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White House officials and Democrats agitated Sunday to defend President Biden’s mental health, reflecting growing anxiety within the president’s administration over a special counsel report that stoked concerns about his age. There is.
“This is an outrageous report,” Biden’s personal lawyer Bob Bauer said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “It’s a shoddy piece of work.”
A report released Thursday cleared Biden of criminal wrongdoing in his handling of classified documents after leaving office as vice president. But Robert K. Hur, the special prosecutor in the case, characterized the 81-year-old Biden as a “well-meaning old man with a poor memory” whose “incompetence declines with age.” .
Democrats have been on the offensive to discredit Biden, arguing that it was a partisan hit that could violate Justice Department policy and taking particular issue with statements that question Biden’s memory.
“The responsibility of federal prosecutors is to investigate and know the facts and apply the law to those facts,” Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” ” he said.
“The special counsel did this in this case, concluded that there was no case, that the case was closed, and then made unnecessary and inaccurate personal statements,” Mayorkas said. But they are inappropriate.”
Although the report says there is “no warrant for criminal charges” against Biden, the description of his memory spotlights his age, which was already a top concern for voters. In a fall New York Times/Siena College poll, more than 70% of voters in battleground states agreed that Biden is “too old to be an effective president.”
Nikki Haley, a former South Carolina governor and Republican presidential candidate who also attacked former President Donald J. I have to,” he said. He spoke on “Face the Nation.” “These are the people who are making decisions about our national security. They are the people who are making decisions about the future of our economy. We know they are at the top of their game. I need to know.”
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, said the contents of the report were not surprising.
“Look, there’s no new bombshell about President Biden in this,” he said on “Fox News Sunday.” “For years, the American public has seen him as a man with memory problems. But what this report shows is that there is a blatant double standard: Joe. If Biden won’t face criminal charges, then Donald Trump shouldn’t either.”
Biden’s allies are also stepping up their campaign strategy to make the election a binary choice between Biden and Trump. Biden is a threat to democracy, and Trump himself has been accused of handling classified documents. Trump, 77, recently upset the leaders of Hungary and Turkey, warning that the countries were on the brink of World War II and claiming that he defeated Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election. he claimed.
White House officials were also quick to highlight Trump’s comments at a campaign event on Saturday, saying that during his presidency, Trump urged NATO leaders to “do whatever they want” to Russia. “I encourage it,” he said. against countries that he did not pay for military alliances.
Asked about the special counsel’s report on ABC’s “This Week,” Sen. Chris Coons, D-Delaware, said, “What our country should be focusing on is Donald Trump’s support for the rule of law, our democracy, our country. It’s about how much safety is being compromised.” .
But it was clear Sunday that Mr. Biden’s top aides and allies were also concerned about attacking Mr. Xu’s report and persuading voters concerned about Mr. Biden’s age.
“The real issues are not going to go away,” Quentin James, co-founder of Collective PAC, an organization dedicated to electing Black officials, said in an interview. “I think the only way to beat this situation is to get out on the streets again and campaign hard. And that’s what we expect from other candidates, no matter their age or experience. is.”
Mitch Landrieu, Biden’s campaign co-chairman, said on “Meet the Press” that Biden has already traveled the country throughout his presidential term to explain domestic policy.
Landrieu said of Heo’s report, “It is this humanitarian attack that calls into question the president’s competency.” Adding, “This guy is tough. He’s smart. He’s working on his game.”
The White House has also made a point of sending in officials from the prosecutor’s office to attack the credibility of the report. A day after the report was released, Vice President Kamala Harris called it “gratuitous” and “politically motivated,” citing her time as a prosecutor.
Erica L. Green and Karon Demirdjian Contributed to the report.
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