WATCH: Anderson Cooper Presses Kamala Harris On Whether Biden Should Resign, Leading To Verbal Spat

CNN’s Anderson Cooper pressed Vice President Harris over President Biden’s horrific debate performance on Thursday night. Cooper pointed to a report from CNN’s John King, who revealed that Democrat lawmakers and strategists are mulling whether to pressure Biden to step down, and asked the vice president if she would support such a move.

“Some within your own party are wondering if President Biden should even step aside. What do you say to that?” Cooper asked. Harris did not answer the question and instead attempted to hype up President Biden’s performance.

“Listen, first of all, what we saw tonight is the president making a very clear contrast with Donald Trump on all of the issues that matter to the American people. Yes, there was a slow start, but it was a strong finish. And what became very clear through the course of the night is that Joe Biden is fighting on behalf of the American people, on substance, on policy, on performance,” she said. “Joe Biden is extraordinarily strong. And that cannot be debated.”

(VOTE NOW: Did TRUMP or BIDEN Win The First Debate?)

A seemingly frustrated Cooper pushed back by pointing out that a number of Democrats have publicly and privately expressed concern over President Biden’s abilities after the debate. “On substance and policy and performance tonight, I mean, the president’s performance tonight clearly was disappointing for his supporters. CNN is reporting Democratic lawmakers watching the debate were worried about the president’s performance. One said it was a ‘disaster,’ another called it a ‘train wreck,’ Cooper shot back.

“Listen, people can debate on style points, but ultimately, this election and who is the President of the United States has to be about substance. And the contrast is clear,” Harris replied, again throwing cold water on the notion of President Biden stepping down. The vice president went on to once again talk up her running mate’s performance and falsely accused Trump of supporting a nationwide abortion ban,

Unsatisfied, Cooper once again reiterated that Democrats have expressed concern. The two then became embroiled in a verbal spat in which Harris continued to praise Biden’s performance while Cooper probed for answers on Biden’s ability to lead.

“This was a debate that your campaign wanted,” the CNN host said after Harris rattled off a number of what she deemed to be Biden’s accomplishments. You pushed for this debate at this moment. Obviously, I mean, you can’t honestly say, I mean, can you say that you are not concerned at all having watched the President’s performance tonight?” Cooper probed.

“It was a slow start. That’s obvious to everyone. That’s obvious to everyone. I’m not going to debate that point,” Harris replied.

CAST YOUR VOTE: Should Voter ID Be Mandatory In The 2024 Election?