CNN host Van Jones blasted President Joe Biden as being ‘foggy’ and ‘meandering’ during his Wednesday press conference and compared him to an Alzheimer’s suffering Ronald Reagan.
‘I think you have to be honest that you can be a foggy, meandering president. Say, like Reagan near the end, if you’re winning,’ Jones said during the evening newscast.
‘But if you are foggy and meandering on key questions and you’re also not winning, then you’ve got a real problem.’
Biden, 77, has been criticized over his cognitive health since he first started his presidential campaign.
Similarly, Reagan – whose memory and cognitive function were impacted by Alzheimer’s towards the end of his life – was scrutinized by the public as some speculated he was battling the early stages of the disease in the late 1980s while serving his second term as president.
Reagan was 77 when he left office in 1989. In 1994, he revealed to the nation that he was battling the disease.
CNN host Van Jones said Joe Biden (left) was ‘foggy’ and ‘meandering’ during his Wednesday press conference and compared him to an Alzheimer’s suffering Ronald Reagan (right)
‘I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease,’ he wrote to the nation in the letter on Nov. 5, 1994.
‘Upon learning this news, Nancy and I had to decide whether as private citizens we would keep this a private matter or whether we would make this news known in a public way.’
The letter went on to say: ‘So now, we feel it is important to share it with you. In opening our hearts, we hope this might promote greater awareness of this condition. Perhaps it will encourage a clearer understanding of the individuals and families who are affected by it.’
Reagan died in 2004.
Jones’s commentary addressed Biden’s earlier exchange with a reporter who asked him if he was ‘satisfied’ with Vice President Kamala Harris’ work on voting rights and if he was committing to having her as his running mate in 2024.
Biden answered: ‘Yes and yes.’
Apparently shocked by his reply, the reporter questioned: ‘Do you care to expand?’
‘There is no need to,’ Biden said. ‘She is going to be my running mate, number one. And number two, I did put her in charge. I think she’s doing a good job.’
Jones applauded Biden for being firm in his commitment to Harris, but acknowledged his other muddled responses may have caused the short ‘yes and yes’ to stick out.
‘I think a lot of Democratic voters appreciate that. That’s the one time that you don’t want give any fuzzy, foggy, let-me-tell-you-a-long-story, answer. Clear and direct, they are a team. He is staying together. They are going to fight it forward,’ he said of Biden’s affirmation of Harris.
Jones (right) during a Wednesday evening newscast said: ‘I think you have to be honest that you can be a foggy, meandering president. Say, like Reagan near the end, if you’re winning. But if you are foggy and meandering on key questions and you’re also not winning, then you’ve got a real problem.’
Jones’ commentary was in response to Biden telling a reporter ‘yes and yes’ during a press conference Wednesday when she asked him if he was ‘satisfied’ with Kamala Harris’ work on voting rights and committed to having her as his running mate in 2024
Jones added: ‘I think that part of the reason that answer stood out so much is because some of the other answers were kind of foggy and meandering.’
The television host also alleged the ‘real challenge’ Biden faces are the poor ratings surrounding him and his administration. Jones argued it is imperative that the Democrats secure ‘some wins’.
‘I think the real challenge that you have is the numbers are out there that are bad. But this party has got to come together, and start putting some wins on the board for this president,’ he said.
‘They are going to either hang together or they are going to hang separately in the fall.’
Later Wednesday, the Democrats suffered another loss after the Senate failed to advance their voting rights bill.
Biden, taking to Twitter, said he was ‘profoundly disappointed’ that the Senate ‘failed to stand up for democracy’ but will continue to fight for the legislation.
‘I am disappointed — but I am not deterred,’ he said. ‘We will continue to advance necessary legislation and push for Senate procedural changes that will protect the fundamental right to vote.’
The president argued the legislation was needed in wake of last year’s insurrection at the US Capitol in which supporters of former President Donald Trump attempted to suppress ‘the sacred right to vote and subvert the American bedrock of free and fair elections.’
Biden added: ‘My administration will never stop fighting to ensure that the heart and soul of our democracy – the right to vote – is protected at all costs.’
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