COVID-19, Taiwan & 2024 Election: Key Takeaways on Biden's First '60 Minutes' Interview as President

The president's very first "60 Minutes" interview as commander-in-chief was expected to take place earlier this year but was ultimately postponed after the start of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine.The president was interviewed by CBS correspondent Scott Pelley.

US President Joe Biden's first "60 Minutes" interview as commander-in-chief aired Sunday and saw the official weigh in on a series of topics, including the current status of the American economy, the Ukrainian crisis, tensions with China over Taiwan, and the 2024 presidential cycle.

The two-part interview was held at both the White House and in Detroit, Michigan, where the pair toured the location of the Detroit Auto Show. Biden used the Detroit show to reaffirm his commitment to electric cars.

Prior to the Sunday broadcast, Biden last appeared on the show days before the 2020 presidential election, according to Deadline.

'The Pandemic is Over'

Over two years after the COVID-19 pandemic was declared by the World Health Organization, Biden took the opportunity during the broadcast to declare that the "pandemic is over" before admitting that some "problems" still persisted.

“We still have a problem with Covid. We’re still doing a lot of work on it ... but the pandemic is over," the American president conceded. "If you notice, no one’s wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape. And so I think it’s changing.”

He later remarked during the interview that he did not take lightly the effect that the pandemic had on Americans.

“The impact on the psyche of the American people as a consequence of the pandemic is profound,” he acknowledged. “Think of how that has changed everything. You know, people’s attitudes about themselves, their families, about the state of the nation, about the state of their communities. And so there’s a lot of uncertainty out there, a great deal of uncertainty. And we lost a million people.”

In the hours that followed the broadcast, it was revealed by Politico that Biden's declaration of the pandemic being "over" caught "several" of the president's health officials by "surprise."

To note, the US government still lists COVID-19 as a public health emergency as the nation continues to record cases of the novel coronavirus. In fact, latest figures provided by the Johns Hopkins University indicate that millions of COVID-19 cases were recorded in the last month. Data provided by the resource center lists 54,504 deaths documented over a 28-day period.

Biden himself contracted COVID-19 in July, and tested positive for a second time in a "rebound" case. The president was fully vaccinated, and only encountered mild symptoms when he initially tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus earlier commented that the globe has "never been in a better position to end the pandemic" but that the public wasn't quite there yet. He underscored that the "end is in sight."

US Forces Will Defend Taiwan in Event of 'Unprecedented Attack' by China

Reiterating past remarks, Biden stressed that the United States would defend Taiwan if China carries out an unprecedented attack on the self-governing island that Beijing sees as part of its territory.

Asked whether the US would ever deploy American troops to Taiwan amid tensions with China, Biden responded with: "Yes, if in fact there was an unprecedented attack."

The president said he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agree with the 'One-China' policy, adding that Taiwan makes their own judgment about their independence.

"Taiwan makes their own judgments about their independence,'' the president said. "We're not encouraging their being independent.''

Over the last several years, the Chinese government has repeatedly called on the US to steer clear of its domestic matters, previously warning that the Taiwan trip made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was "provocative" and actively "pushing the envelope on China's red lines."

CBS News, following the interview, asked the White House about Biden's remarks on defending Taiwan, which they replied with a similar response, saying the United States' policy on Taiwan has not changed. The White House has reiterated the same stance after each of Biden's past similar comments on the topic.

Too Early to Discuss 2024 Presidential Bid

With the midterm elections just around the corner and chatter about the 2024 presidential cycle slowly churning, Biden relayed to Pelley that it was simply too early to discuss his potential reelection bid in 2024.

"If I were to say to you, 'I'm running again,' all of a sudden a whole range of things come into play, requirements I have to change... in terms of election law, and it's much too early to make that kind of decision," Biden said.

"I'm a great respecter of fate. And so, what I'm doing is I'm doing my job. I'm gonna do that job. And within the timeframe that makes sense after this next election cycle here, going into next year, make a judgment on what to do."

However, he subsequently stated that although he has discussed his intention to run in the 2024 election, it's not entirely certain he will be tossing his name into the race.

"Look, my intention as I said to begin with is that I would run again," the president said. "But it's just an intention. But is it a firm decision that I run again? That remains to be seen."

As the oldest president to hold office, Biden went on to remark that his mental focus is indeed "focused."

"I no more think of myself as being as old as I am than fly. I mean, it's just not - I haven't observed anything in terms of - there's not things I don't do now that I did before, whether it's physical, or mental, or anything else."

US in Better Shape Now Than Russia in Terms Of Economy

The interview also saw Biden state he was "more optimistic than before" about the US being able to get its inflation issues under control, using the moment to say that the status of the American economy is "in much better shape than anyone else is and relative to Russia, particularly."

Momentarily gearing toward the Ukrainian crisis, Biden reiterated that the American backing of Ukraine was "ironclad," and that it would remain so "as long as it takes."

Asked about the use of nuclear weapons in the ongoing special military operation, Biden urged against such a move, warning it would "change the face of war unlike anything since World War II."

He continued, detailing that a US response to nuclear weapons use would be "consequential."

Russia has repeatedly stated that it has "no need" to use nuclear arms in Ukraine. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu previously stated that Moscow's only purpose in tapping nuclear firearms would be to "deter a nuclear attack."

"The media are spreading speculation about the alleged use of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in the course of the special military operation, or about the readiness to use chemical weapons. All these informational attacks are absolute lies," the defense minister said at an August conference.

To date, the US and its allies have dispatched over $34 billion in military equipment to Ukraine. The White House most recently announced a defense aide of $600 million, a delivery that include ammunition for HIMARS, radar equipment, anti-drone systems and cold weather gear among other packages.