President Trump welcomes Joe Biden to 2020 race with barbed tweet
Trump appears to relish the prospect of a one-on-one contest with former Vice President Joe Biden; chief White House correspondent John Roberts reports.
President Trump in a phone interview on “Hannity” Thursday talked about a handful of Democratic contenders for the 2020 presidential election, disparaging some of them, including former Vice President Joe Biden.
"I think we are calling him 'Sleepy Joe' 'cause I've known him for a while. Is he a pretty sleepy guy. He won't be able to deal with [Chinese] President Xi, I will tell you. That's a different level of energy and, frankly, intelligence. So I sort refer to him as 'Sleepy Joe.' A lot of people wanted me to change the word 'sleepy' to something else that rhymes with it," Trump told host Sean Hannity. "I thought it was too nasty.
"He's not going to be able to do the job," Trump added.
Biden officially announced his candidacy in a video Thursday morning, going directly after Trump.
"If we give Donald Trump eight years in the White House, he will forever and fundamentally alter the character of this nation, who we are, and I cannot stand by and watch that happen," Biden says in the video.
When asked about frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Trump criticized his record, saying Sanders had "misguided energy" and asserting that Sanders "talks a lot" but hasn't accomplished anything.
The president didn't seem to think too much of the rest of the field, referring to former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke of Texas as "a fluke" and mentioning the lack of attention the former media darling has received recently.
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"He is fading very fast, he is fading very, very fast. It looks like he will be a thing of the past very soon. He was a hot item," Trump said.
Trump outright dismissed Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, although he said he was "rooting" for Buttigieg.
"I don't see either of them. I think she has got a little bit of a nasty wit but that might be it. And Mayor Pete is not going to make it. I would hope he would. I'm rooting for him but he is not going to make it," Trump said.
