Did Joe Biden just have another Ron Burgundy moment? That was the topic of discussion on Saturday afternoon after the president spoke on the phone with Democrats in the House of Representatives.
When Biden spoke to the Congressional Progressive Caucus to allay fears about his sinking mental and physical health, he became irate and began shouting. He offered no plan and instead descended deeper into his delusions when pressed about how to turn his campaign around.
“It was bad,” said one participant on the conference call. “No plan.”
When members pressed him to share how he would turn the campaign around, Biden simply listed policy accomplishments and emphasized that his poll numbers were looking better.
— Rachael Bade (@rachaelmbade) July 13, 2024
One of his advisers slipped the president a note that said, “Stay positive, you sound defensive.” He read the note verbatim.
RELATED: Biden’s White House rushes to cover up the president’s latest ‘Ron Burgundy’ moment
While @JoeBidenDuring a conference call with the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the president said his staff gave him a memo telling him to “stay positive, you sound defensive.” Biden read the memo aloud to those on the call.
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) July 13, 2024
The reactions came immediately.
Whoever operates the teleprompter is president
— End of Wokeness (@EndWokeness) July 13, 2024
Great story. Captivating and meaningful. pic.twitter.com/rVpJdkFjmC
– Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) July 13, 2024
I’ll be fair and consider the possibility that this wasn’t a Ron Burgundy moment and that Biden read the note as a joke. This is what lawmakers called an obvious clean-up attempt after the fact. How true is this? Without the audio recording, we simply can’t know for sure whether Biden read the note accidentally or intentionally. So the “fact-checkers” who are salivating over this article can rest straightforward.
The congressman said in the call that the president was “poking fun at his staff” who gave him the note, and the context was that he acknowledged the note but then acted the way he wanted to on the call. “It’s not as if he didn’t know what he was doing.” https://t.co/wZCGQQolkS
— Katie Rogers (@katierogers) July 13, 2024
True or not, imagine calling yourself a journalist and then being such a shameless stenographer. She might as well be on the DNC payroll. Republicans never get this kind of “no questions asked” treatment on controversial issues.
Regardless, what does it say about the president that his advisers have to step in and pass him notes? Who is actually in charge? That is the main concern of many Americans, including a majority who say Biden is too aged to fulfill the duties of the office.
It is perfectly normal for presidents to receive private notes with private instructions that they are supposed to mindlessly read aloud. https://t.co/WBbgS7Vx8w
— Sunny (@sunnyright) July 13, 2024
The fact that the president continues to struggle with his anger isn’t exactly reassuring either. As a recent call to MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” showed, Biden is easily irritable, a symptom of his possible dementia. This was a call with his party colleagues. Instead of yelling at them, he should have calmed them down. That he couldn’t control himself (again) says a lot.
I don’t think Biden is going anywhere because he’s just too stubborn and surrounded by a family of con artists who don’t want the windfall to end. Still, these incidents aren’t going to stop. There will continue to be a steady stream of stories about his condition in the lead-up to the final debate. If he even stumbles there, it’s strenuous to imagine how he recovers. Hell, it’s strenuous to see his path forward even now, and it’s only July.
Editor’s note: This article was edited after publication for clarity.
