U.S. President Biden mentioned in a recent interview that he would consider withdrawing from the 2024 presidential race if diagnosed with a "medical condition" by a doctor, according to a report by Axios on Thursday.
Axios said the interview with BET News will air tonight at 10 pm ET. The pre-taped interview is one of several recent media appearances from Biden. He is facing mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers to step aside after his poor debate performance last month reignited concerns about his age and fitness for office.
Not long after the interview excerpt was released, the White House said Biden tested positive for COVID and was experiencing mild symptoms.
When asked what would make him reconsider his reelection campaign, Biden told the interviewer that he would do so "if I had some medical condition that emerged," according to an excerpt released by the network.
"If doctors came to me and said, you got this problem and that problem," he reportedly added.
Axios also said that Biden admitted he had run for the presidency as a "transitional candidate" and had expected to "pass it on to somebody else."
However, he didn't realize how divided the country had become, adding that "there's more to do and I'm reluctant to walk away from that."
In separate interviews this month, Biden has stated that he will not be taking a cognitive test, insisting that his "mental acuity's been pretty damn good."