BREAKING NEWS – Biden is a ‘healthy’ and ‘vigorous’ 80-year-old who can ‘successfully execute’ his duties, his doctor says: Lesion on his chest sent for cancer testing after latest physical
- Biden’s physical exam results were largely unchanged after last year
- White House physician Colonel Kevin O’Connor says he is fit for duty
- Comes amid concerns over his age and cognitive faculties ahead of announcing 2024 run
President Joe Biden is a ‘healthy’ and ‘vigorous’ 80-year-old who is fit for office, his doctor said after his annual physical on Thursday at Walter Reed.
White House physician Colonel Kevin O’Connor provided an update on his health amid concerns over his age as he prepares to announce his 2024 run or President.
The results were largely unchanged from last side, aside from a lesion on his chest that has been sent for cancer screening.
O’Connor said Biden’s gait ‘remains stiff’, but insisted it has not worsened since last year.
There was also a detailed ‘neurologic exam’ that found nothing ‘consistent with any cerebellar or central neurological disorder’.
President Joe Biden is a ‘healthy’ and ‘vigorous’ 80-year-old who is fit for office, his doctor said after his annual physical on Thursday at Walter Reed
Biden went to Walter Reed Medical Center (pictured) in Bethesda, Maryland for his annual, routine check-up amid rising concerns from Democrats and Republicans over his age and mental fitness for office
‘He did not demonstrate any motor weakness, but a subtle difference in heat/cold sensation could be elicited’, the letter continued.
Biden did not undergo a colonoscopy like at last year’s check-up so he would not need to be sedated and temporarily hand-over power to Vice President Kamala Harris while she is in Germany for the Munich Security Conference.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted that Biden’s colonoscopy last year was good so he did not require another one.
‘The exam was straightforward, and, as you all saw, he returned to the White House to get back to work,’ Jean-Pierre said shortly after the president returned from his physical.
She previewed that O’Connor would release a ‘comprehensive report’ on Biden’s exam as proof of the administration’s continued ‘transparency.’
Biden arrived back from his physical exam at Walter Reed Medical Center Thursday morning with a little pep in his step as questions heightened over his age and fitness for office in the run-up to the 2024 election.
The president jogged back to the White House as he arrived on the South Lawn in the pouring rain, before calming his step when he was handed an umbrella.
The annual physical evaluation of the president comes as some Republicans – including President Barack Obama’s former doctor – are demanding that Biden receive a cognitive exam as well, pushing fears he is not mentally fit for office.
The president, who was pictured leaving the White House to board Marine One, will be evaluated by White House physician Colonel Kevin O’Connor.
Some experts have expressed concerns that the results of his physical will be ‘sugar coated,’ and won’t address cognition and memory issues.
Democrats are also expressing increased anxiety and worry about their leader’s age, but are also concerned about Harris becoming the nominee in 2024 without any other clear alternative.
Biden arrived back at the White House with some pep in his step on the South Lawn as he tried to get out of the pouring rain
The president slowed down once receiving an umbrella to complete his walk from Marine One to the White House
Biden’s age and fitness for office are coming under question as he makes history every day as the oldest U.S. president. Pictured: Marine One Departs the White House with Biden on board en route for Walter Reed Medical Center on Thursday
Biden is already the oldest president in U.S. history, and if he wins another term would be 82 at the time of his second inauguration.
Newly announced 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley is demanding that all politicians over the age of 75 be required to undergo ‘mandatory mental competency tests.’
Texas Representative Ronny Jackson, who served as White House physician under former President Barack Obama and Donald Trump, joined the call, demanding that the evaluation on Thursday also include a cognitive test of Biden.
‘The majority of Americans think Biden is cognitively impaired,’ Jackson tweeted. ‘He MUST get a cognitive exam with today’s physical exam, and he must release the FULL RESULTS. We need to know!!’
The president was evaluated by White House physician Colonel Kevin O’Connor, who also conducted his physical exam and released a statement on the results in November 2021
Questions have emerged both during Trump and Biden’s presidency over the two presidents’ mental fitness for office, concerns that were only heightened considering they are both senior citizens.
Following a routine medical exam in November 2021, Biden’s doctor declared him ‘fit for duty’ in a press release on the evaluation, which included a colonoscopy and ‘extremely detailed neurological exam.’
It was the first public medical report of Biden’s presidency and Dr. O’Connor addressed a couple of items that had become topics of public discourse, including his increased coughing and whether his stiff gait was indicative of neurological issues.
‘There were no findings that which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder,’ the doctor noted at the time.
Democrats remain secretly concerned, but are reluctant to raise questions over Biden’s fitness for office.
‘Nobody wants to be the one to do something that would undermine the chances of a Democratic victory in 2024,’ Minnesota Democratic Representative Dean Phillips told Politico.
‘Yet in quiet rooms the conversation is just the opposite — we could be at a higher risk if this path is cleared,’ he added.
The physical was conducted while Vice President Kamala Harris is in Germany for the Munich Security Conference this week. Biden was not put under any sedation – like required at his last exam for his colonoscopy – so there was no temporary power transfer
Biden steps off Marine One and into the Beast to drive to the medical center for his appointment
A person involved in the annual physical told CNN that concerns over Biden’s age had become ‘omnipresent.’
One senator said, according to Politico, that few Democrats in the upper chamber want Biden to run again.
But it’s unclear who Democrats would want to take his place.
During a news conference of Democratic governors touting 2022 midterm gains, the group grew quiet when asked if they felt Harris should be nominated if Biden decided not to run.
A House member, however, said that Biden should be the nominee and demanded that the reporter list proposals for alternative candidates, insisting that the president’s No. 2 is not an option.
Biden, who hasn’t officially said if he will run for reelection yet, is said to be eyeing an April announcement, which is the same month he unveiled his bid for the 2020 presidential election.
Phillips claims that most Democrats are worried about speaking out against the current president making a bid for a second term, claiming they are more concerned with damaging their own careers in politics by going against Biden.
‘It’s fear, plain and simple,’ Phillips said about the lack of Democratic officials calling for a new nominee and other potential candidates steering clear of a bid.
‘People are focused on self-preservation and their aspirations,’ he explained.
‘He’s a president of great competence and success, I admire the heck out of President Biden,’ Phillips said. ‘And if he were 15-20 years younger it would be a no-brainer to nominate him, but considering his age it’s absurd we’re not promoting competition but trying to extinguish it.’
Texas Representative Ronny Jackson, former presidential physician, demanded that Biden receive a cognitive evaluation along with his physical on Thursday
Biden holds onto the pole of the awning as he exits the White House, ahead of his physical on Thursday morning
Biden waves as he leaves the White House for his annual physical on Thursday morning
The only other Democratic lawmaker willing to publicly call for a new nominee in 2024 is Phillips’s fellow Minnesotan Representative Angie Craig.
‘I said it, I still believe it, but if the president chooses to run again I’ll respect that decision and I’ll support him,’ Craig said, according to Politico.
Democrats, according to the CNN report, have increased anxiety that Trump, even though only a few years younger, will come off as more energetic by keeping with the pace of two or three events every day.
More than a dozen Democratic operatives expressed this feeling, including prominent figures within the party privately questioning Biden’s ability to keep up with an aggressive campaign travel schedule.
If Biden wins a second term, he will leave office at the age of 86.
Trump announced his candidacy for a second non-consecutive term in mid-November. The ex-president’s once Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley announced on Tuesday her candidacy for the White House.
Haley and Trump are the only two major Republicans who have officially launched their candidacy for 2024.
Will Biden’s physical results be ‘sugarcoated’? President, 80, due to get annual White House medical TODAY – but doctors say it won’t address main concerns about his memory or cognition
President Joe Biden is due to get his annual White House physical today – but doctors warn the results could be ‘sugarcoated’.
America’s oldest ever commander-in-chief, 80, has faced serious criticism about his mental capacity following a series of high-profile gaffes, including misremembering names and dates, and even failing to properly shake hands with other world leaders.
The examination will include a routine physical, colonoscopy and neurological exam.
But some doctors, including former physician to President Barack Obama Ronny Jackson, have asked for a cognitive exam to be performed too – and for the results to be made public.
Others fear that the results of the examination will not be fully disclosed, and any health issues the President is facing will either not be revealed or downplayed to the public.
President Biden walks out of the White House as he heads to his annual physical exam at Walter Reed Medical Center on Thursday morning
Dr. David Scheiner, ex-President Barack Obama’s former doctor told the Washington Examiner ahead of the physical exam he expected the White House to ‘sugarcoat’ it.
‘You’re not going to learn anything. They sugarcoat these things,’ he said.
‘By the time he completes [a second term], he’ll be 86 years old; I don’t care if he’s in perfect health now,’ Scheiner continued.
‘I don’t care if he’s in perfect health now — which, I can’t believe he’s in perfect health. He’s had too many things in his past history.
He added: ‘It worries me that he is aging. If I look at him, he’s not a young 80.’
On Biden’s gait, he said: ‘the gait is not an insignificant factor’, adding it was ‘a peek into the whole physical, mental capability of a person’.
Former President Barack Obama’s physician Dr. David Scheiner that he expects the White House to ‘sugar coat’ the results of Biden’s physical exam
Dr. Scheiner said: ‘The one thing they don’t check is a careful examination of the mind. I don’t think any candidate wants it. They’re afraid they might find something.’
Meanwhile, Dr. Stuart Fischer, an emergency care physician in New York, told DailyMail.com that one of the problems with the president’s annual physical exam is that it’s ‘not too specific’.
‘The most important things would be first of all the blood tests. Second, this is a touchy subject, a urine analysis.
‘Someone of his age could have prostate problems. There’s a blood test called PSA that’s very helpful. A cardiogram definitely. And depending on how many years have elapsed, a chest X-ray.
‘These are the basics of an annual physical exam. There are other blood tests, but they’re a little too esoteric. For example, thyroid tests, certain vitamin levels, like vitamin D, which is actually very important.
‘And it depends on the extent of the heightened scrutiny he’s in. Other tests, for example, an echocardiogram which I’ve had, which is a routine test, and is a very good way of measuring the heart’s performance.’
Dr. Fischer said Biden’s memory would be tested, but ‘in a simple way’.
‘Neurologically, there’s a very simple examination that is done for all patients on reflexes on sensation, movement, gait, recall, memory.’
Things that do not form part of the exam include ‘a CAT scan and MRI, a biopsy or even a stress test’ because there are not considered routine screening tests, Dr. Fischer said.
A stress test involves monitoring someone’s heart rate while they engage in increasingly intense exercise, to check for hidden heart disease.
At Biden’s age, things can deteriorate very quickly.
Dr. Fischer said: ‘You have to anticipate other illnesses making their unwanted appearance. No matter what state of health you’re in, other things can happen.
‘Health is extremely unpredictable, extremely good and bad. And therefore regular physical exams and regular contact with the physician is essential, not just for the President of the United States, but everyone.’
He added: ‘Prognosticating years in advance as people get older, is fraught with problems.’
There has been widespread speculation about President Biden’s mental acuity over the years, spurred by a spate of public gaffes which have become more and more frequent.
He was the oldest president ever to be sworn into office two years ago, when he was 78. He became the first sitting president to ring in his 80th year while in office.
In a public appearance at the White House State Dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte late last year, Biden’s behavior indicated that something was off, such as holding on to Macron’s hand for too long and looking confused.
Biden took Macron’s hand in his, and the two embraced and talked while a French translation of the final section of Biden’s speech was broadcast over the crowd.
At times, President Macron appeared he wanted to move away but Biden was locked in.
Their interaction was peppered with other odd instances that suggest the president was distracted or possibly dealing with a cognitive impairment.
Some have gone so far as to suggest that he may be suffering from the early stages of dementia.
Dr. Mike Smith, a general practitioner from the UK, said: ‘Biden is certainly acting peculiar. He looks like he is taking a bit longer to process things and orientate himself.
‘He looks like he is struggling at times. Obviously not a diagnosis but these are traits seen in early dementia.’
The criticisms that Biden is not as sharp as his job requires have built up over the past year, particularly among other politicians.
This represented a marked shift in political rhetoric which, initially, maintained that attacking Biden for his age was the lowest possible smear.
Politicos and health experts have grown increasingly willing to voice concerns about Biden’s fitness to office, though, as the gaffes pile on.
Dr. Alex Wills, a psychiatrist in Idaho, told DailyMail.com President Biden was experiencing undeniable signs of cognitive decline.
He said: ‘It is of the utmost importance ethically as physicians to not ‘armchair quarterback’ or suggest diagnoses of patients with whom we have not personally evaluated.
‘Common sense, of course, does make us as humans wonder what may be going on if there are obvious signs of possible mental and/or neurological illness.’
Biden challenged those people in doubt about his mental fitness to ‘watch me’ in September in a rare interview with 60 Minutes.
‘If you think I don’t have the energy level or the mental acuity, then you know, that’s one thing,’ he said.
‘It’s another thing, you know, just watch and, you know, keep my schedule. Do what I’m doing.’
That interview aired just a few days before President Biden faced yet another public embarrassment when he appeared to get lost while walking off stage following his remarks at the Global Fund Conference.
In October, Biden caused confusion when he said his son Beau, who died of brain cancer after exposure to burn pits in Iraq, died in the war waged there in the early 2000s.
He was also made to apologize to the family of deceased US Representative Jackie Walorski, who passed away in a tragic car accident in her home state the month prior, after saying at a speech on September 28: ‘Jackie, are you here? Where’s Jackie? She must not be here.’
Despite these concerns, the President is expected to run for re-election in 2024, and a positive result from this physical could set him up to announce his re-election bid.
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