(Bloomberg) -- Joe Biden called an elderly Iowa voter a “damn liar” and challenged him to a push-up competition Thursday after the man accused Biden of improper dealings with Ukraine.
The voter, who was attending a Biden campaign event in New Hampton, Iowa, and identified himself only as an 83-year-old retired farmer, said Biden was “selling access” to the presidency. He also told Biden he was “too old” to serve as president, prompting Biden to challenge him to physical and mental acuity tests.
“You're a damn liar, man,” Biden shot back, before challenging him to a contest of push-ups to prove his physical mettle.
@JoeBiden's event in New Hampton, IA this morning, where a voter started out by telling Biden he had two problems with him: he was too old, and his son's work in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/ok7m0ShFPd
The voter said he had heard on television that Biden “sent” his son to Ukraine to work for a gas company that he was unqualified for. Nobody has accused Biden of sending his son to Ukraine and Biden angrily rejected the accusation that he was involved in his son's work in Ukraine or acted improperly.
Hunter Biden was on the board of a Ukrainian gas company while Biden was vice president. Biden also worked on behalf of the U.S. and allied governments to get a corrupt Ukrainian prosecutor fired.
As the exchange ended, the voter told Biden he would not support him in the caucuses.
“Of course you're not,” Biden said. “You're too old to vote for me.”
President Donald Trump has made unsubstantiated claims about Hunter Biden's business dealings. Democrats have begun impeachment proceedings against Trump, saying he sought to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens in order to gain a competitive edge in the 2020 presidential election.
(Michael Bloomberg is also seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.)
To contact the reporter on this story: Tyler Pager in New Hampton, Iowa at tpager1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Max Berley
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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