President-elect Donald Trump is not letting President Joe Biden get away with this.
The incoming president criticized the octogenarian commander-in-chief for claiming he would have won re-election had he stayed in the race.
“Well, he was way behind, and I suppose he didn't really have a chance,” Trump said at a New Year's Eve party at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday night alongside his wife, Melania Trump.
“He was far behind (Harris) and we won by record numbers. I wish him well,” Trump added, referring to his decisive victory over Harris on election night last year.
Trump's rift with Biden comes after reports that the 82-year-old incumbent regrets dropping out of the race because he and his aides believe he could have won re-election — despite a growing list of Democrats and polls saying otherwise.
Pressure on Biden to end his re-election bid reached a peak on July 21 when he resigned as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the ticket.
Trump, 78, laughed at Biden's claim referring to Biden's poll numbers since his disastrous performance in the June 27 debate.
The Washington Post reported last week that Biden and those close to him were careful not to blame Harris or her campaign for Trump's victory in November.
“Record the numbers, you know, from every swing state. “We won the popular vote of millions and millions of people,” the incoming president said.
Trump wished Biden well, saying that his soon-to-be successor and predecessor had a chance to prove his ability to beat Trump during their infamous debate, but “it wasn't good for him.”
He pointed out that it was Biden's performance, full of missteps, that led to the downfall of his political rival.
As the song “Hail to the Chief” played at the Palm Beach resort, Trump predicted that the United States would do “fantastically well” in 2025.
“It's been a great year, I think we're going to do great as a country,” he said. “We will bring him back, he must be brought back. People do not respect our country very much and they should respect us very much.”
Trump touted what he called “significant progress” that he said had occurred over the past five weeks since his election.
“There is a perfect light that engulfs the whole world,” he said. “It's not just our country, there are a lot of very happy people.”
Trump also confirmed that he will attend the funeral of the late President Jimmy Carter in Washington, D.C., which is scheduled to take place on January 9.
“I do. I'll be there. We were invited,” Trump said.
