President Joe Biden took a few jabs at what he calls “MAGA Republicans” and his predecessor specifically, while defending his polling numbers in a rare live television interview on Thursday.
In a sit-down conversation with MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace that lasted about 20 minutes, Biden, as expected, would not comment on the speed of the Department of Justice’s investigation into former President Donald Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
“I've not spoken once, not one single time, with the Attorney General on any specific case,” he said.
Biden emphasized he made a commitment to keep the Justice Department independent, and came down on former President Trump’s approach to the agency, saying “the last administration” tried to direct “the FED or court or institutions they were supposed to stay hands-off [of].”
The Biden administration has said as little as possible about the indictment of Trump related to his handling of classified documents earlier this month.
However, when asked on Thursday if other democratic leaders want to know why those who took part in the Capitol attack have been charged and Trump himself has not when discussing democracy in the U.S. and abroad, Biden said “well, the answer is yes.” He added he has faith the Justice Department “will move in a direction that is consistent with the law.”
The president said "threats to democracy" – an issue he made central to his 2020 campaign – will be front and center again in 2024.
“It's important that they know that my value set is very different than this new MAGA Republican Party,” he said.
He recalled when Trump said “that were very fine people, on both sides,” regarding a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va. in 2017 in which one woman was killed and dozens other injured in attacks. “Think about what that says about our values,” Biden said on Thursday.
When talking about democracy, Biden said he has “great faith in the instincts of the American people,” and defended his ability to win despite the fact that “polling numbers are not good.”
“They were the same way when I ran and won. Everybody thought I was going to get clobbered in a primary. I got 80 million votes in the last election,” he said.
Biden’s approval rating is 41% according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. This week, Biden has ramped up efforts to tout his economic agenda, dubbed "Bidenomics," despite the poll finding only 34% of U.S. adults approve of his handling of the economy.
A Monmouth University poll in May found nearly half of voters ruled out supporting Biden and Trump.
The president also emphasized foreign policy as a major part of his 2024 pitch to voters, saying he has focused on “holding NATO together.” Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin believed he could “break up the solidarity of the West” when he invaded Ukraine, and if that happened he would have had a “total run.”
Regarding the short-lived rebellion against the Kremlin and Putin by Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin over the weekend, Biden said he “knew things ahead of time,” but could not say what they were.
When asked if he worried Trump would have told Russia of the Wagner boss’ plans ahead of time if he was still president, Biden said “Oh god I don't know. I don't think about that very often.”
The president also touted his work across the aisle, saying he has been able to get a lot of bipartisan legislation done. “There is still a lot of really good Republicans,” Biden said naming Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, specifically.
“Since I've been elected, now it's six Republican senators — two came at one time and the other four alone — to tell me, Joe, I agree with you. But if I'm seen doing it, I’ll lose a primary,” he said.