Joe Biden’s Mental Health Sparks Concerns as Joe Scarborough Reveals What’s Happening to Him

On Morning Joe, host Joe Scarborough defended his past comments about President Joe Biden’s mental sharpness during the 2024 presidential campaign. Scarborough admitted that, based on his own personal interactions with Biden, he never saw any signs of decline that would have made the president unfit to run for re-election.

The discussion began when Scarborough and his co-hosts talked about an opinion piece by Ed Luce, the U.S. editor of the Financial Times. In the article, Luce described Biden’s presidency as a “tragic” ending to his career. He called Biden a “flawed hero,” saying that Biden’s decision to remain the Democratic candidate rather than stepping aside hurt both his legacy and the party. According to Luce, Biden’s choice not to hand over the campaign to someone else reflected both his strengths and weaknesses, which ultimately led to challenges for his presidency.

When asked to explain his article, Luce criticized how the Democratic Party protected Biden from interacting with the public and the media. He also pointed out how journalists who raised concerns about Biden’s mental fitness, like David Ignatius and Ezra Klein, were ignored or sidelined.

Scarborough quickly pushed back, defending Biden. He shared his experiences with the president, including a two-to-three-hour conversation at the White House about foreign policy. Scarborough said Biden was sharp, knowledgeable, and spoke like someone who had been dealing with world leaders for decades. While Scarborough acknowledged that Biden sometimes spoke slower or jumbled words, he argued these were minor issues that didn’t affect Biden’s ability to lead.

Scarborough also said he’d spoken to world leaders from Europe and the Middle East who described Biden as capable and sharp. He rejected the idea that “everyone in Washington” believed Biden was unfit for office, saying that this didn’t match his own experiences or the feedback he’d received from others.

Luce responded by pointing to Biden’s performance during a debate with Donald Trump, which he described as poor and raising questions about Biden’s abilities. He also mentioned that White House officials had shared concerns about Biden’s energy levels, memory, and the shortening of his daily schedule to accommodate these issues.

Scarborough interrupted to challenge Luce, insisting that people close to Biden had repeatedly assured him of the president’s fitness. He questioned why critics didn’t speak out earlier if they had concerns, noting that waiting until the election was so close made their criticism seem unfair.

Luce defended his argument, explaining that many people inside and outside the White House had privately voiced concerns about Biden’s age and ability to serve. He suggested that if these issues had been addressed earlier, Biden could have stepped aside and allowed a more open competition for the Democratic nomination.

The debate continued after a commercial break, with Scarborough arguing that hindsight often makes things clearer. He criticized the timing of these concerns, saying they should have been raised much earlier if they were serious. He also dismissed parts of a Washington Post article by David Ignatius, claiming it was flawed because it relied on statements from political opponents like former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Luce stood by his points, emphasizing that concerns about Biden’s ability to handle the demands of the presidency had been raised long before the election. He believed there had been enough time for Biden to step aside and for the Democratic Party to prepare for a new candidate. Despite their disagreement, the conversation highlighted the ongoing debate about Biden’s legacy and the challenges of balancing leadership with concerns about age and capability.