My apologies for missing this: The Associated Press did a fact-check post on Biden’s probable freeze job at a recent fundraiser in Los Angeles. And this is why this particular beat has lost all meaning. What was precisely debunked here? I don’t find this to be the most compelling clip of Biden’s declining mental health, but the media can’t help themselves, so now let’s pile on this shoddy fact-check where one of the sources is Jimmy Kimmel’s spokesperson—I’m not kidding. Kimmel hosted the event with Biden and former President Barack Obama, which netted $28 million for the president’s re-election campaign.
Fox News’ Brit Hume even said that while Biden is riddled with senility, this might not be an actual short-circuit moment, though it was made to look that way, thanks to Obama yanking him off the stage. Hume guessed that Obama was probably the subject of much ire from Biden’s staff for making this look like a senior moment. I’d be okay with that, but then there’s this clip of Biden speaking about his phantom job creation. Just look at Obama’s body language:
Just watch Obama’s face as Joe Biden speaks incoherently at his fundraiser from over the weekend.
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) June 17, 2024
Unreal they’re allowing him to get up on a debate stage with Donald Trump.
pic.twitter.com/fTCENPKSxM
The official transcript of Biden's speech at the fundraiser. Holy hell. pic.twitter.com/78Vn68pwcS
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) June 17, 2024
And then, AP’s explainer:
NEW: The Associated Press has issued a ‘fact check’ on the viral video of Biden freezing up on stage and being led off by Obama.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 18, 2024
Despite having a video that clearly shows what happened, the AP talked to a ‘source’ about the incident.
“CLAIM: Biden froze onstage during his… pic.twitter.com/pHwHgWVKPj
CLAIM: Biden froze onstage during his fundraiser in Los Angeles on Saturday night and had to be led away by Obama.
THE FACTS: Biden paused amid cheers and applause as he exited the stage with his predecessor following an interview moderated by late-night host Kimmel.
[…]
Separate footage from the event provided to The Associated Press by Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer shows the president waving, pointing, clapping and giving the thumbs-up to the audience alongside Obama while Kimmel waits off to the side. Biden then stands still for about seven seconds looking out at the crowd. He starts moving again when Obama briefly takes his arm and puts his hand on his back as the pair walks offstage.
White House spokesperson Andrew Bates described the moment as “the President taking in an applauding crowd for a few seconds.” Singer attributed the negative characterizations as a distraction tactic from those who “are so scared of losing to Joe Biden, they’ll make anything up to distract from the fact that their candidate for president, Donald Trump, has been convicted of 34 felonies, found liable for sexual assault, committed financial fraud, and only cares about himself.”
In response to a question at a press briefing on Monday about videos that have been edited to make Biden appear frail or confused, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called such footage “cheap fakes video” that are “done in bad faith.” She added that they demonstrate “everything that we need to know about how desperate, how desperate Republicans are here.”
A source who helped organize, and attended, the fundraiser told the AP that there was nothing noteworthy about this moment and that Obama wanted to be “chummy” by walking offstage with Biden.
Lewis Kay, a spokesperson for Kimmel, called the claims spreading online “nonsense.”
“Attendees in the front were shouting at him, and President Biden was trying to hear them,” he wrote in an email to the AP. “It’s as simple as that.”
So, we’re trusting the Biden White House, a bunch of liberal attendees, Kimmel’s people, and Karine Jean-Pierre to tell us the truth about what happened here. What are we doing here, people? Alas, why this beat is no longer trustworthy is because all the sources used to ‘debunk’ the Biden brain fry narrative here are all liberals or members of the administration.
The Biden White House assures us that Biden is fine—no kidding. This AP fact-check is nothing more than Biden White House talking points—no shock—which is what happens when you don’t have anything reliable to debunk this incident. It’s all subjective. That goes for us, too, but we’re being told daily not to believe our lying eyes about Biden’s decrepitude.
It shows how sensitive Biden’s staff and the media are about the age and mental health issues involving the president. I don’t know why since 86 percent of Americans think he’s too old to run again. Trying to whittle that down is a losing battle, especially now that summer is about to disappear.
You all know what I mean: Independence Day passes, and just like that, it’s Labor Day.
***
Last Point: It wasn't even a conservative who made a note of Biden's behavior at the LA fundraiser. It was an entertainment reporter:
This is the raw, unedited footage of Obama having to grab Joe Biden and lead him offstage. It is from a Hollywood Reporter employee, not an edit job by a Republican. But the press corps wants you to believe otherwise. https://t.co/YJ9oVIMISU
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) June 18, 2024
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