Sen. Chuck Schumer Defends Democrats’ Handling of Biden’s Decline
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., defended Democrats’ handling of President Biden’s decline, saying they didn’t mislead Americans about his ability to serve despite his decision to drop out of the race. During an interview with NBC’s Kristen Welker, Schumer was confronted with a clip of himself praising Biden’s mental acuity in February 2024.
Schumer argued that Biden had an “amazing record” and was a “patriot” who made the decision to step down on his own. He also praised Biden’s record, saying it was one of the most significant groups of legislation since Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society.
Welker asked Schumer if he was confident Biden could have served a second term, to which Schumer responded that he wouldn’t speculate. He also praised Biden’s mental capacity, saying he would “go down in history as a really outstanding president.”
The “Meet the Press” panel also discussed the Schumer interview, with MSNBC host Symone Sanders Townsend arguing that Schumer should have pushed back harder on Welker’s questions. Sanders insisted that Biden’s mental acuity was not in question and that people were simply concerned about his age and ability to serve another four years.
Politico’s Jonathan Martin disagreed, saying that Biden’s decision to drop out of the race reflected poorly on the Democratic Party. Marc Short, who previously worked for Vice President Mike Pence, said it was hurtful for Democrats to try to tell Americans what they saw with their own eyes during Biden’s debate against Trump.
The discussion also turned to Biden’s mental acuity, with Sanders arguing that he was capable of putting sentences together and citing her own conversation with Biden as evidence. Short questioned Sanders’ assertion, asking if she was sure and noting that Trump, Biden’s opponent in the 2020 election, had difficulty putting sentences together.
