Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Tuesday said that US President Joe Biden was ousted from the 2024 election race due to a “coup.”
In an interview with X’s owner Elon Musk, Trump claimed that Biden’s performance in the debate was so decisive that he was compelled to withdraw.
“I beat Biden so bad in the debate, he was forced out of the race – one of the greatest debate performances ever. Biden’s exit, it was a coup,” Trump stated.
Trump’s debate reference is to June, when he and Biden—before the Democratic leader decided to withdraw from the presidential race—faced off in their first debate of the 2024 election cycle ahead of the November poll.
During the interview, Trump also told Musk that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if Biden had not been president. He said that his close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin could have prevented the conflict.
“I got along with Putin very well, and he respected me,” Trump said. He also claimed he had cautioned Putin against taking any action, stating, “But I told him, don’t do it.”
Musk and the former US President sat down for a highly anticipated interview, which was delayed by over 40 minutes due to a cyberattack that disrupted the link hosting the conversation on X.