of alliance with a direct rival. 

The government has urged voters to do what they can to continue diminishing RN’s chances of achieving control of the assembly, with Attal arguing voters had a ‘responsibility’ to block RN from victory. 

‘On Sunday evening, what’s at stake in the second round is to do everything so the extreme right does not have an absolute majority,’ Attal said during an appearance on France Inter radio as reported by Voice of America.

‘It is not nice for some French to have to block … by using a vote that they did not want to,’ he added, clarifying that he ‘did not speak about a coalition. I do not want to impose on the French a coalition they did not choose.’ 

President Biden participated in his first sit-down interview since his disastrous debate performance last week. 

He spoke on Friday to ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, commenting on his ‘bad episode,’ when it occurred to him he was performing poorly at the debate and dodging repeated questions about taking a neurological test. 

Biden’s interview aired in full for the first time Friday evening after mounting calls within the Democratic Party that Biden bow out of the race due to concerns over his age and mental acuity. Biden has vowed to remain in the race despite traditional allies and media outlets calling on him to pass the political baton to a younger Democratic contender.

Below is Biden’s full interview transcript with Stephanopoulos, as reported by ABC News:

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Mr. President, thank you for doing this.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Thank you for having me.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Let’s start with the debate. Eh, you and your team said, have said you had a bad night. But your … 

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Sure did.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But your friend Nancy Pelosi actually framed the question that I think is on the minds of millions of Americans. Was this a bad episode or the sign of a more serious condition?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: It was a bad episode. No indication of any serious condition. I was exhausted. I didn’t listen to my instincts in terms of preparing and … and a bad night.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You know, you say you were exhausted. And … and I know you’ve said that before as well, but you came … and you did have a tough month. But you came home from Europe about 11 or 12 days before the debate, spent six days in Camp David. Why wasn’t that enough rest time, enough recovery time?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Because I was sick. I was feeling terrible. Matter of fact, the docs with me, I asked if they did a COVID test because they’re trying to figure out what was wrong. They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn’t. I just had a really bad cold.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And … did you ever watch the debate afterwards?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I don’t think I did, no.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, what I’m try … what I want to get at is, what were you experiencing as you were going through the debate? Did you know how badly it was going?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Yeah, look, the whole way I prepared, nobody’s fault, mine. Nobody’s fault but mine. I, uh … I prepared what I usually would do sittin’ down as I did come back with foreign leaders or National Security Council for explicit detail. And I realized … bout partway through that, you know, all … I get quoted the New York Times had me down, at ten points before the debate, nine now, or whatever the hell it is. The fact of the matter is, what I looked at is that he also lied 28 times. I couldn’t … I mean, the way the debate ran, not– my fault, no one else’s fault, no one else’s fault.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But it seemed like you were having trouble from the first question in, even before he spoke.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, I just had a bad night. You’ve had some bad interviews once in a while. I– I can’t remember any, but I’m sure you did.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I’ve had plenty. I guess the question of– the problem is here for a lot of Americans watching is, you’ve said going back to 2020, ‘Watch me,’ to people who are concerned about your age. And, you know, 50 million Americans watched that debate. It seemed to confirm fears they already had.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, look. After that debate, I did ten major events in a row, including until 2 in the morning after the debate. I did events in North Carolina. I did events in — in in Georgia, did events like this today, large crowds, overwhelming response, no– no– no slipping. And so, I just had a bad night. I don’t know why.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And– how– how quickly did it– did it come to you that you were having that bad night?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, it came to me I was havin’ a bad night when I realized that even when I was answering a question, even though they turned his mic off, he was still shouting. And I– I let it distract me. I– I’m not blaming it on that, but I realized that I just wasn’t in control.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Part of the other concern is that– this seems to fit into a pattern of decline that has been reported on recently. New York Times had a headline on July 2, ‘Biden’s lapses are said to be increasingly common and worrisome.’ Here’s what they wrote.

‘People who’ve spent time with President Biden over the last few months or so said the lapses appear to have grown more frequent, more pronounced, and after Thursday d– Thursday’s debate, more worrisome. By many accounts, as evidenced by video footage, observation and interviews, Mr. Biden is not the same today as he was even when he took office 3½ years ago.’ Similar reporting in The Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. Are you the same man today that you were when you took office 3½ years ago?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: In terms of successes, yes. I also was the guy who put together a peace plan for the Middle East that may be comin’ to fruition. I was also the guy that expanded NATO. I was also the guy that grew the economy. All the individual things that were done were ideas I had or I fulfilled. I moved on.

And so, for example, you know, ‘We-Well, that was true then, what’s Biden done lately?’ Did you just just see today? Just announced 200,000 new jobs. We’re movin’ in the direction that no one’s ever taken on. I know you know this from days in– in– in the– in the government.

I took on Big Pharma. I beat them. No one said I could beat them. I took on all the things we said we got done, were told we couldn’t get done. And part of it is what I said when I ran was I wanted to do three things. Restore some decency to the office, restore some support for the middle class instead of trickle-down economics both from the middle out and the bottom up the way the wealthy still do fine, everyone does better, and unite the country.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But what has all that work over the last 3½ years cost you physically, mentally, emotionally?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, I– I– I just think it cost me a really bad night, bad run, but, you know, I– George. I have– I’m optimistic about this country. I don’t think we’re a country of losers that he points out. I don’t think America’s in tough shape. I think America is on the cusp of breaking through in so many incredible opportunities.

In this next term, I’m gonna make sure we gotta– straighten out the tax system. I’m gonna make sure we’re in a situation where we have healthcare for all people, where we’re in a position where we have– have child care and elder care, free up– and all these things.

One thing I’m proudest of is, remember when my economic plan was put forward? A lot of the mainstream economists said, ‘This is not gonna work.’ Guess what? We now have 16 Nobel laureates, 16 of ’em in economics, saying that ‘Biden’s next term would be a sig– enor– based on what he wants to do, enormous success.’ Trump’s plan would cause a recession and sig-nif– gi– increase inflation. I’ve made great progress, and that’s what I plan on doin’. And we can do this.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I– I– I understand that, and I’m not disputing that. What I’m asking you is– about your personal situation. Do you dispute that there have been more lapses, especially in the last several months?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Can I run the 100 in 10 flat? No. But I’m still in good shape.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Are you more frail?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: No.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I know you

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Come keep my schedule. (LAUGH)

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I know you spoke with your doctor after the debate. What did he say?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: He said he– just looked at me and said, ‘You’re exhausted.’ That’s it. I have medical doctors travel with me everywhere. Every president does, as you know. Medical doctors, some of the best in the world, travel with me everywhere I go. I have an ongoing assessment of what I’m doin’, and they don’t hesitate to tell me if they think there’s something wrong.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I know you said you have an ongoing assessment. Have you had a full neurological and cognitive evaluation?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I’ve had– I get a full neurological test everyday with me. And I’ve had a full physical. I had, you know, I mean, I– I’ve been at Walter Reed for my physicals. I mean–uhm yes, the answer.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I– I know your doctor said he consulted with a neurologist. I– I guess I’m asking– a slightly different question. Have you had the specific cognitive tests, and have you had a neurologist, a specialist, do an examination?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: No. No one said I had to. No one said. They said I’m good.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Would you be willing to undergo an independent medical evaluation that included neurological and cognit– cognitive tests and release the results to the American people?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Look. I have a cognitive test every single day. Every day I have that test. Everything I do. You know, not only am I campaigning, but I’m running the world. Not– and that’s not hi– sounds like hyperbole, but we are the essential nation of the world.

Madeleine Albright was right. And every single day, for example, today before I came out here, I’m on the phone with– with the prime minister of– well, anyway, I shouldn’t get into detail, but with Netanyahu. I’m on the phone with the new prime minister of England.

I’m workin’ on what we were doin’ with regard to– in Europe with regard to expansion of NATO and whether it’s gonna stick. I’m takin’ on Putin. I mean, every day there’s no day I go through there not those decisions I have to make every single day.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And you have been doing that, and the American people have been watching, yet their concerns about your age and your health are growing. So that’s why I’m asking — to reassure them, would you be willing to have the independent medical evaluation?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Watch me between– there’s a lotta time left in this campaign. There’s over 125 days.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: So the answer–

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: They’ll make a decision.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Right—the answer right now is, no, you– you don’t want to do that right now.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, I’ve already done it.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You talked a lot about your successes in– at the beginning of this interview. And– and I don’t want to dispute that, I don’t want to debate that. But– as you know, elections are about the future, not the past. They’re about tomorrow, not yesterday. And the question on so many people’s minds right now is, ‘Can you serve effectively for the next four years?’

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: George, I’m the guy that put NATO together, the future. No one thought I could expand it. I’m the guy that shut Putin down. No one thought could happen. I’m the guy that put together a South Pacific initiative with AUKUS. I’m the guy that got 50 nations out– not only in Europe, outside of Europe as well to help Ukraine.

I’m the guy that got Japanese to expand their budget. I’m the– so I mean, these– and, for example, when I decided we used to have 40% of computer chips. We invented the chip, the little chip, the computer chip. It’s in everything from cellphone to weapons.

And so, we used to have 40%, and we’re down to virtually nothing. So, I get in the plane, against the advice of everybody, and I fly to South Korea. I convince them to invest in the United States billions of dollars. Now we have tens of billions of dollars being invested in the United States, making us back in a position we’re gonna own that industry again. We have, I mean, I– I just– anyway. I’m– I don’t wanna take too much credit. I have a great staff.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But hold on. My– I guess my point is, all that takes a toll. Do you have the mental and physical capacity to do it for another four years?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I believe so, I wouldn’t be runnin’ if I didn’t think I did. Look, I’m runnin’ again because I think I understand best what has to be done to take this nation to a completely new new level. We’re on our way. We’re on our way. And, look. The decision recently made by the Supreme Court on immunity, you know, the next president of the United States, it’s not just about whether he or she knows what they’re doin’.

It’s– it’s– it’s not– not about a con– a conglomerate of people making decisions. It’s about the character of the president. The character of the president’s gonna determine whether or not this Constitution is employed the right way.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Let me ask you a tougher, more personal question. Are you sure you’re being honest with yourself when you say you have the mental and physical capacity to serve another four years?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Yes, I am, because, George, the last thing I want to do is not be able to meet that. I think, as some of senior economist and senior foreign policy specialists say, if I stop now, I’d go down in history as a pretty successful President. No one thought I could get done what we got done.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But are you being honest– with yourself as well about your ability to defeat Donald Trump right now?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Yes. Yes, yes, yes.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You say that, and let me challenge you.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Sure.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Because you were close but behind going into the debate. You’re further behind now by– by any measure. It’s been a two-man race for several months. Inflation has come down. In those last few months, he’s become a convicted felon. Yet, you’re still falling further behind.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: You guys keep saying that. George, do you– look, you know polling better than anybody. Do you think polling data is as accurate as it used to be?

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I don’t think so, but I think when you look at all the polling data right now, it shows that he’s certainly ahead in the popular vote, probably even more ahead in the battleground states. And one of the other key factors there is, it shows that in many of the battleground states, the Democrats who are running for Senate and the House are doing better than you are.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: That’s not unusual in some states. I carried an awful lotta Democrats last time I ran in 2020. Look, I remember them tellin’ me the same thing in 2020. ‘I can’t win. The polls show I can’t win.’ Remember 2024– 2020, the red wave was coming.

Before the vote, I said, ‘That’s not gonna happen. We’re gonna win.’ We did better in an off-year than almost any incumbent President ever has done. They said in 2023, (STATIC) all the tough (UNINTEL) we’re not gonna win. I went into all those areas and all those– all those districts, and we won.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: All that is true, but 2020 was a close race. And your approval rating has dropped significantly since then. I think the last poll I saw was at about 36%.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Woah, woah, woah

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: The number of Americans who think you’re too old to serve has doubled since 2020. Wouldn’t a clear-eyed political calculus tell you that it’s gonna be much tougher to win in 2024?.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Not when you’re running against a pathological liar. Not when he hadn’t been challenged in a way that he’s about to be challenged. Not when people–

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You’ve had months to challenge him.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Oh, sure, I had months, but I was also doin’ a hell of a lot of other things, like wars around the world, like keeping NATO together, like working– anyway. But look.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Do you really believe you’re not behind right now?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I think it’s in– all the pollsters I talk to tell me it’s a toss-up. It’s a toss-up. And when I’m behind, there’s only one poll I’m really far behind, CBS Poll and NBC, I mean, excuse me. And– uh–

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: New York– New York Times and NBC both have– have you about six points behind in the popular vote.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: That’s exactly right. New York Times had me behind before, anything having to do with this race– had me hind– behind ten points. Ten points they had me behind. Nothing’s changed substantially since the debate in The New York Times poll.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Just when you look at the reality, though, Mr. President, I mean, you won the popular vote– in– in 2020, but it was still deadly close in the electoral college–

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: By 7 million votes.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Yes. But you’re behind now in the popular vote.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I don’t– I don’t buy that.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Is it worth the risk?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I don’t think anybody’s more qualified to be president or win this race than me.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You know, the heart of your case against Donald Trump is that he’s only out for himself, putting his personal interests ahead of the national interest. How do you respond to critics who say that by staying in the race, you’re doing the same thing?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Oh, come on. Well, I don’t think those critics know what they’re talkin’ about.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: They’re just wrong?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: They’re just wrong. Look, Trump is a pathological liar. Trump is– he is– you ever seen anything Trump did that benefited sa– somebody else and not him? You can’t answer, I know.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I’ve– I’ve questioned him and his allies as persistently as any journalist has.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Oh, I know you have. I’m not being critical. I’m not being critical, but look, I mean, the man is a congenital liar. As I said, they pointed out in that debate, he lied 27– 28 times– times, whatever number, over 20 times. Talk about how good his economy was, how he brought down inflation, how– this is a guy who unlike– only other President oth– other than him is Hoover who lost more jobs than he created.

This is a guy who told us to put bleach in our arms to deal with COVID, with a million– over a million people died. This is a guy who talks about wantin’ to get rid of the health care provision we put in place. This is a guy who wants to give the power back to Big Pharma to be able to charge exorbitant prices for drugs. This is a guy who wants to undo every single thing I’ve done, every single– every single thing.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I understand that. I understand that’s why you want to stay in the race, but have you convinced yourself that only you can defeat him?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I convinced myself of two things. I’m the most qualified person to beat him, and I know how to get things done.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: If you can be convinced that you cannot defeat Donald Trump, will you stand down?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: (LAUGH)- It depends on– on if the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me that, I might do that.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, if– I mean, on a more practical level, The Washington Post just reported in the last hour that Senator Mark Warner is– is assembling a group of Senators together to try and convince you to stand down, because they don’t think you can win.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, Mark is a good man. We’ve never had … He also tried to get the nomination too. Mark’s not– Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And if Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries and Nancy Pelosi come down and say, ‘We’re worried that if you stay in the race, we’re gonna lose the House and the Senate,’ how will you respond?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I– I’d go into detail with them. I’ve speaken to all of them in detail, including Jim Clyburn, every one of ’em. They all said I should stay in the race– stay in the race. No one said– none of the people said I should leave.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But if they do?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, it’s, like, (LAUGH) they’re not gonna do that.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You’re sure?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, Yeah, I’m sure. Look. I mean, if the Lord Almighty came down and said, ‘Joe, get outta the race,’ I’d get outta the race. The Lord Almighty’s not comin’ down. I mean, these hypotheticals, George, if, I mean, it’s all–

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But– but it’s– it’s– it’s not that hypothetical anymore. I– I– I– I grant that the– they have not k– requested a meeting, but it’s been reported–

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: But they– I met with them. I met with a lotta these people. I talk with them regularly. I had an hour conversation with Hakeem. I had more time … with Jim Clyburn. I spent time with many hours off and on in the last little bit with Chuck Schumer. It’s not like– I had all the governors– all the governors.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I agree that the Lord Almighty’s not gonna come down, but if– if– if you are told reliably from your allies, from your friends and supporters in the Democratic Party in the House and the Senate that they’re concerned you’re gonna lose the House and the Senate if you stay in, what will you do?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I’m not gonna answer that question. It’s not gonna happen.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: What’s your plan to turn the campaign around?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: You saw it today. How many– how many people draw crowds like I did today? Find me more enthusiastic than today? Huh?

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I mean, have– I don’t think you wanna play the crowd game. Donald Trump can draw big crowds. There’s no question about that.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: He can draw a big crowd, but what does he say? Who– who does he have? I’m the guy supposedly in trouble. We raised $38 million within four days after this. Over– we have over a million individual contributors, individual contributors. That– that’s less than 200 bucks. We have– I mean, I’m not seen what you’re– you’re proposing.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You haven’t seen the– the fall-off in the polls? You haven’t seen the reports of discontent in the Democratic Party, House Democrats, Senate Democrats?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I’ve seen it from the press.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You know, I’ve heard from dozens of your supporters over the last few days, and a variety of views, I grant you that. But the prevailing sentiment is this. They love you, and they will be forever grateful to you for defeating Donald Trump in 2020.

They think you’ve done a great job as president, a lot of the successes you outlined. But they are worried about you and the country. And they don’t think you can win. They want you to go with grace, and they will cheer you if you do. What do you say to that?

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I say the vast majority are not where that– those folks are. I don’t doubt there are some folks there. Have you ever seen a group– ta– time when elected officials running for office aren’t little worried? Have you ever seen that? I’ve not. Same thing happened in 2020. ‘Oh, Biden, I don’t know. Man, what’s he gonna do? He may bring me down, he may …’

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Mr. President, I’ve never seen a President 36% approval get re-elected.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Well, I don’t believe that’s my approval rating. That’s not what our polls show.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And if you stay in and Trump is elected and everything you’re warning about comes to pass, how will you feel in January?

PRESIDENT BIDEN: I’ll feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest job as I know I can do, that’s what this is about. Look, George. Think of it this way. You’ve heard me say this before. I think the United States and the world is at an inflection point when the things that happen in the next several years are gonna determine what the next six, seven decades are gonna be like.

And who’s gonna be able to hold NATO together like me? Who’s gonna be able to be in a position where I’m able to keep the Pacific Basin in a position where we’re– we’re at least checkmating China now? Who’s gonna– who’s gonna do that? Who has that reach? Who has– who knows all these pe…? We’re gonna have, I guess a good way to judge me, is you’re gonna have now the NATO conference here in the United States next week. Come listen. See what they say.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Mr. President, thanks for your time.

PRESIDENT BIDEN: Thank you. Appreciate it.

House Republicans are already sharpening their attacks against Vice President Kamala Harris as public discussions swell over whether she will replace President Biden at the top of Democrats’ 2024 ticket.

GOP lawmakers — in both safe red seats and swing districts being targeted by the left — dismissed Harris as a political threat to their chances in November, arguing she’s still tied to the same progressive Biden policies they believe are unpopular with voters.

Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., who served as longtime chair of the New York Republican Party before coming to Congress, told Fox News Digital, ‘Kamala Harris is just as responsible for this administration’s failures, but she’s more incompetent.’

‘She will make no difference to the outcome. President Trump will be our 47th,’ he said.

A swing-seat Republican who asked not to be named told Fox News Digital they were skeptical Harris would do better on the debate stage than Biden. 

‘I would say she’s the weakest part of the ticket right now, as bad as Biden is,’ that GOP lawmaker said.

‘Whether it’s Joe Biden or [Harris] at the top of the ticket, they’ll have to defend their abysmal, tax-and-spend record,’ said Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla. ‘We’re already seeing significant Republican advantages across the board in swing states, especially increase in support from Hispanic voters.’

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., a Trump ally from a deep red district, told Fox News Digital that Biden and Harris ‘both own the same disastrous policies.’

It comes as conversations swirl around Harris as one of the most likely successors to Biden if he chooses to withdraw from the race ahead of his November rematch with former President Trump. 

Biden and his campaign have insisted he will not bow out of the race, but his weak performance in last month’s presidential debate has left many on the left wondering if he’s the best positioned candidate to beat Trump. Multiple polls have shown Biden modestly trailing Trump since the debate aired.

Harris has maintained that she is standing by Biden on multiple occasions when asked about the speculation by reporters.

But if she were to take over, Harris would be the only Democratic candidate who could inherit the $240 million Biden-Harris campaign war chest.

The House GOP campaign arm, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), is also aiming its fire at Harris as well, in a telling sign that it sees her as the next top Democratic target.

A new advertisement released by the NRCC this week cast Harris as Biden’s ‘enabler-in-chief’ and hits her for her role as Biden’s ‘border czar.’ 

A spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) told Axios of the ad, ‘Republicans are fooling themselves if they think the American public will blame anyone besides Donald Trump and his feckless band of Republican extremists and phony moderates who killed a bipartisan border deal.’

A recent CNN/SSRS poll shows Harris performing slightly better than Biden in a matchup against Trump.

But when asked about her impact on the November races, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn. — a past NRCC chair — would not speak to the vice president specifically, though he was confident in the GOP’s chances to secure the White House.

‘It doesn’t matter which incompetent failure Democrats have on the ballot in November — voters are ready to abandon the sinking ship that is the Biden-Harris administration,’ Emmer said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Biden campaign and to Harris’ office for comment.

President Biden repeatedly refused to reconsider his bid for re-election, time and again dismissing the concerns of those trying to pressure him to quit the 2024 White House race due to lagging poll numbers and concerns about his mental acuity during a high-stakes interview Friday.

Biden’s 22-minute sit-down with ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos was taped earlier in the day but aired unedited. It was the 81-year-old president’s first televised sit-down since his debate against former President Trump last week.

At one point, Stephanopoulos informed Biden he was behind in the popular vote, and the president replied, ‘I don’t buy that.’

‘I don’t think anybody is more qualified to be president or win this race than me,’ Biden said when pressed about a race his opponent appears favored to win.

When asked if he had the mental acuity to be president another four years, Biden said, ‘I wouldn’t be running if I didn’t think I did.’

Biden also brushed off concerns about his mental fitness for office. When asked if he was being ‘honest’ with himself about his own cognitive abilities, the president replied, ‘Yes, I am, because, George, last thing I want to do is not be able to meet that.’

But he was also evasive when asked about the possibility of taking a cognitive test and making those results public, something Biden’s Republican critics have long demanded.

‘Look, I have a cognitive test every single day. Every day I have a test. Everything I do,’ Biden said. ‘You know, not only am I campaigning, I’m running the world. And that’s not — it sounds like hyperbole. But we are the essential nation in the world.’

When pressed again, Biden said, ‘I’ve already done it,’ though he did not elaborate.

Biden’s allies and critics were expected to be closely watching the interview after last month’s CNN debate raised lingering concerns about his viability as a candidate.

The president delivered a poor performance against his Republican rival, speaking with a hoarse voice he attributed to a cold and also frequently trailing off while speaking, appearing to lose his train of thought. 

On Friday, Biden insisted he had a ‘bad night’ during the debate.

‘I think the most charitable thing you can say about it is it’s way too little, too late,’ Democratic strategist Julian Epstein, former chief counsel for Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital after the interview aired. 

‘The president looks frail. He looks foggy. He looks weak. He looks like he is using every last ounce of energy that he may have to sort of barely get through.

‘Most Democrats now, whether they’re saying it or not, realize that, you know, the Biden campaign is on death watch. And it’s a question of whether I think it will be, you know, early next week or after that.’

Biden said he blamed himself for how the debate went, but he also suggested some fault lies with Trump.

‘I was having a bad night when I realized that even when I was answering a question, even when they turned his mic off, he was still shouting, and I … I let it distract me. I’m not blaming it on that. But I realized that I just wasn’t in control,’ the president said.

He also responded to questions about recent polls that show him behind Trump.

‘All pollsters I talk to tell me it’s a toss-up. And when I’m behind … there’s only one poll I’m really far behind, CBS poll and NBC, I mean, excuse me,’ Biden said, his last few words barely intelligible. 

Stephanopoulos then said The ‘New York Times and NBC, both have you about six points behind in the popular vote.’

‘That’s exactly right. New York Times had me behind before anything having to do with this race, had me behind ten points. Ten points they had me behind. Nothing’s changed substantially in The New York Times poll,’ Biden answered.

Toward the end of the interview, Stephanopoulos asked Biden about the growing number of Democratic lawmakers suggesting he should step aside, and Biden pushed back.

‘Look, I mean, if the Lord Almighty came out and said, ‘Joe, get out of the race,’ I’ll get out of the race. The Lord Almighty’s not coming down,’ the president said.

Former Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod wrote on X after the debate, ‘The president is rightfully proud of his record. But he is dangerously out-of-touch with the concerns people have about his capacities moving forward and his standing in this race.’

President Biden is now facing calls from members of the international community who want him to quit the 2024 presidential race, with even leftist Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva warning that ‘Biden has a problem.’

‘He’s moving more slowly, he is taking longer to answer questions,’ Lula explained to a local radio station, according to Bloomberg. ‘The U.S. elections are very important for all the world.’ 

Biden’s first presidential debate against former President Trump last month proved to be a debacle, leading Biden to admit just days later that he ‘screwed up.’ 

‘I had a bad night,’ Biden, 81, said Thursday in an interview with radio host Earl Ingram. ‘And the fact of the matter is that, you know, I screwed up.’ 

While Republicans predictably criticized the performance, even Democrats have fallen into a panic, and the president has had to hold crisis talks with close allies to reassure them he’s still up to the job — and will be for another four years. 

The debate, however, sent shock waves through the international community, with some allies refusing to stay quiet about an issue that they see as being too important to treat delicately. 

Matteo Renzi, who served as Italian prime minister from 2014 to 2016 and who proved to be a close friend to Democrats during his tenure, wrote on social media platform X that ‘Joe Biden can’t do it.’ 

‘As Senator, Vice President, President he served the United States of America with honor,’ Renzi wrote. ‘He doesn’t deserve an inglorious ending, he doesn’t deserve one. Changing horses is a duty for everyone.’ 

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski struck a similar tone in a cryptic message on X that some have taken to be an unfavorable comparison between Biden and the great Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.

‘Marcus Aurelius was a great emperor, but he screwed up his succession by passing the baton to his feckless son Commodus (He, from the Gladiator) whose disastrous rule started Rome’s decline),’ Sikorski wrote. ‘It’s important to manage one’s ride into the sunset.’

Marie-Agness Strack-Zimmermann, a German politician and current Chair of the Defense Committee of the Bundestag, told one outlet, ‘The fact that a man like Trump could become president again because the Democrats are unable to put up a strong candidate against him would be a historic tragedy that the whole world would feel,’ The Guardian reported.  

Other European officials have reportedly started to privately argue that Biden should step aside in favor of someone with a stronger chance of beating Trump, with Vice President Kamala Harris one of the leading candidates to assume the task.

Bloomberg reported that sources familiar with high-level discussions between European officials worry about the U.S. election due to its potential impact on Ukraine and NATO at a time when Russia remains aggressive.

Biden will have a chance to reassure America’s allies during a NATO summit that he will host in the U.S. next week, with his every action under intense scrutiny. One official at the G-7 meeting in Italy last month told Bloomberg that an air of worry hung around the meetings due to Biden’s apparent cognitive issues. 

One person familiar with those conversations told The Washington Post that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had seen Biden as ‘mentally on top of his game’ but physically weak — concerns that grew more pronounced following the debate.

In Asia, Japan and South Korea, uneasiness has increased about a return to the strained relations of the Trump era, when his administration urged greater financial contributions for military assistance and tensions rose due to aggressive trade practices, Reuters reported.

Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser and Remy Numa contributed to this report. 

President Biden three times dodged questions about whether he’d take a neurological test in one of the more contentious moments of his first sit-down interview since a widely panned presidential debate performance last week.

‘Have you had a full neurological and cognitive evaluation?’ ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos asked Biden in an interview conducted Friday afternoon and aired in the evening.

‘I get a full neurological test every day with me,’ Biden replied. ‘I’ve had a full physical. … I’ve been to Walter Reed for my physicals.’

Stephanopoulos again pressed the president about taking a neurological test, and Biden again ducked. 

‘Have you had the specific cognitive tests, and have you had a neurologist, a specialist, do an examination?’ Stephanopoulos asked.

‘No, no one said I had to. … They said I’m good,’ Biden responded.

Stephanopoulos pressed Biden a third time on taking a cognitive or neurological test, and if the president would agree to take one, asking if Biden then would release the results of such a test to the public. The president, however, brushed off the question by saying he is tested every day in his role as president. 

‘Look, I have a cognitive test every single day,’ Biden said. ‘Every day I have that test. Everything I do. You know, not only am I campaigning, but I’m running the world. Sounds like hyperbole, but we are the central nation in the world.

‘And every single day — for example, today, before I come out here — I’m on the phone with the prime minister of … Well anyway, I shouldn’t get into detail, but with Netanyahu. I’m on the phone with the new prime minister of England. I’m working on what we’re doing with regard to in Europe, with regard to expansion to NATO and whether it’s going to stick. I’m taking on Putin. I mean, every day, there’s no day I go through there’s not those decisions I have to make every single day.’ 

Biden’s ABC interview was his first extensive one-on-one since a disastrous debate against former President Trump, which escalated concern about the president’s mental acuity and age. A wave of Biden’s traditional Democratic allies and establishment media outlets, such as The New York Times, called on the president to exit the race.

The debate performance included the president tripping over his words, losing his train of thought at times and delivering responses with a raspy voice. He fared poorly compared to former President Trump.

Biden and his administration and campaign have remained resolute that Biden will remain in the race despite the mounting calls for someone else, such as Vice President Kamala Harris, to step in and become the party’s nominee in November. 

Biden said during the interview he’s aware he performed poorly during the debate, telling Stephanopoulos it was a ‘bad episode.’ 

‘No indication of a serious condition. I was exhausted,’ Biden said. ‘I didn’t listen to my instincts in terms of preparing. It was a bad night.

‘The whole way I prepared — nobody’s fault. Mine. Nobody’s fault but mine,’ Biden said. ‘I prepared what I usually would do sitting down, as I did coming back with foreign leaders or the National Security Council, for explicit detail.’