OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
President Joe Biden will once again skip what has become a tradition in recent years – sitting for an interview during the Super Bowl, a decision that is likely to raise new questions about his perceived cognitive decline.
Politico reported: “Presidents have traditionally sought to leverage the marquee football event’s broad viewership, making Biden’s decision particularly notable in an election year.”
Biden previously took part in interviews during Super Bowl broadcasts on NBC and CBS but opted out last year when Fox aired the game. This year, with CBS set to broadcast the Super Bowl on February 11, the White House confirmed that Biden would not be participating in an interview, as first reported by Variety.
“We hope viewers enjoy watching what they tuned in for — the game,” White House spokesperson Ben LaBolt told Variety.
The tradition of sitting for a Super Bowl pre-game interview began with former President Barack Obama; former President Donald Trump skipped an interview with NBC during his presidency in 2018 after becoming critical of the network’s reporting and players kneeling during the National Anthem.
Biden missing two Super Bowl interviews in a row will no doubt fuel new speculation that the White House lacks confidence in his cognitive abilities.
Biden’s current cognitive state is already putting the country at risk, but it’s only “going to get worse,” according to a former White House doctor who served during Biden’s vice presidency.
Dr. Ronny Jackson, who is now a GOP congressman from Texas, has regularly sounded the alarm bell regarding Biden’s obvious decline in mental capacity and did so again in late December as it becomes more apparent that the president is struggling more.
“[The decline is] happening quickly,” Jackson told “Sunday Morning Futures” guest host Sean Duffy, Fox News reported.
“Like you said, I’ve taken care of three presidents… so I know firsthand what it takes to be the commander-in-chief and the head of state. It’s a grueling job, both mentally and physically. This man can’t do the job. He’s proven to us every single day that he can’t do the job, but this is going to get worse,” Jackson continued.
Jackson served as a physician under the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations.
“It’s just unbelievable how much he’s degenerated just during his time in office. We cannot afford to have this man in office for the remainder of this term and then [for] another four years after that. He’s already putting us at great risk right now,” Jackson continued, noting the big change he has seen in Biden since he began running for president in 2019.
Biden just turned 81.
Jackson went on to list a number of concerns he has for the direction of the country, including a potential new war overseas, the ongoing migrant crisis at the southwestern border, the economy, and other issues.
“[Look at] the wars that we’re getting drawn into. Things that wouldn’t happen if Donald Trump were there because our enemies don’t fear us anymore. They have no respect for us anymore and our adversaries don’t trust us anymore, and it’s because we don’t have the leadership in the White House that we need,” he told Duffy.
“It’s because this man, even if he wanted to, he cannot provide that leadership. He is not physically and cognitively fit for office anymore, and somebody in his inner circle needs to step up to the plate and make him aware of this, and he needs to move on for the safety and security of this country,” Jackson continued.
After Biden fell on stage during the Air Force Academy commencement over the summer, Jackson expressed additional concerns that the president is no longer up for the job.
“I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I’m just going to say it again: This man’s not fit mentally or physically to be our president,” Jackson said during an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Friday.
“It’s just a bad situation for us,” he continued. “Part of the job of the president of the United States is to inspire confidence and to project power. And he’s not doing that. He can’t do that. He’s too old to do that.”
