Watch: Biden jokes he’s ‘too damn old’ at first rally with Harris since stepping aside

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Joe Biden joked he was “too damn old” at his first joint speaking event with Kamala Harris since he dropped out of the presidential race.
The US president ended his re-election bid and endorsed Ms Harris amid mounting pressure from within his own party about his age following a disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump.
Making light of the issue at the joint rally in Maryland, the 81-year-old joked that he had served in the Senate for “270 years”.
“I know I look 40 but I’m a little bit older”, he said.
“Last time I was too damn young because I was only 29 when I got elected, now I’m too damn old,” he added, prompting a huge laugh from the audience.
At the end of his speech, Mr Biden again referred to his lengthy political career, saying: “I thank God that in the last three months I’m president of the United States, I was able to finally get done what I tried to get done when I was a young senator.”
Mr Biden and Ms Harris, 59, took turns to gush about one another at the event, which focused on lowering prescription drug prices.
“I have an incredible partner in the progress we made. She’s going to make one hell of a president,” Mr Biden told the crowd.
Ms Harris had earlier heaped praise on Mr Biden, saying: “Of course, I could speak all afternoon about the person that I am standing on this stage with.”
She referred to him as “our extraordinary president, Joe Biden” and the audience responded with chants of “thank you, Joe!”
She added: “It is my eternal and great, great, great honour, I have to tell you, to serve with this most extraordinary human being … and leader, our president, Joe Biden.”
Before he spoke, Mr Biden stood next to Ms Harris with his head bowed and his hands clasped together, only smiling and looking at the crowd when she complimented him.
Putting on a united front, the two leading Democrats were tactile throughout the event and embraced when Ms Harris handed over the podium to Mr Biden.
At the end of the remarks, she walked back to the president and clasped his hand, before the pair walked off stage to rapturous applause.
During his speech Mr Biden continually attacked Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, at one point calling him “Donald Dump.”
Referring to the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which enabled Medicare to negotiate prescription drug costs, Mr Biden said: “We finally beat Big Pharma, and, I might add, with no help from Republicans. Not a single Republican vote for this bill, period, not one in the entire Congress.”
Mr Biden suggested this had been due to “the guy we’re running against”, adding: “What’s his name? Donald Dump?”
The president also attacked “MAGA Republican Project 2025”. The 922-page document sets out proposals for a second Trump stint in the White House.
“They want to repeal Medicare’s power to negotiate drug prices … let me tell you what our Project 2025 is: beat the hell out of them,” Mr Biden said.
Mr Biden’s appearance comes a day after he struggled to take selfies in front of a room filled with 100 digital creators and influencers, appearing to photograph only himself, a video shows.
The White House has released photographs of Wednesday’s event, but none of the president’s awkwardly angled selfies have materialised.
Mr Biden put on a fumbling display as he entered the room without saying a word, turned the camera towards his forehead, snapped a picture, moved and did the same again.
His selfie-taking appeared to be an attempt to connect with the tech-savvy attendees, who he called the “future” of communication and who together have millions of followers.
The creators, which ranged from chefs to make-up artists and fitness gurus, filmed his every move and grinned as he told them: “You’re the source of the news …You are the new breakthrough in how we communicate.”
As the crowd laughed, Mr Biden added: “And that’s why I invited you to the White House, because I’m looking for a job.”
Thursday’s joint event came as Ms Harris’s narrow lead over Trump in the polls continued to grow.
In the RealClearPolitics average of recent national polls, Ms Harris was almost one point ahead of Trump on 47.9 per cent to his 47 per cent.
Trump was ahead by three points when Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21.
In FiveThirtyEight’s average of polls, Ms Harris has grown her lead over Trump to nearly three points, from 46.2 per cent to 43.6 per cent.
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Joe Biden and Kamala Harris held hands and waved to the crowd before walking off stage together.
The audience chanted “thank you Joe” after he finished delivering remarks at an event about lowering the cost of prescription drugs. 
The audience booed as Joe Biden attacked Donald Trump and “Project 2025”. 
The 922-page document, Project 2025, sets out proposals for a second Trump stint in the White House.
 “Let me tell you what our project 2025 is: beat the hell out of them”, Mr Biden said.
Joe Biden, who looked somewhat uncomfortable as he waited for his turn to speak, had returned the favour by praising Kamala Harris.
He has described her as an “incredible partner”, adding: “she’s gonna make one hell of a president.”
Kamala Harris has been piling praise on Joe Biden, who has been stood her side with his hands clasped together, his head bowed, smiling occasionally. 
“I can speak all afternoon about the person that I am standing on the stage with”, Ms Harris said, prompting loud screams from the audience. 
Ms Harris described Mr Biden as an “extraordinary president”.
When she said “thank you, Joe”, the audience broke out in a chant of the same phrase.
Kamala Harris and Joe Biden walked out to a rapturous applause at their first joint event since the US president dropped his re-election bid.
Mr Biden pumped a fist and saluted the audience, while Ms Harris walked in waving. 
“I love you back”, Ms Harris told the audience as she began delivering remarks.  
Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland, is on stage recounting his “traumatic” childhood memories of watching his father die because he didn’t receive treatment for a rare but treatable virus.
“When I was just three years old, I watched my father die in front of me because he didn’t get the health care that he needed”, Mr Moore told the crowd.
Mr Moore said his father, who looked disheveled and unshaven, was released from hospital and told to “get some rest”.
Hours later he died.
“I don’t come from a family that’s used to making policies. I come from a family that’s used to suffering the consequences of them”, Mr Moore said.  
Kamala Harris’ campaign mocked “self-obsessed” Donald Trump ahead of his New Jersey press conference this afternoon.
“TODAY: Donald Trump To Ramble Incoherently and Spread Dangerous Lies in Public, but at Different Home”, the vice president’s team said in a press release.
It added: “Donald J Trump, loser of the 2020 election by 7 million votes, will hold another public meltdown in Bedminster, New Jersey.”
“Not so fresh off NABJ, Florida, and Twitter glitches, Donald Trump intends to deliver another self-obsessed rant full of his own personal grievances to distract from his toxic Project 2025 agenda, unpopular running mate, and increasing detachment from the reality of the voters who will decide this election,” the campaign said. 
Kamala Harris’ narrow lead over Donald Trump in national polls continue to grow, according to two new polls.
The majority of the polling was done by RealClearPolitics and FiveThirtyEight before the vice president’s selection of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate.
In the RealClearPolitics average of recent national polls, Ms Harris has taken a nearly one-percentage-point lead over Trump, 47.9 percent to 47.0 percent. 
By the same measure, Trump was ahead by three percentage points when Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21.
In FiveThirtyEight’s average of polls, Ms Harris has grown her lead over Trump to nearly three-percentage-points, from 46.2 percent to 43.6 percent.
 
We’re bringing you the latest updates from a joint rally by President Joe Biden and Kamala Harris tonight.