Joe Biden is set to sit for first unscripted interview since the CNN presidential debate

The debate will air on ABC and be hosted by ‘This Week’ and ‘Good Morning America’ anchor George Stephanopoulos. It will also partially air on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET on ‘World News Tonight with David Muir.’

The full, extended version will be broadcast on Sunday’s edition of ‘This Week with George Stephanopoulos.’

During the debate hosted by CNN, Biden exhibited noticeable difficulties, he stumbled, froze, stared blankly, and misspoke. This raised urgent questions about Biden’s capability to handle a second term, and his performance left many Democrats unsettled.

However, Biden tried to ease the tide, saying, “I’m not a young man, but I know how to” run the White House in a campaign ad. The President also tried to portray him not as a young man following the CNN presidential debate.

ALSO READ| Joe Biden says ‘principle that there are no kings in America’ changed after SC’s ruling on Donald Trump

During the debate, Trump aggressively promoted numerous falsehoods, intensifying the scrutiny on Biden’s age and cognitive abilities. To which the commander in chief, 81 replied, “Did you see Trump last night? I mean this sincerely – the most lies told in a single debate.”

Given the current political climate, securing this interview is a significant achievement for ABC News. For Biden, it is a golden opportunity to address the public directly and recover from his faltering debate appearance. To which the 81-year-old is well aware.

Biden to face first unscripted interview

While Biden has made several public appearances since the debate, these have largely involved him reading from prepared statements.

As for the upcoming interview, it will be the first totally unprepared, unplanned, and unscripted media appearance of Biden since the debate. There has been growing pressure from White House allies, both publicly and privately, for Biden to take a live interview or hold a press conference.

The ABC interview that is planned for the following week will be Biden’s fourth major television interview of 2024, according to CNN’s count. However, Biden was less frequently seen engaging in interviews than his most recent predecessors, which has become something of an issue for Biden’s opponents.

ALSO READ| Joe Biden attempts to dispel worry about his debate performace in new ad: ‘I’m not a young man, but I know how to…’

So far, ABC News has not disclosed whether or not they will publish the full, uninterrupted version of the interview. Due to the brevity of airtime, networks often prune the interviews to the duration they have set aside for them.

ABC will also hold the second presidential debate between Biden and Trump on September 10.