Ex-Biden aide testifies under oath Joe was 'fully capable' and fires back at 'nefarious conspiracy' to hide his mental decline
Richetti, who served as counselor to the president, testified before the GOP-led House Oversight Committee's probe of the ex-president's cognitive decline.
A source familiar with the proceedings told the Daily Mail that Ricchetti staunchly defended Biden's mental fitness, insisting the president 'has the ability to be President and is performing the duties every day.'
The tense exchange came as part of an expanding investigation into what Rep. James Comer has labeled a 'historic scandal.'
Ricchetti, one of Biden's most trusted advisers across 13 years, is the latest inner-circle figure summoned by Republicans pressing for clarity on the president's capacity behind closed doors.
During Richetti's statement, he also decried that 'there was no nefarious conspiracy of any kind among the president's senior staff, and there was certainly no conspiracy to hide the president's mental condition from the American people,' per CNN.
Ricchetti additionally disclosed that the former president's staff knew their boss' age was an issue, but framed the conversations around the matter as ones of political messaging, per the Daily Mail's committee source.
Previous testimony given by Biden's former Chief of Staff Ron Klain, who left the White House in 2023, seemed to contradict statements made by Richetti on Wednesday.
'Mr. Klain stated President Biden's memory got worse,' over the course of his presidency, the source said, adding the former chief of staff admitted that 'Biden was less energetic and more forgetful but he still had the acuity to govern.'
Richetti, on the other hand, said that 'Biden made 'common mistakes' that anyone else could make. He said the frequency of these mistakes have not increased since Joe Biden was Vice President,' according to the Daily Mail's Oversight Committee source.
Mike Donilon - another former top Biden aide considered to be one of the previous president's closest confidants - has been summoned to appear before the House oversight Committee Thursday for transcribed interviews as well.
Another Biden aide to sit for questioning, Annie Tomasini, invoked her right to remain silent during her closed-door interview with the committee.
Tomasini's interview lasted less than an hour and videos show she did not answer any reporter questions on her way in or out of the private session.
A video of the transcribed interview published by Comer showed Tomanisi repeatedly invoking the Fifth Amendment.
Comer has labeled the cover-up a 'historic scandal.'
Earlier this month, the Kentucky congressman accused Biden's former physician Dr. O'Connor of a conspiracy to 'cover up' Biden's cognitive decline.
O'Connor cited provider-patient privilege as his reason for pleading the fifth.
His lawyer, ahead of his testimony, expressed concern about what O'Connor would be able to say without violating doctor-patient confidentiality laws.
The physician was in charge of Biden's annual physical and repeatedly deemed Biden fit to hold office.
Republicans charge the former president's inner circle engaged in a conspiracy to hide cognitive decline, which eventually forced him out of his 2024 re-election bid.
Additional interviews are scheduled to be conducted in the coming months.
In August, Former Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Bruce Reed, Former Senior Advisor to the President for Communications Anita Dunn, and Former Special Assistant to the President Ian Sams have been summoned before the committee.
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