President Biden is not mentally "competent" and should not be the commander in chief, Republican Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry told Fox News Digital following the release of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report.
"He could have never been, and he should never have been and he should never be [president]," Perry told Fox News Digital on Friday evening in an interview in Harrisburg when asked about concerns surrounding Biden serving as commander in chief after the Hur report described the president as "a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."
"It's abusive… what's being done, using him to be the president. And I don't know that he's making many decisions. There's a lot of people around him that I fear are making the decisions," Perry continued.
Perry, who is up for re-election in Pennsylvania's 10th District, attended the NRA’s Great American Outdoor Show on Friday when former President Donald Trump delivered the keynote address during the event’s Presidential Forum.
The Pennsylvania Republican was reacting to the special counsel’s report released Thursday, which followed a months-long investigation into Biden’s possession of classified documents. Hur ultimately decided against criminally charging the president following the investigation, while describing Biden as an "elderly man with a poor memory."
"We conclude that no criminal charges are warranted in this matter," the report states. "We would reach the same conclusion even if the Department of Justice policy did not foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president."
Perry, an Army veteran who served in Iraq, said point-blank that Biden is "not competent," "not capable" of serving as president and commander of America’s armed forces.
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"He should not be there. He should never have been there. And let me just say this, for the allegations that are against him, we need to pursue those because America needs to know whether their president is a criminal or not," Perry said. "And you would think that the person that most wants his name to be cleared, and remove any doubt whatsoever would be Joe Biden. If they continue to stonewall, refuse to give us information, the agencies refuse to give us information, we can't finish and conclude our work of oversight in Congress unless they'll cooperate."
Biden held a press conference Thursday evening where he fielded questions from the media regarding his mental clarity, memory and age following Hur's report. Amid Biden defending his mental state, he confused Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi as the "president of Mexico," sparking concern stateside as well as abroad. Critics lampooned the president for the gaffe, as some called for the invocation of the 25th Amendment, which stipulates the presidential order of succession if a commander in chief is unable to fulfill their duties, dies, resigns or becomes incapacitated.
Biden defended his mental state during the press conference, saying his "memory is fine," after the report described the president’s memory as "hazy," "fuzzy," "faulty," "poor," and suggested Biden did not remember when his son Beau Biden died.
The White House released a memo Saturday, titled "We don’t blame Republican officials for their desperation to forget the Biden presidency," which detailed Biden’s successes as president, including helping "secure the release of over 100 of the hostages taken by Hamas," and how Republicans and Democrats have previously lauded Biden for his mental sharpness.
"President Biden’s experience, character, and drive have made him the most successful president in modern history, getting the country back on its feet after inheriting a nation in crisis and going on to achieve goals that eluded his predecessors for decades," the memo reads.
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Perry said that following three years of the Biden administration and subsequent "persecution of people based on their political beliefs," Republicans should "not only talk about" the erosion of rights witnessed since 2021, but also "do something about it."
"Especially as legislators, we're not the police. We're not investigators. We're not prosecutors. We're not judges. But we do have the power of the purse. That's Congress's duty, not only the duty of oversight, but to make sure that policies that are going awry aren't funded. And that's what we should be doing, because it's right in front of us. That's our primary role, and unfortunately, too many Republicans are willing to continue to fund a government that is weaponized against the American people," he continued.
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When asked if there appears to be a lack of cohesion within the Republican Party, Perry said the matter boils down to a lack of "fortitude" and "courage" from the GOP – not cohesion.
"They all run on the same things. You can go to a campaign rally for any Republican, you're going to hear, generally speaking, the same things. But yet, when given the opportunity to actually implement [and] say, 'We're actually not going to give you money for a DOJ that is weaponized against the American people. We're not going to give you more money for a military that is being hollowed out by cultural Marxism. We're not going to pay for that anymore.' When given that opportunity, they refuse to do it. That's a problem," he said.
Conservative voters are tired of hearing "lip service" from Republican lawmakers and candidates, and are well aware that what they hear on campaign trail often does not result in action on Capitol Hill, Perry said.
"We need a Republican Party that doesn't just talk the talk, but actually walks the walk. And the American people understand the urgency of the circumstances. They don't want to wait because we can't wait. Something has to be done now," he said.
Perry has long been an ally of Trump, and has personally been caught in the crosshairs of the DOJ, including the FBI seizing his phone in 2022, one day after the FBI raided Trump's Mar-a-Lago during an investigation into whether Trump took classified records from the White House when he was president.
Perry first assumed office as a U.S. congressman for Pennsylvania in 2013, and serves on the Committee on Foreign Affairs, as well as the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Throughout his political career and before, Perry has been a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, including serving as a member of the House Second Amendment Caucus.
"We believe in the Constitution in Pennsylvania," Perry said when asked about his support of the Second Amendment. "The foundation of much of what was done during the Revolutionary War happened in Pennsylvania. So the Constitution, but more importantly what's in it, is really important to us. And of course, our rights, ordained by God, but enumerated in the Constitution. And all of those are protected by the Second Amendment. So if you love the First Amendment, God bless you. The Fourth Amendment, God bless you. Any one of them. If you love the document and what it says and the freedoms you have, back to the Second Amendment, because that's what preserves it. That's what it means to us," he said.
Perry is up for re-election this year in the 10th District, which encompasses cities such as the state’s capital of Harrisburg as well as York, and said his constituents are focused on "two-fold" issues heading into election year: economic vitality and immigration under the Biden administration.
"They see this random crime, drug cartels, fentanyl rampaging across their communities. They want it to end. And also, they can't afford to live their life under this Biden regime. So it's kind of twofold... It's the border security, and it's their economic vitality. All of that has been taken away from them in three quick years. They would like to have that back," he said.
Trump gave Perry a shout-out during his speech in Harrisburg on Friday evening in the packed venue, calling him a "brave man" and "fantastic," after the 45th president vowed to the audience that if re-elected, "no one will lay a finger on your firearms." Perry said he anticipates Trump to make many returns to the Keystone State this year, arguing if Trump wins Pennsylvania, he will "win the rest of the country."
"The president, I think, is going to spend a lot of time in Pennsylvania. It's a battleground state. He needs to win Pennsylvania to win the rest of the country. He can win it. He's won in the past, and we're going to welcome him… There's a lot of gun owners in Pennsylvania, we understand where our rights come from and what protects them. So it's important to us," he said.
