In Rare Interview, Biden Insists He Is Democrats’ Best Option Against Trump

In a wide-ranging Oval Office interview with The New Yorker, President Biden expressed confidence that he would win re-election in 2024, laid out his rationale for running for a second term despite questions over his age and said that he doubted former President Donald J. Trump would accept the results of the November contest.

Mr. Biden, who rarely grants interviews, faces discontent from voters in his own party and broad dissatisfaction over his leadership of the nation, polling shows.

But he suggested to Evan Osnos of The New Yorker that he was the strongest Democrat to take on Mr. Trump in November, saying he was the “only one who has ever beat him.”

“And I’ll beat him again,” he added.

Mr. Biden suggested that neither he nor voters could afford for him to sit out the election, asking a rhetorical question: “If you thought you were best positioned to beat someone who, if they won, would change the nature of America, what would you do?”

His answer seemed to represent a slight shift from December, when he was asked whether he believed any other Democrats could prevail over Mr. Trump.

“Probably 50 of them,” Mr. Biden answered. “I’m not the only one who could defeat him. But I will defeat him.”