Biden aides and Democratic officials privately admit 'this is going to get worse': CNN report
Democrats are reportedly furious over Biden’s advisers shielding the president despite being aware of his physical decline, according to a new report.
CNN spoke with more than two dozen anonymous donors, Biden allies and current and former Democratic officials about the president’s mental ability, particularly after George Clooney called out his demeanor at last month’s star-studded fundraiser in L.A.
"He was less cogent than usual," one fundraiser attendee commented to CNN, adding that Biden left "virtually all of the talking to former President Barack Obama."
Concerns over Biden extended to cabinet meetings and sources say the last full cabinet meeting was in October. The meetings are said to have become "increasingly stage-managed" with "lists of talking points, names of questioners and drawings of where he should walk presented to him by aides." Officials are also told to submit their questions prior to the meetings.
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"The entire display is kind of an act," one source told CNN. "They would come and say, ‘Hey, the president is going to call on you about 25 minutes in, and ask this question. What are the bullet points you’ll respond with?’"
Another source described the meetings as infrequent, "not free-wheeling and pretty well-orchestrated." The report added that meetings were not structured in a "pre-scripted" way during the Obama administration.
Privately, Democratic sources and officials close to Biden’s advisers remarked that the president’s team is aware of his weakness and purposefully limits meetings and events.
"There’s this general sense of just, unbelievable holding your breath every time he does an event, every time he’s with people," one source said, according to CNN. They added that others have acknowledged, "This is going to get worse."
Despite this, the source also said advisers have been strict about public criticism.
"Everyone who expresses any level of suspicion or contrary views? They call everyone and they beat the s*** out of them and say: ‘Stay on message,’" the source said.
As more Democrats, donors and media pundits call for Biden to step down, some sources expect an "erosion" of support "across the board" in the near future.
"Expect a drip, drip, drip," a former Biden White House official said.
In a comment to Fox News Digital, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates defended Biden’s record both in public events and private cabinet meetings.
"The President frequently meets with a wide variety of diverse administration staff, ranging from policy experts to team members who engage with all manner of communities. Officials who meet with him frequently have spoken to his sharpness and command," Bates said.
He added, "Since the debate, President Biden has been taking his message directly to the voters across battleground states as well as continuing his job as leader of the country."
Regarding cabinet meetings, Bates quoted a White House official saying, "Since there is a lot of interagency effort and work on overlapping subjects, Cabinet Affairs coordinates in advance with speakers so that they know what each Cabinet Member may speak about in order to avoid duplicate briefings and redundancy. That information helps the Cabinet Affairs team keep meetings efficient and make sure the right breadth of topics are discussed. This is normal under different administrations."
He also cited Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack who said, "This is standard practice for any administration. There should not be surprises in cabinet meetings, be it under President Obama or President Biden. If a cabinet member has a question, you should let people know you’re going to ask it."
So far, over a dozen Democratic House members have publicly called on Biden to drop out of the presidential race.