US: Biden says 'I'm running' as his campaign struggles

US President Joe Biden Friday zeroed in on rival Donald Trump at a rally in Michigan, a pivotal state in US presidential politics.

Biden drew cheers from the crowd at the rally held at a high school gym in Detroit, as he laid into "right-wing Project 2025."

The project is a series of conservative proposals that is led by former Trump officials along with others, which they hope Trump will adopt if he's elected. Trump has recently tried to distance himself from the project, even though many of his closest policy advisers are deeply involved.

Biden called "Project 2025" a "blueprint" for a second Trump term that represented a big attack on American values. 

Biden says press has been 'hammering' him

Biden pointed to the press area at the high school gym and said: "They've been hammering me," to which the crowd booed.

"Guess what, Donald Trump has gotten a free pass," he added, and then declared Trump a "threat to this nation."

Biden's poor performance in the presidential debate last month sparked concerns among members of his Democratic party that his age and health could cost their party the White House ticket.

Biden says 'I am running and we're going to win'

But Biden has dug in even as pressure on him to step aside grew, with his mixed performance at a solo news conference yesterday leaving Democrats in a state of limbo regarding his fate.

"You made me the nominee,” Biden said at the rally, referring to the millions of Democrats who backed him in the primaries. “You the voters. You decided. No one else. And I’m not going anywhere.”

He added that he is “the only Democrat or Republican that has beaten Donald Trump ever, and I’m going to beat him again.”

"There's been a lot of speculation lately," he said, acknowledging the dispute in his party about the path forward in the presidential contest.

"Here's my answer: I am running and we're going to win. I'm not going to change that," Biden said, to chants of "Don't you quit."

Who supports Biden and who doesn't?

Biden got a boost earlier in the day when two prominent Democrats—  Representative James Clyburn and California Governor Gavin Newsom — said he should stay in the race.

But there were signs that his support was weakening elsewhere, as two more lawmakers called on him to drop out.

"It is time to move forward. With a new leader," Representative Mike Levin, from California, said in a statement. 

Since the presidential debate, at least 19 lawmakers have urged Biden to step aside so the party can pick another candidate, as have some donors, Hollywood stars, activist groups and news outlets. 

sp/rm (Reuters, AFP)