Biden and Trump spar on immigration, age

ATLANTA

U.S. President Joe Biden and presumptive White House challenger Donald Trump traded barbs on March 9 on the key topics of age and immigration, as they targeted the battleground state of Georgia.

Biden, hoping to ride the momentum from a feisty State of the Union speech on March 7, went to the state's capital of Atlanta to mobilize Black and Hispanic voters.

He once again attacked his Republican predecessor, who has vowed to be a "dictator" for one day.

"When he says he wants to be a dictator, I believe him," Biden told a rally, highlighting U.S. economic strength while promising action to cut costs in areas such as housing, health and education.

In an interview with MSNBC aired March 8 night, Biden said he regretted using the term "an illegal" when referring to the killer of a nursing student last month in Georgia.

"I shouldn't have used 'illegal,' it's 'undocumented,'" said Biden, who has been criticized by progressives and members of his own party for using terminology more commonly employed by Republicans.

Trump, who is pledging a crackdown on illegal immigration as a key plank of his campaign, talked at length during his rally on March 9 about the slain student.

"Laken Riley would be alive today if Joe Biden had not willfully and maliciously eviscerated the borders of the United States," he told a crowd of supporters in Georgia's Republican-leaning northwestern corner.

He slammed Biden for backtracking on his use of the word "illegal" to describe the Venezuelan suspect in the crime, saying, "Biden should be apologizing for apologizing to this killer."

At his rally, Trump also pretended to be a stuttering Biden, mocking his 81-year-old opponent.

Biden's campaign launched a TV ad Saturday in which the president directly addresses his advanced age, a major concern among voters.

"Look, I'm not a young guy. That's no secret. But here is the deal. I understand how to get things done for the American people," he says in the spot.

Trump's team quickly responded with a video message that starts with Biden's statement, followed by clips of the president stumbling, falling or looking confused.