Biden, 81, appears to forget his own Defense Secretary's name and calls him 'black man' as chorus to step down reaches fever pitch

Joe Biden appeared to forget his own Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's name during an interview and instead called him 'black man.' 

The president was speaking while campaigning in Las Vegas - a trip that was cut short on Wednesday when the 81-year-old tested positive for COVID-19. 

In the interview with Black Entertainment Television, Biden said: 'It's all about treating people with dignity. For example, look at the heat I'm getting because I named a, uh, the Secretary of Defense, a black man.'

It comes as Barack Obama today joined the chorus of top Democrats pressuring Biden to bow out of the race amid dismal polling over concerns about his age.

The Washington Post reported Thursday that Obama - who's only spoken to Biden once since the disastrous debate - believes Biden's path to victory has greatly diminished, but thinks the president needs to make the decision to quit himself. The former president has reportedly told Democrat allies it's time for Biden to step aside.

President Joe Biden appears to forget Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's name during an interview with BET and instead refers to him simply as a 'black man'

In the clip, Biden said, 'It's all about treating people with dignity. For example, look at the heat I'm getting because I named a, uh, the secretary of Defense, a black man.' Secretary Lloyd Austin is photographed in Singapore this week 

In the BET interview, Biden made another gaffe as he failed to refer to Supreme Court Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson by her full name.

'I named Ketanji Brown, I mean, because of the people I've named,' the president said.

Biden has been under heightened scrutiny since his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump late last month when he lost his train of thought and fumbled for words.

A spokesperson for the Biden campaign didn't mention the mumbled response about Austin but said in the BET interview that the president 'talked at length about the importance of Black America, the historic ways he has delivered for Black communities, and his proactive vision to stand up for civil rights, grow an economy where hard work pays off, and make housing more affordable.' 

'Meanwhile at the RNC, Donald Trump and his MAGA allies doubled down on extremism, division, and their Project 2025 agenda, making it clear that they are only interested in helping billionaires while turning Americans against each other. The choice couldn't be more clear,' spokesperson Sarafina Chitika added. 

The Republican National Convention is happening this week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, concerns from worried Democrats are reaching a fever pitch. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are reportedly pushing him to bow out of the race. 

The official line from those lawmakers is that they didn't pressure the president to quit the race. 

President Joe Biden walks down the steps of Air Force One at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, Wednesday, July 17, 2024

Biden is self-isolating with COVID

 A spokesperson for Jeffries told ABC News: 'Leader Hakeem Jeffries privately met with President Joe Biden a week ago. On behalf of the Houe Democratic caucus, he directly expressed the full breadth of insight, perspective and conclusions reached about the path forward - after extensive colleague to colleague discussions.'

'Any further characterization of the private, one-on-one meeting between President Biden and Leader Jeffries is speculative and uninformed,' the statement continued. 'The letter sent by Leader Jeffries to the House Democratic colleagues speaks for itself.' 

The letter, released publicly Friday, didn't give details about the meat of the conversation.

President Joe Biden shakes the hand of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin before he speaks during a 4th of July event on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4, 2024 in Washington, DC

Biden arrived in Delaware on Wednesday night and was not due to make any public appearances on Thursday

Pressure for him not to pursue re-election is reaching a fever pitch

Overall, 20 Democrats have urged Biden to quit the race. 

On Wednesday, Rep. Adam Schiff - who's on track to win a California Senate seat -made his fears public. 

'While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden's alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch,' Schiff said in a statement. 'And in doing so, secure his legacy of leadership by allowing us to defeat Donald Trump in the upcoming election.'  

Axios reported Thursday that the calls have grown so loud for Biden to bow out that the announcement could come as early as this weekend. 

The president flew from Las Vegas to Dover, Delaware late Wednesday and will remain at his Rehoboth Beach home until he tests negative for COVID-19.