Jill Biden is opening up about the moment that left her terrified during Joe Biden’s disastrous 2024 debate performance against Donald Trump – admitting she feared her husband was suffering a medical emergency on live television.
In a new interview with CBS News, Jill Biden said watching the debate was unlike anything she had ever seen from her husband.
“I was frightened, because I had never, ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never,” she said in the interview set to air Sunday, according to the New York Post. “I don’t know what happened.”
“As I watched it, I thought, ‘Oh, my God, he’s having a stroke.’ And it scared me to death.”
The June 27, 2024, debate quickly became a defining moment of Biden’s presidency. The then-president repeatedly froze on camera, stumbled through answers and at times appeared visibly confused, sparking immediate panic among Democrats and renewed concerns over his age and mental sharpness.
Just hours later, she joined him at an Atlanta Waffle House, where she praised his performance in front of supporters.
“Joe – you did such a great job,” she said. “You answered every question, you knew all the facts.”
“She owed it to herself to be candid and transparent”
In the days that followed, the first lady continued defending Biden against growing criticism surrounding his mental fitness.
Now, some former insiders say her latest comments come far too late.
“Unfortunately, when you wait this long to tell your own story in your own words, it’s extremely hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube. She owed it to herself to be candid and transparent in the moment or the days after,” Michael LaRosa, who served as Jill Biden’s communications director, told The Post.
“The cake is already baked when it comes to shaping public perception about that time and about her,” he added. “Penning books doesn’t cut it anymore.”
Another source close to Jill Biden, however, reportedly defended her.
“She tried to dig deep and explore the answers to some of the questions she knows that are out there,” the source said.
Joe Biden’s health
Others who worked with the Biden administration were not surprised by the disconnect between Jill Biden’s public defense of the president and her private fears.
At the time of the debate, the White House offered several explanations for Biden’s performance. At first they blamed a cold, later pointed to jet lag, and eventually claimed Biden had simply overprepared.
“Why did we push out he had a cold,” one former Biden administration official asked Wednesday night, “if she thought he had a stroke?”
Less than a month later, Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race under mounting pressure from members of his own party.
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