Joe Biden guarantees South Carolina victory

(Image credit: Screenshot/CBS)

published 26 February 2020

Former Vice President Joe Biden pulled a Joe Namath during Tuesday night's debate in Charleston, South Carolina.

Biden, the frontrunner in the Palmetto State, was quiet for the first few minutes of the debate before he was asked about his shrinking lead ahead of Saturday's state primary. The vice president, though, wasn't lacking any confidence about his chances, despite having previously described South Carolina as his campaign's firewall.

He said he was determined to win the state and would maintain his support among African American voters, but he eventually went into a full-on Namath-style guarantee when he was asked if he would drop out in a scenario where he didn't emerge victorious. Biden never answered that question directly, opting only to say "I will win South Carolina."Tim O'Donnell

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.