“We have a president here who by all appearances is not up to the task, and these are very dangerous times. This is a very serious moment in American history, and it needs to be regarded and handled as such,” Johnson said.

During a campaign rally Friday afternoon in Raleigh, North Carolina, Biden didn’t go into his performance in depth, but he acknowledged the reaction it drew.

“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious,” he said, adding, “I don’t debate as well as I used to. ... I know, like millions of Americans, when you get knocked down, you get back up,” he said to loud cheers.

He added moments later that he wouldn’t be seeking a second term unless he knew “with my heart and soul that I can do the job.”

Biden also called Trump a “one-man crime spree,” prompting the boisterous crowd to chant, “Lock him up.” Biden chuckled and replied, “There’s time for that.”

Biden left the stage to Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down,” a new feature since his previous rally.

Trump: ‘Big victory’

Hours later, Trump wasted no time hitting Biden once he stepped onto a sun-drenched stage in Chesapeake, Virginia. He declared a “big victory” in the debate and dubbed Biden “incompetent.”

“He studied so hard that he didn’t know what the hell he was doing,” Trump said of Biden’s weeklong cram session. “No amount of rest or rigging could help him defend his record. ... As every American saw firsthand last night, this election is a choice between strength and weakness, competence and incompetence, peace or prosperity (and) war or no war.”

Trump said he did not believe “many people” who were saying Biden would be leaving the race. The White House, however, was not saying that.

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