White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday defended President Biden not taking a cognitive test as part of his physical exam, arguing that the demands of the job proved he didn’t need one.
A reporter had asked why a cognitive test wasn’t included in the president’s physical exam, given the recent scrutiny he has received over major gaffes that raised questions about his mental fitness.
“Why not just have his doctor administer the test and then case closed?” the reporter asked.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre talks to reporters during the daily news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on February 28, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Jean-Pierre said Biden’s doctor felt it was unnecessary, and added that “folks need to understand that the president passes a cognitive test every day.”
“If you look at what a clinical cognitive test is – actually what it does – it is a 15-minute appointment that is administered by someone who, most of the time, people don’t actually know,” Jean-Pierre said.
She added that the president’s duties, on a daily basis, are more rigorous than that 15-minute clinical appointment.
“You think about the job growth, you think about the record small business action, you think about the bloom in that particular space of 16 million more small businesses have been created. You think about delivering historic investment that has been done by a president who has to deal with these issues every day, again, on a granular level and so his doctor, including the neurologist, do not believe that he needs one,” Jean-Pierre said.
Results of Biden’s physical examination, released later Wednesday, declared the president to be a “healthy, robust, 81-year-old.”
President Joe Biden speaks during the United Auto Workers union conference at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, DC, on January 24, 2024. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
In a release from Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the Physician for the President, Biden was declared fit to “successfully execute the duties of the presidency.”
“President Biden is a healthy, active 81-year-old male, who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency, to include those as Chief Executive, Head of State and Commander in Chief,” the release said.
Recent polling has found that Biden’s age is a major issue for a majority of not only Americans in general, but also Democrat voters.
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A recent poll from ABC/Ipsos found that 86% of Americans believe Biden is too old to serve another term, including 73% of Democrats.
Fox News’ Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.
