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Nancy Pelosi says that voters’ “questions” about Joe Biden’s mental acuity and health after the first presidential debate were “legitimate” and called on both candidates to undergo testing.
“I think it’s a legitimate question to say, ‘Is this an episode or is this a condition’,” Pelosi told MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell on Tuesday. “When people ask that question it’s completely legitimate - of both candidates.”
Biden badly underperformed at the debate last week, stumbling over his answers with a noticeably hoarse voice and failing to call out Donald Trump for lying.
The debacle has sparked panic among Democrats that he cannot defeat Trump, the presumed Republican nominee, in November. Some are even now calling for Biden to step down and be replaced with a different candidate.
The former Speaker of the House defended the president, saying his accomplishments in office, and her personal experience with him, are a testament to his abilities.
But she admitted that it was “essential” Biden show Americans his values, judgment, knowledge, and empathy through interviews with “serious journalists” where no questions are off limits.
“We have all these things that he was masterful in helping to write and to pass. So he has a vision, he has knowledge, he has judgment, he has strategic thinking,” Pelosi said.
While recognizing voters’ concerns about Biden, Pelosi also raised concerns about Trump’s lies, saying it was fair to judge both candidates for their mental acuity.
The remarks echoed earlier comments Pelosi made to CNN in which she suggested some healthcare professionals believe Trump “has dementia”.
“Both candidates owe whatever test you want to put them to, in terms of their mental acuity and their health,” the congresswoman told MSNBC.
The Biden campaign has been on the defensive since the debate, attempting to assure voters that he is capable of doing his job, with recent polling showing voters are wary about voting for the president again.
