'Gotten so, so much worse': Biden’s allies increasingly worried about his fragile state

04 July 2024

President Joe Biden's inner circle has been working hard to conceal the 81 year-old's fragile state for the better part of the 2024 cycle only to have the most recent televised debate confirm everyone's fears, according to a new report.

In a Thursday article for New York Magazine, journalist Olivia Nuzzi wrote in-depth about conversations with "Democratic officials, activists and donors" who all shared their concern about Biden's cognitive health. In one section of her article, Nuzzi conveyed the account of a witness to an exchange Biden had with a large campaign donor at a recent White House meet-and-greet.

When the donor introduced themselves, Biden reportedly "stared blankly and nodded his head." This prompted First Lady Jill Biden to "whisper in her husband’s ear, telling him to say 'hello' to the donor by name and to thank them for their recent generosity." Biden then "repeated the words his wife had fed him."

"It hasn’t been good for a long time but it’s gotten so, so much worse," the witness to the exchange told Nuzzi. "So much worse!"

Nuzzi then recalled a personal exchange she had with the 46th president of the United States at this year's White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCD) earlier this year. Even though she credited the first lady (referring to her as "Dr. Biden" out of respect) for a moving gesture of warmth after hearing about the death of Nuzzi's mother, the journalist noted that Bidenworld had long been upset with her over her reporting on Biden's age during the 2020 election. In the last cycle, Nuzzi had written that "watching Biden can feel like being at the rodeo... because on some level you know you might see someone get killed."

So when the first lady noticed Nuzzi in line to take a photo at the WHCD, she reportedly wore a "confused, panicked expression." Nuzzi then realized the reason for her concern — President Biden looked like "something not of this earth."

"It’s not that he’s old. We all know what old looks like. Bernie Sanders is old. Mitch McConnell is old. Most of the ruling class is old," she wrote. "His thin skin, long a figurative problem and now a literal one, was pulled tightly over cheeks that seemed to vary month to month in volume. Under artificial light and in the sunshine, he took on an unnatural gleam. He looked, well, inflated. His eyes were half-shut or open very wide. They appeared darker than they once had, his pupils dilated. He did not blink at regular intervals."

"My heart stopped as I extended my hand to greet the president. I tried to make eye contact, but it was like his eyes, though open, were not on. His face had a waxy quality," she continued. "He took my hand in his, and I was startled by how it felt. Not cold but cool. The basement was so warm that people were sweating and complaining that they were sweating. This was a silly black-tie affair. I said 'hello.' His sweet smile stayed frozen. He spoke very slowly and in a very soft voice. 'And what’s your name?' he asked."

"Exiting the room after the photo, the group of reporters — not instigated by me, I should note — made guesses about how dead he appeared to be, percentage wise. 'Forty percent?' one of them asked," she added.

Even though Biden's debate performance was widely seen as shocking even for supporters of the president, Nuzzi observed that it was actually an improvement compared to her own interactions with him and conversations with his backers.

"[W]hen I watched the president amble stiffly across the stage, my first thought was: He doesn’t look so bad. For months, everything I had heard, plus some of what I had seen, led me to brace for something much more dire," she wrote.

Click here to read Nuzzi's full article in New York Magazine.

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