President Joe Biden said in a new interview that he is “not confident at all” that there will be a peaceful transfer of power in January if former President Donald Trump loses the election this fall.
"If Trump loses, I'm not confident at all," Biden said when asked during an interview with CBS News if he was confident that power would be peacefully transferred in January 2025.
Biden also said in the clip that aired Wednesday evening that people were not taking Trump’s past comments about a “bloodbath” seriously.
“He means it, all the stuff about if we lose, there’ll be a bloodbath,” Biden said. “You can’t love your country only when you win.”
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A Trump campaign spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.
Trump in March said, “It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country,” if he loses the election in November. He made the remark while talking about economic policies.
Three months later, during the June 27 presidential debate, Trump was asked whether he would accept the 2024 election results. After repeatedly dodging the question, he responded, “If it’s a fair and legal and good election, absolutely.”
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In the CBS interview, Biden also referred to efforts that could complicate post-election certification processes.
“Look what they’re trying to do now, in the local election districts where people count the votes,” he said.
The Republican-controlled State Election Board in Georgia voted this week to give local officials more power over the certification of elections results. Over the weekend, Trump praised the officials who later approved the rule change.
The full interview with Biden is scheduled to air Sunday morning.
Biden narrowly defeated Trump in Georgia in the 2020 presidential election. His victory, by just 11,779 votes, made him the first Democratic presidential nominee to win the state since Bill Clinton in 1992.
Trump has continued to draw concern over how he would respond to losing the 2024 race given his efforts nearly four years ago to overturn his 2020 loss. Trump has referred to Jan, 6, 2021, when a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol, as "a beautiful day," and has called those supporters imprisoned for crimes related to the attack “unbelievable patriots” and “hostages.”
Last week, he renewed his pledge to pardon those facing convictions related to the attack if he is elected in November.
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