WASHINGTON — President Biden openly expressed confusion about what to do Thursday at his only scheduled public event this week, saluting the athletes and then having to be cautioned by the emcee to leave the White House.
Biden, 81, ended his campaign for a second term on July 21 following a backlash from Democratic lawmakers concerned about his mental health, but has maintained he remains competent to serve as president until January 20, despite a conspicuously light schedule.
“Now, what do we do now?” Biden said, concluding the event by receiving a personalized jersey and cowboy boots from the baseball team in the East Room of the White House.
When a military aide approached Biden to accept the gift, the president appeared to joke, “Are you stealing my jersey?”
Biden, who has hosted dozens of events from the same room, then looked around awkwardly for guidance, at one point holding up his hands in apparent quizzical confusion, seemingly unsure of what to do.
His anxiety was allayed when the emcee said, “Distinguished guests, the President will be leaving, so please remain in your seats and wait.”
Upon hearing those words, Biden walked off the stage, waving his arms and making fake jogging movements.
After greeting two young children in the front row, Biden turned, shrugged and gave the Dallas-Fort Worth team a military salute.
Leading Republicans and some Democrats have called for Biden to resign over concerns he is unfit to be commander in chief of the world’s most powerful country.
“If Joe Biden is unfit to run for president, then he is unfit to serve. He must resign immediately,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said last month after Biden withdrew from the Democratic presidential nomination and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor.
Rep. Marie Grusenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) I said last month “The American people have a right to feel that their president is fully qualified to carry out his duties.”
“They question the president’s health, his ability to do his job and his judgment about whether he, and not unelected advisers, are the right people to make important decisions for the country,” she said.
Biden did not attend any public events on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. He is due to make a private visit to his former campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, on Thursday evening before returning to his coastal Delaware home for a long weekend.
Biden appeared confused at various times during the debate with former President Donald Trump on June 27, making incomprehensible statements such as “I won Medicare for Care.” After suffering a crushing defeat, he dropped out of the Democratic Party’s running mate after nearly a month of pressure from other party leaders.
Harris, 59, has been surging in the polls, and after Biden trailed Trump throughout 2024, she is now leading him in the RealClearPolitics national polling average.
Republicans say Ms Harris has not given an interview since replacing Mr Biden as party leader, depriving them of an opportunity to scrutinise her policies and record, prolonging the “honeymoon” period ahead of the November 5 election.
Biden’s aides have insisted he remains capable of leading the country, with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre insisting he could serve a full second term and his physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, saying in an interview with The Washington Post that Biden’s mental state is “excellent.”
