‘I Said That?’ Trump Backtracks on Confession He Lost 2020 Election When Confronted at Debate

Former President Donald Trump backtracked on his remark about losing the 2020 election “by a whisker” on Tuesday, claiming his words were supposed to be taken “sarcastically.”

During ABC News’ presidential debate between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, co-moderator David Muir said:

Mr. President, for three-and-a-half years after you lost the 2020 election, you repeatedly falsely claimed that you won, many times saying you won in a landslide. In the past couple of weeks leading up to this debate, you have said, quote, you “lost by a whisker,” that you, quote, “didn’t quit make it,” that you came up a little bit short.

Trump questioned, “I said that?”

Muir then asked, “Are you now acknowledging that you lost in 2020?”

The former president responded, “No, I don’t acknowledge that at all. I said that sarcastically. You know that. I said, ‘Oh, we lost by a whisker.’ That was said sarcastically. Look, there’s so much proof, all you have to do is look at it.”

Muir shot back, “I did watch all of these pieces of video. I didn’t detect the sarcasm.”

Trump said during a podcast appearance this month that he “lost by a whisker” in the 2020 election against President Joe Biden, seemingly acknowledging his electoral defeat after years of claiming that the election was stolen.

In recent months, Trump has pivoted away from rants about the outcome of the 2020 election, instead opting to focus on messaging about policy. During the debate on Tuesday, Trump described the 2020 election as “old news.”

Watch above via ABC News.

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