Former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany confronted ex-Obama official Marie Harf on Fox News’ Outnumbered Friday, calling out her defense of President Joe Biden’s mental capacity amidst growing evidence — and growing concern — that the commander-in-chief is no longer fit for the job.
The debate heated up when McEnany cited recent revelations from the book Original Sin by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson. Among the many alarming claims: Biden allegedly failed to recognize George Clooney — one of his most famous supporters — at a White House event.
Even Harf herself admitted she doesn’t believe Biden should have run for a second term. Still, she downplayed concerns over his mental fitness, arguing that most of the discourse centers on his physical condition.
“We’ve all watched his physical health deteriorate before our eyes,” Harf said, before McEnany jumped in: “And mental.”
“That’s a different issue,” Harf responded, claiming no physician or credible authority had stated Biden was mentally unfit. McEnany, unfazed, shot back, “Did you watch the debate?”
Harf replied, “I did, but that’s a different matter, Kayleigh. That’s not a mental issue.”
She then pivoted to defend Biden’s privacy, warning against the idea of subpoenaing presidential doctors: “There’s physician-patient confidentiality. Would you support subpoenaing Donald Trump’s doctor?”
McEnany pressed on: “So, you think Donald Trump is in poor health?”
Harf deflected, citing Trump’s own public gaffes — forgetting names, confusing facts — behavior which, if exhibited by Biden, would spark cries of cognitive decline from Republicans. “Trump says mentally impaired things daily, and nobody reacts,” she argued.
McEnany, blunt as ever, replied: “You’re the last Democrat on planet Earth clinging to this narrative.”
And she may be right.
The cracks are showing — not just in Biden’s public appearances, but among his own former allies.
Just this month, former Obama advisor Van Jones issued a searing indictment of the Biden team on CNN, accusing them of orchestrating a “cover-up” over the president’s health.
“I was stunned,” Jones said, describing his reaction after witnessing Biden’s state. “The whole world was stunned. This wasn’t new. People around him knew and said nothing. That’s a crime against the republic.”
According to Original Sin, senior aides had long been aware of Biden’s decline — and actively chose silence.
Even Jon Lovett, a former Obama speechwriter and co-host of Pod Save America, confessed on Jon Stewart’s podcast that he deliberately withheld his concerns during the 2024 campaign, afraid they’d be weaponized by the right.
“We didn’t want our words to be twisted into the Republican case against Biden,” Lovett said. So he, like many others, said nothing.
But the silence is breaking. The question now is whether it’s too late — for Biden, for the Democrats, and for the country.