Hillary Clinton backs Biden after rough debate, says 'criminal' Trump is running for president to seek 'revenge'

WASHINGTON, DC: In the wake of President Joe Biden's rough debate performance on Thursday night, June 27, Hillary Clinton has expressed her support for his candidacy.

Publicly endorsing the president, the former Democratic nominee took to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, June 28 to announce, “I’ll be voting Biden."

Hillary Clinton's criticism of Donald Trump

In the X post linked back to the website for the Biden-Harris campaign website, Clinton took a jab at former President Donald Trump.

“It’s a choice between someone who cares about you—your rights, your prospects, your future—versus someone who’s only in it for himself,” she wrote.

In The New York Times op-ed published by Clinton before the presidential debate, she advised Biden proving Trump's arguments wrong would be a "waste of time.”

She also criticized Trump's record and emphasized the importance of a second term for Biden.

“This election is between a convicted criminal out for revenge and a president who delivers results for the American people,” Clinton wrote in the piece published on Tuesday, June 25.

“No matter what happens in the debate, that’s an easy choice," she added.

VP Kamala Harris says Donald Trump's return would be a 'destruction of democracy'

Vice President Kamala Harris, acting as a surrogate for Joe Biden on CNN following the 90-minute debate, urged Americans not to judge Biden's presidency by his debate performance alone.

Speaking to CNN's Anderson Cooper, Harris said, “It was a slow start; that’s obvious to everyone. I’m not going to debate that point. I’m talking about the choice in November."

“Do we want to look at what November will bring and go on a course for America that is about a destruction of democracy, electing a man who has said he’ll be a dictator on day one?” the VP added.

Speculations arise on Democratic alternatives after Joe Biden's weak debate performance

Despite endorsements from Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris, several Democratic operatives are considering potential replacements for Joe Biden.

Former Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo) highlighted Harris and California Gov Gavin Newsom (D) as potential candidates.

Both of them have made media appearances following the CNN debate in Atlanta.

Speaking to MSNBC's Rachel Maddow in an interview following the face-off, McCaskill said, “Those two people are signaling to a whole lot of Americans who are paying attention, ‘How come they are not at the top of the ticket?’”

In late August, the Democratic National Convention is set to convene for the party to officially select its nominee for the presidential election, per The Hill.