Special Counsel Questioning Biden Mental Acuity
'My memory is fine' - Biden hits back at special counsel
US President Joe Biden has angrily criticised an investigation that found he mishandled top secret files and said he struggled to recall key life events.
The inquiry found Mr Biden "wilfully retained and disclosed" classified files, but decided not to charge him.
The scathing 345-page report said the president's memory had "significant limitations".
The special counsel said Mr Biden, 81, could not recall when he was vice-president (from 2009-2017),
The special counsel concluded it would be difficult to convict the president of improper handling of files because "at trial, Mr Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory".
BBC 9 February 2024
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68244352
Yet even as he defended himself against a tide of scrutiny about his mental fitness, Biden mistakenly referred to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as the leader of Mexico.
That remark — made at the end of the news conference after he had nearly walked out of the room — was likely to fuel the concerns of those already worried about his fitness.
Voters have said Biden’s age ranks as one of their biggest concerns as he heads into a likely rematch with former President Donald Trump, 77, in November.
Trump has also suffered from numerous mental lapses.
Bloomberg 9 February 2024
President Joe Biden once again mixed up European leaders, twice conflating former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl with Angela Merkel while speaking to donors at fundraisers Wednesday in New York.
Mistake comes days after confusing France’s Macron, Mitterrand
Bloomberg 8 February 2024
https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2024/02/biden-confuses-european-leaders-swaps.html
Biden’s Age Back in Spotlight After Special Counsel Report,
“The most damaging thing that can happen to a politician is to have an existing negative suspicion confirmed. This is why this is challenging,” said James Carville, a veteran Democratic strategist and former adviser to President Clinton.
“When people see this, they will say, ‘Look, Martha, I told you so.’”
Wall Street Journal 8 February 2024
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