Anonymous Democratic lawmakers admitted that President Biden has long shown signs of cognitive decline in their interactions with him, as Biden faces increasing pressure to drop out of the race following his shaky debate performance.
“The country saw [at the debate] what those of us who have had personal interactions with him have all known for the last 2½ years,” one Democratic senator told NBC News.
Biden’s halting performance at the debate last week reinforced concerns about his age and fitness for office that have been growing for months. The Biden campaign has been working damage control with major donors this past week, as political allies, high-profile donors, media pundits and editorial boards demand he step down.
Another Democratic lawmaker told NBC News that as many as 40 Democratic lawmakers have been texting one another since the debate, each one believing it’s time for the president to bow out.
Biden has resisted these calls thus far, telling a supporter at the White House July 4 celebration on Thursday that he’s “not going anywhere.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also faced an onslaught of questions about Biden’s fitness for office at Wednesday’s press briefing. She said the administration has been “transparent” about Biden’s health and dismissed the debate as a “bad night.”
However, anonymous Democratic lawmakers in the NBC report said the president’s debate performance wasn’t a one-off and was consistent with concerning behavior they’ve seen throughout his term.
One lawmaker noticed Biden looking “exceedingly tired” during meetings and said his debate performance was “not an aberration” from what they’ve witnessed from the president.
Another Democratic lawmaker who saw Biden up-close after his State of the Union address claimed the president looked “frail and weak.”
At the time, political allies hailed Biden’s performance, claiming it showcased his energy, while fervent supporters in the liberal media argued his performance should dispel concerns about his age.
“[T]hose Dems complaining that Biden lacks vigor and fight getting splash of cold water in the face right now,” former CNN journalist John Harwood posted to X on March 8, adding that the “people yapping for so long about Biden not being up to the job look pretty dumb this morning.”
Some Democratic lawmakers have expressed confidence in Biden’s abilities since the debate, however.
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said Biden was “sharp, engaged and energetic” in a recent phone call he had with the president to discuss strategy to overcome fallout from the debate, according to the report.
“I’ve never had a moment that led me to question his mental acuity,” Coons told NBC.
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The Biden campaign referred Fox News Digital to a host of Democratic lawmakers and governors, such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who have doubled down in their support for Biden following the debate.
The president held a closed-door meeting with Democratic governors Wednesday night. Newsom told supporters at a campaign event afterward that his 90-minute meeting with Biden assured him of his fitness for office, despite disappointment in how the debate turned out.
“It could have gone two or three hours,” Newsom said of the meeting. “And I mean this with absolute conviction. That was the Joe Biden I remember from two weeks ago. That was the Joe Biden that I remember from two years ago. That’s the Joe Biden that I’m looking forward to re-electing as president of the United States.”
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