FLASHBACK: White House press sec Karine Jean-Pierre laughs off question on Biden's health in 2022
Details of a new book on former President Joe Biden’s physical decline have emerged, revealing several secret concerns over his health despite then-White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre publicly laughing at the question.
"Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again," authored by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios reporter Alex Thompson, is set to be released on Tuesday, but a recent excerpt has gone viral after detailing discussions about putting Biden in a wheelchair after the 2024 election.
"Biden's physical deterioration — most apparent in his halting walk — had become so severe that there were internal discussions about putting the president in a wheelchair, but they couldn't do so until after the election," the excerpt read.
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Though these discussions happened behind the scenes, White House officials, including Jean-Pierre, largely downplayed issues regarding Biden’s age and stamina in public even as they became more prominent.
In 2022, while giving an interview with then-CNN host Don Lemon, Jean-Pierre looked visibly stunned at the question over whether Biden could continue past 2024.
"Don, you're asking me this question," Jean-Pierre exclaimed, snickering. "Oh my gosh. He's the President of the United States. I can’t even keep up with him."
After some stammering, she added, "That is not a question that we should be even asking. Just look at the work he does. And look how he's delivering for the American public."
Lemon went on to defend his question, saying that people should know the "health, history, both physically and mentally," of the president and pointing out that the media have "certainly" questioned the mental capacity of presidential candidates like Donald Trump.
"I’m not as sharp as I used to be. And the job of President of the United States is a really, really tough job," Lemon said. "I'm sure he's up to the job, but it is my job as a journalist to ask."
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Jean-Pierre continued to defend Biden’s age throughout her term as press secretary and has laughed more than once at the demand that the president answer questions about his health.
In a comment to Fox News Digital, a Biden spokesperson said their team did not review or fact-check the book before its release and stood by their argument that Biden was an effective president.
"We continue to await anything that shows where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or where national security was threatened or where he was unable to do his job. In fact, the evidence points to the opposite - he was a very effective president," the statement read.