Fact-Checking Biden’s News Conference at the NATO Summit

Elections

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By The New York Times

Published 10 months ago on

July 12, 2024

President Joe Biden speaks to reporters at a news conference in Washington on Thursday night, July 11, 2024. Biden’s performance at the news conference during the NATO summit was steadier than at the debate against former President Donald Trump. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

President Joe Biden addressed questions on foreign policy and his age, firmly stating he has no plans to withdraw from the race.
Biden’s remarks were scrutinized, including his statements about Trump’s NATO comments, his approval ratings compared to past presidents, and the reduction in border encounters.
Biden highlighted his busy schedule and criticized Trump's lack of campaign activity, though the claim that Trump has done "virtually nothing" was noted as an exaggeration.

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WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden fielded questions about foreign policy and his age and fitness for office during a high-stakes news conference Thursday in which he made clear that he had no intention of leaving the race.

The nearly hourlong appearance, coming at the end of the NATO summit in Washington, was his first solo news conference in eight months. Under a dozen reporters pressed him on his candidacy, China and the conflict in Gaza, among other topics.

Here’s a fact check of some of his remarks.

What Was Said

“He’s already told Putin — and I quote — do whatever the hell you want.”

This needs context. Biden leaves out a crucial caveat in characterizing the remarks of his Republican rival, former President Donald Trump.

Trump, in a campaign rally in February, repeated his misleading claim that some members of NATO “owed” money to the alliance, referring to informal commitments made by member nations to spend 2% of gross domestic product on their own militaries.

In Trump’s telling, after he had delivered a speech urging members to “pay out,” the president of “one of the big countries” asked whether the United States would come to its defense if President Vladimir Putin of Russia invaded, but it had failed to meet that 2% target.

“I said, ‘You didn’t pay. You’re delinquent?’ He said, ‘Yes, let’s say that happened.’ ‘No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want,’” Trump recounted.

When criticized for his remarks, Trump reiterated his stance later that month at another rally: “Look, if they’re not going to pay, we’re not going to protect.”

More than 20 member nations currently meet the 2% target, the secretary-general of the alliance recently announced.

What Was Said

“There are at least five presidents running or incumbent presidents who had lower numbers than I have now.”

This needs context. Several presidents have had lower approval numbers near this point in a reelection race, but none of them won office again.

According to Gallup’s approval poll, which goes back to President Harry S. Truman, 38% of adults approve of Biden’s job performance on Day 1,250 of his presidency. That was lower than all past presidents but Presidents George H.W. Bush (37%) and Jimmy Carter (32%) at similar points in their terms, and similar to Trump (39%).

Ronald Reagan came back to win reelection after a slump in January 1983, in which 35% of adults approved of his record. But that was several months further out from a November election.

What Was Said

“Working with Mexico, border encounters have gone down over 50%. The current level is lower today than when Trump left office.”

This is exaggerated. Biden is correct that unauthorized border crossings along the United States’ border with Mexico have dipped in recent months, but according to preliminary data from last month, they are not quite as low as when Trump’s presidency ended.

Border officials recorded 170,000 encounters in May, the latest month of publicly available data, compared with nearly 180,000 encounters in June and more than 200,000 encounters in May 2023. But border officials recorded far fewer in January 2021, Trump’s last month in office: over 78,000.

Preliminary data obtained by CBS and The New York Times showed a drastic decrease in June, after Biden issued an executive order that essentially blocked migrants from claiming asylum at the border. The data shows that officials processed more than 83,000 migrants. That is indeed a reduction of 50%, as Biden said, but still not lower than when Trump left office.

After this article published, the White House cited internal statistics from the Department of Homeland Security showing that the seven-day average — a rolling figure subject to fluctuation — of encounters was 1,838 as of Thursday, compared with an average of 2,415 on Jan. 19, 2021, the last full day of Trump’s presidency.

What Was Said

“I mean, my schedule has been full bore. I’ve done — where’s, where’s Trump been? Riding around his golf cart, filling out his scorecard before he hits the ball? I mean, look, he’s done virtually nothing.”

This is exaggerated. Biden has a point that he has attended more campaign events than Trump since their debate on June 27, but Trump has done more than “virtually nothing.” According to the Times’ campaign appearance tracker, Biden has made 19 appearances at rallies, fundraisers and on television and radio programs, as of Wednesday. In comparison, Trump has made nine appearances.

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Linda Qiu/Doug Mills
c.2024 The New York Times Company