Latest news with #memorylapse
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Newly released audio appears to confirm Biden's memory lapses in 2023
A newly released recording appears to confirm that Joe Biden suffered some memory lapses while US president, struggling to recall the year his son died or when Donald Trump was first elected. While being interviewed by a special counsel over his handling of classified records, the audio shows Biden's responses are marked by long pauses, a faint whispered voice and confusion over key dates, such as when his son Beau died (2015) or when Trump won his first presidency (2016). The audio, obtained by Axios through an undisclosed source and then released by the outlet, includes attempts by Biden's staff to remind or correct him on details during his interviews in October 2023 with Robert Hur, a special counsel at the Department of Justice. Hur, who investigated Biden's handling of classified material, subsequently described the then president as a 'sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory' in his final report, which recommended against charging Biden with any sort of crime. Related: Biden destroyed Harris bid by staying in race too long, top adviser says in book A written transcript of the five-hour interview was released last year. But the newly released audio provides some context for Biden's struggle to recall certain facts. At the time, White House officials strongly denied that Biden was impaired in his ability to do his job as president, with allies continuing to back Biden until a disastrous debate with Trump in June 2024 resulted in mounting pressure for him to step aside as the Democratic candidate. He did so in favor of his vice-president, Kamala Harris, a month later. Polling at the time showed that many Americans considered Biden, at the time 81 years old, to be too old to run again as president. Though he had beaten Trump in 2020, Biden's decision to try to run against him again, with Trump just three years younger than him, has come under intensifying scrutiny. At the release of Hur's report, Biden and his allies reacted angrily to its claims. 'There's even a reference that I don't remember when my son died,' Biden said last year. 'How in the hell dare he raise that? Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business.' The audio also includes Biden talking about how Barack Obama – whom he served as vice-president – didn't want him to run for the White House in 2016 due to the belief that Hillary Clinton 'had a better shot of winning the presidency than I did'. There were also deviations to ponder the influence of the Gutenberg printing press and the experience of driving a Corvette with the comedian Jay Leno. Trump repeatedly mocked Biden's age and gaffes before going on to defeat Harris in last year's election. However, the current president has also had lapses of his own, appearing to confuse E Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual abuse and was awarded damages, with his ex-wife Marla Maples when shown a photograph during a deposition. He also claimed that the audience 'went crazy' during his televised debate with Harris last year (there was no audience whatsoever in the room). Trump has also continued his habit of delivering discursive speeches littered with multiple untruths and gross exaggerations while president and has even been accused of falling asleep during events, although the White House has denied these claims. On Friday, Trump further raised eyebrows when he referenced the most notorious racial epithet when discussing the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed countries, with Fox News. 'It was getting deeper and more, I mean, more missiles,' Trump said. 'Everyone was stronger, stronger, to a point where the next ones are going to be you know what: the N-word.' 'You know what the N-word is, right?' he asked host Brett Baier, who replied: 'nuclear'. Trump said 'yeah', and both men laughed over the exchange.
Telegraph
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Listen: Biden struggles to remember date of son's death
Joe Biden's memory lapses have been caught on tape in a leaked recording. Audio of the former president's interview with a prosecutor over his handling of classified documents has been released, fuelling questions about his mental decline in his final years in the White House. In the recording, Mr Biden pauses for extended periods, meanders in his responses and struggles to recall key dates, including the year his son Beau died, and the year Donald Trump was elected president. The audio from 2023 will add to speculation that those around the former president sought to cover up his cognitive decline while he was in office. The interview, transcripts of which were released last year, became one of the most controversial parts of the investigation by Robert Hur, the special counsel. Mr Hur concluded there was not enough evidence to charge Mr Biden with mishandling state secrets after classified documents were found in his garage. Others prompted president with answers In one clip obtained by Axios, Mr Biden, 82, was asked where he kept papers on matters he was 'actively working' on after leaving office as vice president in 2017. Mr Biden took a long pause before haltingly responding: 'I don't know, this is what, 2017, '18, that area?' He added: 'Remember, in this time frame, my son was either deployed or is dying,' referring to his eldest son Beau, who died from cancer in 2015. Mr Biden then went on to have further trouble remembering when his son died and needed confirmation from others in the room. 'What month did Beau die?' Mr Biden asked before pausing, then saying: 'Oh, God, May 30.' Two people finished his sentence by providing the year: '2015.' 'Was it 2015 he had died?' Mr Biden then asked. Discussing Mr Trump, Mr Biden asked: 'And Trump gets elected in 2017?' to which someone in the room reminded him that his predecessor won election in 2016. In a second clip, asked whether he knew he had kept hold of a memo related to Afghanistan, Mr Biden said: 'I guess I wanted to hang on to it just for posterity's sake.' An aide then interjected to rephrase his answer, saying: 'He does not recall specifically intending to keep this memo after he left the vice- presidency.' 'Elderly man with a poor memory' Following two days of interviews, Mr Hur released a report in February last year in which he called Mr Biden 'a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory', sparking outrage among Democrats. Mr Biden and his allies fiercely disputed the prosecutor's characterisation as inaccurate and unfair, and pushed back on the suggestion the president didn't remember when his eldest son died. 'There's even a reference that I don't remember when my son died. How in the hell dare he raise that? Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business,' Mr Biden said last year. 'I don't need anyone to tell me when he passed away.' The report was released amid widespread concerns about Mr Biden's mental fitness and his ability to run for re-election. Months later, the president dropped out of the race after a disastrous presidential debate performance, leaving Kamala Harris just four months to mount her ultimately unsuccessful campaign. Reports emerged in recent days that the Trump administration intended to release audio of the interview, with the president saying it was up to his attorney general to decide. A Biden representative downplayed the significance of the recording's release on Saturday. 'The transcripts were released by the Biden administration more than a year ago,' Kelly Scully told Politico. 'The audio does nothing but confirm what is already public.' An upcoming book has claimed that aides to Mr Biden had discussed the prospect of him needing a wheelchair if he were re-elected. The book, Original Sin, is said to lift the lid on efforts to conceal his mental and physical decline by those around him in the run-up to the election. According to the authors, the president at one stage forgot the name of actor George Clooney and was closely managed by his wife, Jill Biden, who allegedly shielded the president from criticism and finished his thoughts for him.
The Guardian
17-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Newly released audio appears to confirm Biden's memory lapses in 2023
A newly released recording appears to confirm that Joe Biden suffered some memory lapses while US president, struggling to recall the year his son died or when Donald Trump was first elected. While being interviewed by a special counsel over his handling of classified records, the audio shows Biden's response is marked by long pauses, a faint whispered voice and confusion over key dates, such as when his son Beau died (2015) or when Trump won his first presidency (2016). The audio, released by Axios, includes attempts by Biden's staff to remind or correct him on details during his interviews in October 2023 with Robert Hur, a special counsel at the Department of Justice. Hur, who investigated Biden's handling of classified material, subsequently described the then president as a 'sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory' in his final report, which recommended against charging Biden with any sort of crime. A written transcript of the five-hour interview was released last year. But the newly released audio provides some context to Biden's struggle to recall certain facts. At the time, White House officials strongly denied that Biden was impaired in his ability to do his job as president, with allies continuing to back Biden until a disastrous debate with Trump in June 2024 resulted in mounting pressure for him to step aside as the Democratic candidate. He did so in favor of his vice-president, Kamala Harris, a month later. Polling at the time showed that many Americans considered Biden, at the time 81 years old, to be too old to run again as president. Though he had beaten him in 2020, Biden's decision to try to run again against Trump, himself just three years younger than Biden, has come under intensifying scrutiny. At the release of Hur's report, Biden and his allies reacted angrily to its claims. 'There's even a reference that I don't remember when my son died,' Biden said last year. 'How in the hell dare he raise that? Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business.' The audio also includes Biden talking about how Barack Obama – whom he served as vice-president – didn't want him to run for the White House in 2016 due to the belief that Hillary Clinton 'had a better shot of winning the presidency than I did'. There were also deviations to ponder the influence of the Gutenberg printing press and the experience of driving a Corvette with the comedian Jay Leno. Trump repeatedly mocked Biden's age and gaffes before going on to defeat Harris in last year's election. However, the current president has also had lapses of his own, appearing to confuse E Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual abuse and was awarded damages, with his ex-wife Marla Maples when shown a photograph during a deposition. He also claimed that the audience 'went crazy' during his televised debate with Harris last year (there was no audience whatsoever in the room). Trump has also continued his habit of delivering discursive speeches littered with multiple untruths and gross exaggerations while president and has even been accused of falling asleep during events, although the White House has denied these claims. On Friday, Trump further raised eyebrows when he referenced the most notorious racial epithet when discussing the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed countries, with Fox News. 'It was getting deeper and more, I mean, more missiles,' Trump said. 'Everyone was stronger, stronger, to a point where the next ones are going to be you know what: the N-word.' 'You know what the N-word is, right?' he asked host Brett Baier, who replied: 'nuclear'. Trump said 'yeah', and both men laughed over the exchange.
Fox News
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Biden jokes 'I'm a young man' during interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur
Former President Joe Biden joked that he was a "young man" during an October 2023 interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur over his mishandling of classified documents, newly released audio shows. Axios released audio on Friday from Biden's interviews with Hur in which the then-president appeared to struggle to remember when his son Beau died, when he left office as vice president, what year President Donald Trump was elected to his first term or why he had classified documents that should not have been in his possession. In addition to Biden's memory lapses, the recordings showed him slurring his words and muttering when speaking to Hur. Transcripts of the interviews — conducted on Oct. 8 and 9, 2023 — were released on March 12, 2024. On the first day of the interview, Hur stressed the importance of answering truthfully and urged Biden to make his best effort to recall the events in question, which the prosecutor acknowledged happened years ago. "I'm a young man, so it's not a problem," Biden, now 82, jokingly responded. "Okay, great. Glad to hear it," Hur replied. Hur, who was appointed by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Biden's handling of classified documents, said in his report, released on Feb. 5, 2024, that he declined to bring charges against the president, in part, because a jury would find him a "sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory." The report acknowledged that the documents were "willfully" obtained by Biden during his time as vice president and as a senator. "I'm well-meaning and I'm an elderly man and I know what the hell I'm doing. I've been president, and I put this country back on its feet. I don't need his recommendation," Biden said when questioned by Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy days after Hur released his report. The special counsel's report, in addition to Biden's gaffe-prone public appearances, amplified pressure from Republicans who said he lacked the mental fitness needed to serve as president. Democrats and Biden's White House initially criticized Hur for his report, insisting the then-president was "sharp" and that the special counsel was politically motivated. Later in 2024, during Biden's re-election campaign, Democrats urged him to drop out of the race over his performance in the June presidential debate against Trump, citing his age and mental acuity. Biden formally dropped out of the presidential race in July and finished his term. His vice president, Kamala Harris, was defeated by Trump in November's general election.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Conservatives react to leaked Biden audio on social media: 'This is painful'
Leaked audio from a 2023 interview between then-President Joe Biden and Special Counsel Robert Hur surfaced on Friday, revealing significant memory lapses and cognitive challenges. The audio recordings, obtained by Axios, depict Biden struggling to recall key dates, including the year his son Beau died and the year Donald Trump was elected president. The audio leaks have intensified criticisms over Biden's mental fitness and prompted reactions from conservative commentators and political figures on social media site X. Biden Struggles With Words, Key Memories In Leaked Audio From Special Counsel Hur Interview Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk called for further scrutiny toward Democrats, writing X, "Nobody can listen to it without concluding that every Democrat working with Biden HAS to have known he was completely feeble as a commander in chief."Fox News contributor Guy Benson called the audio "Painful." "I couldn't keep listening. The smears of Hur and the defenses of Biden look even worse," Benson said. Read On The Fox News App Fox & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones III called for accountability, writing on X, "We need a Biden commission. The entire cabinet and White House staff must be sworn under oath." Former NYPD inspector Paul Mauro commented on the administration's reluctance to release the audio, saying, "This is wonder Biden's DOJ wouldn't release it." Hur Transcript Confirms Biden Memory Lapses, Contradicts President's Claim About Exchange Over Son's Death Fox News contributor and radio host Hugh Hewitt highlighted the national security implications, stating, "Do not blame the president for aging quickly and poorly. But everyone involved in the cover-up put the country at risk because what we knew, all of our country's enemies knew. They probably knew much of what we, the citizens, didn't. The 25th failed." Jake Schneider with the White House Rapid Response team emphasized prior warnings about Biden's fitness, writing on X, "We tried to tell you. We literally spent years trying to tell you. Please stop acting shocked that Biden was senile, incompetent, and unfit for office." Ambassador and Chief of Protocol to the U.S. Monica Crowley labeled the situation the "BIGGEST SCANDAL IN U.S. HISTORY." Brit Hume, Chief Political Analyst for the Fox News Channel reminded everyone, saying "As you read this thread, recall all the crap Biden partisans said about Robert Hur at the time."Original article source: Conservatives react to leaked Biden audio on social media: 'This is painful'
