During a White House press briefing on Tuesday, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked about President Biden’s mental fitness.
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NewsTranscript
00:00The White House released a six-page summary back in February, I don't think that was full
00:05accounting necessarily.
00:06And Dr. O'Connor, in that memo, described the president as, quote, a healthy, active,
00:12robust 81-year-old male who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency.
00:18I think that is clearly not what the majority of Americans are seeing.
00:22And we have a new poll from CBS News that says 72 percent of registered voters say the
00:27president does not have the mental and cognitive health to serve as president.
00:31So are you saying that the majority of Americans are misguided and that they just need to trust
00:36Dr. O'Connor and take him at his word?
00:38So a couple of things, and I want to say the president is feeling better, and you saw him
00:42last night, you saw him today, but he does indeed still have a cold.
00:46Look, you know, I want to be very sensitive here, and I think it is important to be sensitive
00:51here.
00:52We understand how the American people are feeling.
00:54We get it.
00:55We do.
00:57And I do not want to take away from that.
01:00I'm not going to speak – I know that there was – you all did a poll, CNN did a poll.
01:05I'm not going to speak to every poll.
01:08I'm just not going to do that.
01:10And also, I'm – you know, constraints in doing that as we're heading into an election
01:17November, as you know.
01:19What I will say is majority of Americans also support the work that the president has doing
01:23in a sense of his agenda and what he stands for, what he's been fighting for, whether
01:28it's reproductive rights, whether it's an economy that works for all.
01:33And that is something that the president is going to continue to do.
01:36And this is why we have said, and I have said this multiple times from here, is that's
01:41why the president acknowledges.
01:42We get it.
01:43We get what Americans are feeling.
01:45That's why he's acknowledging he's not a young man.
01:47That's why he's acknowledging he's a little slower than he used to be in walking
01:52and not as smooth as speaking.
01:54We get that.
01:56But we also want to make sure that we point to the successes that he's had, his record.
02:01And we want to continue to build on his unprecedented record.
02:05And I'm not going to discount what the American people see or feel.
02:10What I can say is what we know from our side of things, we can speak to his record and
02:16we can speak to what the president has been able to acknowledge.
02:19And I think that's important too.
02:21And that's basically acknowledging what Americans are seeing and feeling.
02:24If you get it, why not release more about his medical, his physical and mental health?
02:31Why not?
02:32What we have released has been very comprehensive.
02:33It has been.
02:34It has been transparent.
02:37And if you compare it, it has.
02:39We have put that out there.
02:41And we'll continue to do so, put that information out there.
02:47You know, and MJ, I want to be very clear.
02:50I get the question that you're asking me.
02:52But this is also a president who has had a historic administration.
02:57He has.
02:58In delivering on legislation, key policies.
03:02That is because with age comes wisdom and comes experience.
03:06And I think that matters as well.
03:07Did Dr. O'Connor watch the debate?
03:10I believe Dr. O'Connor traveled with us to the debate.
03:13So did he have any concerns after seeing the president's statement?
03:16No, not at all.
03:17I have one more question.