OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a comment about President Joe Biden’s age during an interview earlier this week that was immediately ridiculed by social media users.
During a conversation about the future of democracy on Monday with Evan Smith, a journalist with the Atlantic, the California Democrat asserted that Biden’s age is not a concern as he is younger than she is.
“He is absolutely a magnificent leader,” she claimed. “He is younger than I am . . . so I don’t know what the problem is.”
Twitter users were prompted to highlight several flaws in Pelosi’s argument, contrary to her belief that it was a strong defense of Biden. To begin with, Biden is not significantly younger than Pelosi, as she claimed. With Pelosi being 82 and Biden being 80, the age gap between them is not significant, and they are practically of the same age, the Western Journal noted.
A Twitter user argued that comparing Biden’s youth to Pelosi’s was not a compelling argument, as Pelosi herself seemed to display signs of aging. He wrote, “Someone needs to tell @SpeakerPelosi that this is NOT the winning point she thinks it is. She also seems somewhat impaired in looks, voice & mannerisms.”
Another Twitter user noted, “Watch this without sound and tell me she doesn’t look absolutely Insane.”
Still another user noted that it’s not the age of Biden, but rather his perceived inability to function to a level required by his duty as leader of the free world. “They keep defending Biden’s calendar age, as if that’s the issue, and not his obvious infirmity,” the user wrote.
WATCH:
Nancy Pelosi on Biden: "He is absolutely a magnificent leader. He is younger than I am, so I don't know what the problem is." pic.twitter.com/2okqV4EYRx
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 13, 2023
Questions surrounding Biden’s mental fitness have been swirling since before he took office. One of the most vocal has been Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), a former White House physician who held his position when Biden was vice president under Barack Obama.
During a recent appearance on Fox News, Jackson spoke about a cancerous lesion that was removed from Biden, saying he believes it is not only the lesion that has to be removed. Jackson’s comment, which was criticized by some, was his opinion that Biden needs to be removed from office.
“I wonder about the conversation about his capacity,” the host said to Republican Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson. “You have been talking about the president’s cognitive abilities being a national security risk. Tell us more.”
“He’s what needs to be removed, not the lesion they found. But this is just another effort from his physician and from his medical team to distract. They’re going to talk about this. They gave us a bunch of useless information about his cholesterol and stuff that no one cares about,” the former White House doctor said.
“All we care about in this country with regards to President Biden — 80 years old, who’s got some obvious cognitive issues — is a cognitive assessment of some sort. We want something on the record to prove to us he’s cognitively capable of doing this job, and it’s almost a moot point at this stage, because we all know he’s not,” he told host Maria Bartiromo.
Biden’s doctor announced earlier this month that a skin lesion removed from his chest last month was identified as a basal cell carcinoma, which is a prevalent type of skin cancer. The doctor also stated that no additional treatment was necessary, according to reports.
During Biden’s routine physical on February 16th, his longtime physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor confirmed that all cancerous tissue had been successfully removed. Despite being 80 years old, Biden was declared “healthy, vigorous,” and “fit” to perform his duties as president by O’Connor during the examination, the Associated Press reported.
O’Connor also reported that the area where the skin lesion was removed from Biden’s chest has healed well, and the president will continue to undergo regular skin screenings as part of his standard health care plan, the AP noted.
O’Connor’s summary of Biden’s health last month also stated that several non-melanoma skin cancers had been removed from the president’s body before he took office. He attributed the cancers to Biden’s extensive sun exposure during his younger years, which had been well-documented.