US President Joe Biden acknowledged on Tuesday that “almost fell asleep” in the debate against former President Donald Trump (2017-2021) and has attributed the fatigue to the trips he had made only days before to Italy for the G7 summit and to France for the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

“I decided to go around the world a couple of times just before the debate.“I didn’t listen to my team and then I almost fell asleep on stage,” he said during a fundraising event in McLean, Virginia, just outside Washington. “It’s not an excuse, it’s an explanation,” he added.

Biden has been harshly criticized for his performance in the debate in which he projected an aged imagewith a hoarse voice and difficulty finishing some of his sentences, increasing doubts among voters and members of the Democratic Party about his ability to continue governing and to face Trump in the November elections.

The president had a brief participation in the event that lasted about six minutes in which he also expressed that although he regretted his performance in the debate it was ““crucial” to win the electionsHe was then escorted out of the building by his team. The president usually gives longer speeches at these types of events where he meets with donors to his party.

On Monday night, Biden also had a brief meeting with journalists covering the White House. to give his opinion on the Supreme Court’s decision to grant partial immunity to former presidentsbut did not answer questions and did not address the issue of what happened in the debate.

Following his performance on June 27, sources close to Biden’s team said the president’s hoarseness was due to a cold he had been experiencing for several days. On Tuesday, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said that Biden was not taking medication during the day of the debate and denied that the president suffered from Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia. Jean-Pierre defended that Biden can continue to carry out his work despite his agewho at 81 years old makes him the oldest president in the history of the United States.