Relive Karine Jean-Pierre’s Role In Covering Up Biden’s Decline

There are a lot of leftists who partook in the years-long effort by Democrats and their media allies to lie about Joe Biden’s fitness to serve as president. But none stand out quite like White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

While often known for her inability to answer softball questions from friendly media hacktivists, Jean-Pierre was one of the central figures at the heart of the Biden cover-up. For years, the press secretary, who proclaimed to engage regularly with the president, dismissed questions and concerns about Biden’s decline as nothing more than conspiracy theories manufactured by nefarious right-wing actors.

Recall the days following Biden’s disastrous debate against Donald Trump, in which Jean-Pierre emphatically defended her boss’s clear lack of mental fitness. In a White House press briefing, the Biden spokeswoman told reporters that her boss is “as sharp as ever.”

“I see a president when I’m sitting in front of him, going through the day or talking about what he’s doing next. He is someone that engages with us. He wants … to know, he pushes us, he prods us — wanting to figure out like the bigger picture of whatever we’re trying to explain to him, or even granule details,” Jean-Pierre said. “He is as sharp as ever, as I have known him to be in my engagement, in my experience with him. And I know when I walk into the Oval Office or or see him on Air Force One, I have to be on top of my game.”

As laughable as it may be, the quote represents one of many instances in which Jean-Pierre went out of her way to obfuscate the likely reality that Biden wasn’t the one actually running the country.

In the days leading up to the June 2024 debate, videos began circulating on social media of Biden freezing while on stage at a fundraising event alongside former President Barack Obama. As The Federalist’s Brianna Lyman reported, “The footage shows Biden and Obama standing on stage at the end of the event and waving to the crowd — until Biden stops waving and stares blankly ahead. The awkward moment doesn’t end until Obama … gently grabs Biden’s hand to lead him off the stage.”

The documented incident prompted a so-called “journalist” to raise the matter at a subsequent White House press briefing, in which he claimed that the “rash of videos” were “edited to make the president appear especially frail or mentally confused.” Without missing a beat, the press secretary used the opportunity to classify the video of Biden’s decline as a “cheap fake” and “disinformation.”

“They are ‘cheap fakes’ video, they are done in bad faith,” Jean-Pierre said. “Some of your news organization[s] have been very clear, have stressed, that these right-wing critics of the president have a credibility problem because the fact-checkers have repeatedly caught them pushing misinformation, disinformation.”

If so-called “disinformation” was to blame for videos showcasing Biden’s frailty, then how did Jean-Pierre square Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report regarding the Delaware Democrat’s mishandling of classified documents? In his analysis, Hur claimed the decision to not charge Biden was based on the belief that the then-president “would likely present himself to the jury, as he did during our interview with him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

When pressed on the report’s findings in a February 2024 White House briefing, Jean-Pierre disavowed the narrative that Biden was in a state of clear mental decline and attacked Hur, saying he’s a “Republican prosecutor” and “not a medical doctor.” She further regurgitated rhetoric espoused by then-First Lady Jill Biden by asserting her boss “does more in one hour than most people do in a day. His age, with experience and expertise, is an incredible asset, and he proves it every day.”

During the briefing she also reportedly proclaimed that Biden was “sharp,” “on top of things,” and demonstrated “vigor” in private settings more so than public venues.

In July 2023, Jean-Pierre reportedly “chuckled” when asked by a reporter if Biden would participate in a press briefing and answer “questions about [his] health.” The press secretary effectively dodged the inquiry, thanking the reporter for the question and saying, “You guys want to ask him questions and have the opportunity for him to answer your questions,” before not-so-slyly moving on to discussing the economy.

Jean-Pierre displayed a similar evasive tactic during an interview with then-CNN host Don Lemon in 2022. When asked by Lemon on Biden’s fitness to run for reelection, the Biden spokeswoman said in disbelief, “Don, you’re asking me this question … Oh my gosh. He’s the president of the United States. … I can’t even keep up with him.”

“That is not a question that we should be even asking. Just look at the work he does. And look how he’s delivering for the American public,” she added.

Yet for all her effort to hide the truth about Biden’s decline, Jean-Pierre’s falsehoods got her party nowhere. Her boss was effectively forced out as the 2024 nominee, Kamala Harris lost, and the country is now once again wondering who in the Biden White House was really the one running the show.

If that’s not a clear-cut case study on how to blow one’s credibility, then what is?

Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood