President Joe Biden was asked about his age during a press conference, particularly whether it and his mental competence are getting in the way of his being president. Rather than give a reasoned, responsible answer that showed his brain is still firing on all cylinders, Biden went berserk and snapped at the reporter, saying, “that is your judgment” repeatedly.
As background, the special counsel investigating President Joe Biden’s handling of classified information released the report’s conclusion to the public on Thursday, February 8th. In the report, on paragraph drew the shock and scorn of many on the right, as the special counsel justified not bringing up charges against President Biden in part by declaring that Biden’s failings of memory would make him sympathetic to a jury and potentially mean he wasn’t at the mental standard required for the crime.
In that now-infamous paragraph, which was meant to show that Biden might just have not been recalling things correctly when he made an untrue statement about the documents, the special counsel said, “We have also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone for whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him—by then a former president well into his eighties of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.”
Another section that drew particular concern provided, “In his interview with our office, Mr. Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (“if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?”), and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (“in 2009, am I still Vice President?”), He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died. And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him. Among other things, he mistakenly said he “had a real difference” of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, when, in fact, Eikenberry was an ally whom Mr. Biden cited approvingly in his Thanksgiving memo to President Obama. In a case where the government must prove that Mr. Biden knew he had possession of the classified Afghanistan documents after the vice presidency and chose to keep those documents, knowing he was violating the law, we expect that at trial, his attorneys would emphasize these limitations in his recall.”
The Biden Administration then arranged a press conference which began at 7:45 EST on Thursday, February 8th. During the press conference, President Biden was asked about his mental health, a pertinent question given the above comment about his advanced age and mental state. That is when he went berserk and snapped at the reporter.
Beginning, the reporter said, broaching the question, “For months when you were asked about your age, you would respond with the words ‘Watch me.’” Biden then interrupted the reporter, saying, “Watch me.” She blazed on regardless, saying, “Then the American people have been watching and they have expressed concerns about your age.” That’s when Biden got angry. Interrupting her, he fired back, “That is your judgment!” Yelling it again, he snapped, “That is your judgment!” He continued, “That is not the judgment of the press.”
Continuing despite Biden’s rudeness, the reporter forged ahead and asked why he continues clinging to power despite his age and his having admitted that other people could run in his stead. She said, “They express concerns about your mental acuity, they say that you are too old. Mr. President, in December, you told me that you believed there are many other Democrats who could defeat Donald Trump. So why does it have to be you now? What is your answer to that question?” Biden said, “Because I’m the most qualified person in this country to be President of the United States and finish the job I started.”
Watch the incident here:
During the speech, Biden also addressed the situation in the Middle East and, embarrassingly given the rumors about his mental health, referred to President Al-Sissi of Egypt as the president of Mexico. Watch that gaffe here:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video
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