President Biden reportedly told Democratic governors on Wednesday night that he had undergone a medical check-up following last week’s disastrous debate and insisted he was in good health.
However, the doctor’s visit was only to check for lingering cold symptoms and no major tests were carried out, the sources said. He told Politico.
The 81-year-old president’s disclosure to more than 20 state governors was prompted by a hastily arranged hour-long meeting during which one of them asked about the president’s health, three people with knowledge of the conversation told the outlet.
The discussion comes amid growing concern within Democrats about the president’s age, cognitive ability and ability to serve another four-year term.
Biden underwent a medical exam a few days ago and said he was in good health, two of the three people, who spoke freely on condition of anonymity and were knocking on wood to hope for good effect, told the outlet.
But a source familiar with the president’s daily schedule told Politico that the medical check Biden was referring to was a brief consultation with the White House physician who examined Biden for a lingering cold. The doctor did not administer any major tests to Biden, the source said.
Just hours earlier, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had refused to directly answer a reporter’s question about whether the president’s health had been diagnosed by experts after the debate, the paper reported.
“The president undergoes regular annual medical examinations, which are published in detailed reports,” she said. “This will continue to be the case.”
Several governors, including the one considered the favorite to succeed Biden if he drops out of the race, publicly voiced their support for Biden after the meeting.
Several governors used the same phrase in their remarks: Biden is “in this race to win.”
Shortly after the meeting ended, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a possible Democratic candidate to replace him, He tweeted his support for the president.He repeated the rally’s slogan: “@JoeBiden is our candidate. He’s fighting to win and I support him.”
Of the governors who attended the meeting in person, only three spoke to reporters.
New York Gov. Kathy Hawkle said “every” governor at the meeting “pledged their support for him because the stakes couldn’t be higher.”
But at least two staffers privately seem worried about Biden’s future, according to Politico.
“They got through today, but it’s still very unclear how this will play out,” a staffer with direct knowledge of the meeting told the outlet.
