US President Joe Biden, 79, almost fell off the stage at a New York event this weekend, just a day before the midterm elections.
On Sunday, Biden attended a rally in Yonkers, New York where around a thousand people gathered on Sarah Lawrence College' south lawn. Biden’s visit also marked the first presidential appearance in Yonkers in nearly 50 years.
There, while giving a speech about his government introducing a cap on prescription drugs sold for seniors in the States, the president nearly took a spill on stage.
While he chatted to hecklers in the city, the 79-year-old took a stumble on the stage as it took him a few moments to recollect his thoughts.
As Biden stood on the stage of the private college at the Democrat campaign event, he began one of his speeches by saying: "We put a cap - $2,000 a year - on prescription drugs for seniors. No matter what their cost, $2, $10, $12, $15..."
All of a sudden he stopped as he stumbled on something on the stage floor, while raising his right hand in the air to catch his balance as his left hand firmly held onto the microphone.
As the crowd echoed in sounds of concern, Biden, looking at the floor, said: "Oops, stepping on a – hmm – it's black. Anyway..."
Hecklers then erupted into laughter while the President looked and sounded baffled as he mumbled incoherently into the microphone.
Seeming to have gathered himself, he continued: "No matter what the cost, and some cancer drugs cost as much as that, they are never going to have to pay more than $2,000.
"And we put a $35-month cap on insulin to deal with their diabetes."
Throughout the event, President Biden also delivered an evidently chaotic speech, where he spent a large time speaking in his support for New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and how there would be 'no more drilling' in the US one day.
The American politician also spent a large time interrupting his own address to interact with the audience in front of him.
Meanwhile, at one point in the event on Sunday, the President could be heard telling someone in the crowd, "No more drilling. There is no more drilling. I haven't formed any new drilling. No."
This comes following Biden's claims during an event in California on Friday that the US will shut down coal mines in favour of wind and solar plants. And West Virginian senator, Joe Manchin, went on to blast the president for vowing to close coal plants, saying: “Comments like these are the reason the American people are losing trust in President Biden".
He called for Biden to apologise to mine workers, saying: “It seems his positions change daily depending on the audience and politics of the day.”
Biden's statement prompted a quick response from White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in an attempt to damp down the conflict.
The president - who turns 80 on November 20 - took the opportunity on Sunday to also urge voters to turn out to vote in the final days before an extraordinarily close election cycle.
As he addressed a crowd of supporters in Yonkers, he said: “New York, you have two days to make sure the rest of New York knows the good that they have in Kathy Hochul."
And referring to the moment as an “inflection point” in the nation and state's history, he added: “Two days until the most important election in our lifetime.”
The midterm elections are held near the middle of the current US president’s time in office, and will shape Congress, state governors and other offices until the next election.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for grabs and a further 35 seats are being contested in the Senate – the two institutions that makeup Congress.
US voters will head to the polls on 8 November 2022, where it is expected that results will be announced within 24 hours - for the majority of seats.
And while the midterm elections do not solely impact the 2024 Presidential Election, they do give an indication of how the president is fairing, and the general public’s attitude towards the US president.
