Biden told Senate Democrat he would "serve two terms if necessary"

Former Vice President Joe Biden told Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) that he would "serve two terms, if necessary" in response to a Politico article suggesting he had signaled he would only serve a single term if elected president, CNN's Ali Zaslav said Wednesday.

Background: Biden, who would be 81 years old by the 2024 election, has grappled with addressing his age and sharpness throughout his campaign. He has considered making a public pledge binding himself to just one term, per Politico, but aides fear such a promise could drain his political capital upon entering office.

• Instead, Politico writes the former vice president is "quietly indicating" that he won't run for reelection, with Biden campaign staffers telling Politico reporter Ryan Lizza a second-term run would be "virtually inconceivable."

What they're saying: Responding to Politico's reporting, Kate Bedingfield, Biden's deputy campaign manager tweeted Wednesday: "Lots of chatter out there on this so just want to be crystal clear: this is not a conversation our campaign is having and not something VP Biden is thinking about."

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