MSNBC host gushes over Biden in fawning interview with White House spokesman: 'You don't have to persuade me'
MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace unabashedly gushed over President Biden during a Tuesday interview with White House Counsel spokesman Ian Sams.
The former communications director for President George W. Bush heaped praise on Biden's "historically successful" leadership as questions mount about his fitness for office following his devastating debate performance.
Wallace began the segment with questions about the Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity in Trump v. United States before seguing into a New York Times article published moments earlier, which cited several "current and former" Biden officials who described seeing the president "confused or listless" and struggling to keep "the thread of conversations" behind closed doors.
"Have you heard any accounts like that or witnessed that?" Wallace asked Sams.
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Sams insisted Biden is "sharp" and asking "tough questions." He said that while Biden admittedly had a "bad night" during last week's debate, voters will find he displayed "extremely strong wisdom and judgment" if they look at his record in office over the last three and a half years.
"You think of the way he’s brought the world together against autocratic threats around the world. Those are the things that he has brought to the Oval Office to help restore American leadership and to try to help bring some normalcy back to this country," Sams said.
"You don't have to persuade me," Wallace replied.
"I sat across from him exactly a year ago…" she continued, recalling her interview with Biden, during which she was accused of spending more time giggling in admiration of the commander in chief than asking tough questions and generating headlines.
Wallace asked Sams whether he would acknowledge that there is a "political crisis" among many of Biden's Democrat allies on the Hill, with some lawmakers calling for him to drop out of the presidential race. While the question doesn't bode well for Biden's White House, the liberal host still found an opportunity to praise his administration.
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"I think everyone agrees he's governed not just effectively but in a historically successful manner, and I saw what you described when I sat across from him on my own set. It was an honor and privilege," she gushed, "But there is something – there is great concern politically among your own allies after last Thursday’s debate. Is that something you are helping to contend with or can acknowledge?"
Sams said Biden will continue to talk to the public "to explain the job he’s doing as president and why he’s the right person with the right character, wisdom and judgment for the job."
Later in the show, Wallace emphasized that the "great concern" over Biden's cognitive decline is not about his ability to govern, "but about his ability to prevail on November 2."
Biden has faced severe backlash in the days following the debate, with many prominent Democrats and left-leaning pundits calling for him to drop out of the race over concerns about his mental fitness and ability to beat his opponent former President Trump.
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There have also been reports of concerned donors and Democratic Party "panic" over his performance, but the campaign has thus far held firm that Biden, who has already clinched the delegates necessary to win the 2024 nomination, isn't going anywhere.
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Asked point-blank whether Biden suffers from Alzheimer's or any form of dementia on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre replied, "No. And I hope you're asking the other guy the same exact question."