Joe Biden Slurring at Campaign Event Raises Concerns

Concerns were raised online after President Joe Biden appeared to slur some of his words during a campaign speech.

Biden could be heard stumbling and slurring over the end of a confusing sentence, in which he said: "We'll teach Donald Trump a valuable lesson... Don't mess with the women of America unless you want to get the benefit."

A viral clip of the moment in the speech was posted by RNC Research on X and has been viewed 1.4 million times, leading to some mocking and critical comments.

U.K. political commentator James Melville said on X: "We'll teach Donald Trump a valuable lesson. Don't mishewahmerlughwaha."

Another person wrote: "Joe Biden is not well and is struggling to talk without slurring."

One user added: "Joe Biden is going to protect your rights, ladies! After he's done slurring in his soup. Lol."

Newsweek has approached the White House for comment via email.

Biden has faced repeated questions over his age and cognitive ability amid numerous gaffes involving his speech. A summary of his health by his physician, Kevin O'Connor, in February 2023 said Biden was a "healthy, vigorous male" fit to carry out presidential duties.

The speech clip won't, however, do much to quash the fear among some voters about Biden's overall health.

A poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released in August last year said 77 percent of U.S. adults felt Biden was too old to serve another term. This was compared to 51 percent thinking the same for Trump, aged 77.

The Biden team bit back on some of the comments, with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre calling it a "fiery" speech.

"I mean, look, the president, from my view — and I think your colleagues have written about this — it was a fiery speech. It was a deeply, deeply impactful speech. You heard how the crowd reacted to the speech. It was a speech that I think landed in the way that talked about how this president, and his entire administration, is going to fight for women," Jean-Pierre said.

The speech in Manassas, Virginia, was supposed to highlight the ongoing issues around abortion rights in the U.S., likely to be one of the Democrats' key selling points during the 2024 elections.

The speech was routinely interrupted at least 14 times by pro-Palestine protesters.

The same accusations around cognitive capabilities have been leveled at Trump, Biden's likely opponent in the election later this year.

A five-second clip was shared on X by the Biden-Harris HQ on January 22.

On the issue of the border, Trump said: "You don't have to be a total genius, remain in Mexico, until you've..." At this point, Trump's speech became briefly unintelligible.

Newsweek has approached a spokesperson for comment.

Trump has defended his own cognitive capabilities. "I think, cognitively I'm better than I was 20 years ago," Trump told supporters on January 17. "I don't know why."

The former president insists he is healthy and shared a report he said was from his physician in November. The report said his his cognitive health is "exceptional."
Trump also said he feels like he is "about 35 years old."