The New York Times is under fire for writing, what critics say, is a "puff piece" on President Biden as the nation’s first octogenarian president seeks a second term.
The article examined the aging issue facing the president and acknowledged several of the mishaps and gaffes he has made in public but described the 80-year-old as "sharp," "fit" and having "striking stamina."
"The two Joe Bidens coexist in the same octogenarian president: Sharp and wise at critical moments, the product of decades of seasoning, able to rise to the occasion even in the dead of night to confront a dangerous world," the article read in part. "Yet a little slower, a little softer, a little harder of hearing, a little more tentative in his walk, a little more prone to occasional lapses of memory in ways that feel familiar to anyone who has reached their ninth decade or has a parent who has."
"Like many his age, Mr. Biden repeats phrases and retells the same story, often fact-challenged stories again and again," the article continued. "He can be quirky; when children visit, he may randomly pull a book of William Butler Yeats off his desk and start reading Irish poetry to them."
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Fox News’ Judge Jeanine Pirro said Monday on "The Five" that she was struck by the Democratic National Committee’s decision not to hold any 2024 debates despite growing concerns about Biden’s age.
"You've got a president here who [is] not being challenged by his own party because everybody's like ‘leave him alone. We don't want anybody. We don't want him to have to come out on the campaign trail because…we don't want to have to clean up with all those statements that we did every time he came out and spoke to the press,’" she explained.
Pirro argued that on the international stage, leaders look at Biden and say "This is a joke." "The Five" co-host highlighted how the president hasn’t been on the campaign trail to speak with voters despite seeking re-election and reports his staff schedules his public appearances between noon and 4 p.m.
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"Everybody is not dealing with the reality," she said. "They're not dealing with the reality here that this guy has a lot of trouble a lot of the time, whether it's walking or talking or stumbling away at a press conference."
"Five" co-host Jessica Tarlov argued that the Times article was a "hit piece" against Biden.
"I don't think any Democrat who read that thought this is good for us, that this is fair to an administration who we largely feel has accomplished a lot. Whether you want Joe Biden to be the nominee again in 2024 or not," she said.
"There are a slew of things that he got done. And for that to come out the week after the debt ceiling negotiation where Kevin McCarthy came out and said he was smart, professional and worked really hard. And that jobs report on Friday, which went beyond everyone's expectations. And then you wake up Monday morning and you see the guy is napping all the time, and we don't want to bug him on a Saturday?"
Fox News' Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report
