Biden Expected to Announce 2024 Campaign After State of the Union Address Next Month
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Susan Walsh/AP/Shutterstock President Joe Biden
President Joe Biden plans to seek a second term in office, and could announce as soon as February, according to a new report by CNN.
The outlet reports that Biden has been planning to launch his 2024 campaign after he delivers the State of the Union address on Feb. 7 — and that despite recent controversy surrounding his handling of classified documents, those plans have not changed.
The White House has confirmed that documents from Biden's time as vice president had been found in an old D.C. office and in a "locked garage" of his home in Wilmington, Delaware.
"They discovered a small number of documents with classified markings in storage areas and file cabinets in my home and my personal library," Biden told reporters, adding that he and his team are "cooperating fully" with a review of the documents.
While Republicans have seized on the discovery — particularly as it relates to the discovery of top-secret documents at former President Donald Trump's Florida home — CNN reports that the Biden camp isn't factoring the recent controversy into its future plans.
Earlier this month, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the appointment of a special counsel to investigate how Biden stored the classified documents.
While previous reports have suggested that Biden may not seek a second term, the president has reportedly made private comments affirming that he would.
Last October, NBC News reported that Biden told Rev. Al Sharpton "I'm going to do it again," of running for president. According to NBC News, Sharpton recounted the exchange on a phone call with staffers following the conversation with the president.
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But some have been critical of the idea of Biden — who will be nearing 82 years old at the time of the 2024 election — running a second time.
Asked in an August debate whether Biden should seek reelection, New York Democratic Rep. Carolyn Maloney shrugged aside the question by responding, "I don't believe he's running for reelection."
Maloney later clarified those comments, but didn't retract her earlier remarks, saying, "I think he's done an incredible job and is giving us a record to run on in the 2022 election, let's get to the 2022 election before we get to '24."
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Biden was 78 at his inaugural ceremony, making him the oldest person to be sworn in as commander-in-chief in U.S. history.
Donald Trump — who was previously the oldest-ever president to take office at age 70 and has already announced he will run in 2024 — will be 78 during the next election cycle.
A recent poll found that the vast majority of Americans, across all political parties and age groups, do favor a maximum age limit for elected officials.
