Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy PelosiD-Calif., said Tuesday that people are right to wonder whether President Joe Biden’s poor performance during Thursday night’s debate was just “an incident” or part of a “condition.”
“I think it’s a legitimate question to say, is this an episode, or is this a disorder? And so when people ask that question, it’s perfectly legitimate — from both candidates,” Pelosi, still a top Democratic member of the House of Representatives, said in an interview on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports.”
“Both candidates, no matter what test you give them, in terms of their mental acuity and their health, they are both guilty,” she added.
Asked for further clarification, Pelosi spokesman Ian Krager said she has “full confidence in President Biden and looks forward to his inauguration on January 20, 2025.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at the daily briefing later Tuesday that the administration has been open about Biden’s health.
“We have done a thorough and transparent annual report on his health. They have said that it is not justified, that it is not necessary” to do a cognitive test, she said.
When asked if Biden had been seen by a doctor or had a neurological scan after the debate, Jean-Pierre said people need to “take a step back” and that Biden’s advisers understand the president had a “bad night.”
During last week’s debate, Biden repeatedly seemed to lose his way and stumbled over his words. His performance — which even close allies acknowledged was a setback — reignited speculation about whether he should be replaced as the Democratic presidential nominee.
Trump, who is 78, has also faced questions about his mental health after confusing Pelosi with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley earlier this year. Several business people who met with Trump in Washington, D.C., last month also told CNBC that he was “noticeably rambling” and “couldn’t keep a straight thought” during the event.
Biden, who is 81, acknowledged via teleprompter during a campaign event on Friday that he has gotten older and is not as good a debater as he once was. But he insisted he is up to the job.
Pelosi said she’s heard mixed messages from elected Democrats about whether Biden should stay in the race. On the one hand, she said, people say, “Joe’s our guy. We love him; we trust him. He has vision, knowledge, judgment, integrity. The other guy has none of the above.”
“It’s up to Joe Biden to do what he thinks,” she said. “There’s no more patriotic person in our country than the president of — this president of the United States.”
Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas on Tuesday became the first Democrat in Congress to call on Biden to drop out of the race. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., told CNN on Tuesday that while it is ultimately the president’s decision whether to withdraw or not, “we have to be honest with ourselves that it wasn’t just a terrible night.”
Pelosi said she is not a doctor and cannot predict what will happen three or four years from now, but she said her experience tells her he “will continue to be a great president of the United States.”
She stressed that Biden needs to show the American people who he is without having to write a script. She advised him to do a few interviews with serious journalists, where every question can be asked openly and Biden can “just sit there and be Joe.”
“Not one, maybe two — a couple of those. I think that’s essential,” Pelosi said. “I think it’s essential that they do that.”
Later on Tuesday, ABC News announced that Biden would be interviewed by host George Stephanopoulos on Friday.
Pelosi said she has not spoken to Biden since last week’s debate. Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., the former House Democratic leader and a close Biden ally, said in a separate interview on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” that he also has not spoken to the president since the debate.
The White House last released Biden’s health information in February 2024, after a routine physical exam.
Jean-Pierre rejected suggestions at the time that Biden would need to take a cognitive test, saying the president “takes a cognitive test every day” as he “goes from one topic to another and understands the detailed level of these topics.”
Trump released a letter from his doctor in November 2023 saying the former president was in “excellent” physical and mental health. However, the document did not include details about vital signs or test results.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
