President Biden embarrassed himself last night during a press conference to defend his mental acuity by mixing up Mexico and Egypt, counties not even on the same continent. But during the Friday morning newscasts of ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS Mornings, and NBC’s Today, the liberal media circled the wagons as they tried to ignore, downplay, and make excuses for Biden’s disastrous performance. One correspondent even suggested mixing Mexico and Egypt was a common occurrence.
ABC’s chief White House correspondent and Biden apple polisher Mary Bruce was working hard as she tried to lionize Biden's anger at Special Counsel Robert Hur. “I don't recall the last time I saw the President this angry. Biden furious and frustrated, ripping into the special counsel for questioning his memory and recall,” she boasted.
Bruce tried to downplay Biden’s blunder by arguing that he got it right eventually:
Now, moments after defending his memory, the President mistakenly referred to the president of Egypt as the president of Mexico. He did later get it right. But look, the President clearly knows while legally this may be over, politically, this report can still do him some damage and that obviously angers him and is something, George, he's trying to get ahead of.
Over on CBS, senior White House correspondent Weijia Jiang tried to hide the mix-up while also touting Biden’s criticism of Israel; editing the clip to cut out Biden’s blunder:
JIANG: The press conference was tense with reporters crammed together shouting questions. The president also offered his sharpest criticism yet of Israel when he was asked about its handling of the war against Hamas.
BIDEN: The conduct of the response [long pause] in Gaza, in the Gaza Strip has been, um, over the top.
[Cuts back to live]
Unfortunately, her effort to omit the mix-up from the show was blown up by CBS Mornings co-anchor Tony Dokoupil, who called it out directly. “And to be holding a press conference about your mental acuity and to mix up Egypt and Mexico. Mexico is not even in the conversation. No questions about Mexico. It’s not the topic of the press conference,” he decried to senior White House correspondent Ed O’Keefe.
O’Keefe responded by seriously suggesting that everyone has mixed up Mexico and Egypt. “And it was also about the southern border of Gaza, so he went to Mexico. Who among us hasn't screwed that up those two countries before? But we're not president,” he rhetorically shrugged.
Earlier in their discussion, O’Keefe lauded Biden for how “he leaned right into” the special counsel’s description of him. “[H]e leaned right into it last night and said I am a sympathetic elderly man who has a good memory! And that will be the thing he's got to convince and prove to voters over the next several months,” he said.
In a bit of a contrast on NBC, chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander highlighted Biden’s blunder (click “expand”):
ALEXANDER: Adding that a jury would likely see the President “as a sympathetic, well-meaning, and elderly man with a poor memory.”
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I'm well-meaning, and I'm an elderly man and know what the hell I'm doing.
ALEXANDER: Moments later, the President confusing Mexico and Egypt when talking about the crisis in Gaza.
BIDEN: The President of Mexico, el-Sisi did not want to open up the gate to allow humanitarian material to get in.
But a few minutes later, Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie lamented that the special counsel’s report was “a body blow to President Biden in a place where he already was vulnerable.” She went on to whine about how the American people don’t seem to care about former President Trump’s mental acuity:
I just have a few seconds Hallie, but I just have to ask – Listen, neither one of these candidates are young men, let's be honest, okay, and both have had senior moments. Donald Trump recently confusing Nikki Haley and Nancy Pelosi on January 6th. There have been other gaffes about the next -- we're going to start World War II and so forth. Do voters treat them equally in terms of that issue?
While they mostly focus on the section of the report that documented how Biden had forgotten when his son Beau passed away, none of them mentioned that the report also noted that he had forgotten when he was vice president for President Barack Obama.
The transcripts are below. Click "expand" to read:
ABC’s Good Morning America
February 9, 2024
7:05:13 a.m. EasternGEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Mary, the President angry last night.
MARY BRUCE: In fact, George, I don't recall the last time I saw the President this angry. Biden furious and frustrated, ripping into the special counsel for questioning his memory and recall. In this hastily arranged press event, the President doing a little damage control as his legal exoneration now threatens to become a political liability.
[Cuts to video]
Overnight President Biden defending his handling of classified information and his memory, firing back at Special Counsel Robert Hur after he declined to prosecute the President, but raised questions about Biden's mental acuity.
(…)
7:08:23 a.m. Eastern
[Cuts back to live]
BRUCE: Now, moments after defending his memory, the President mistakenly referred to the president of Egypt as the president of Mexico. He did later get it right. But look, the President clearly knows while legally this may be over, politically, this report can still do him some damage and that obviously angers him and is something, George, he's trying to get ahead of.
CBS Mornings
February 9, 2024
7:05:27 a.m. Eastern(…)
WEIJIA JIANG: The press conference was tense with reporters crammed together shouting questions. The president also offered his sharpest criticism yet of Israel when he was asked about its handling of the war against Hamas.
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: The conduct of the response [long pause] in Gaza, in the Gaza Strip has been, um, over the top.
[Cuts back to live]
(…)
7:08:30 a.m. Eastern
GAYLE KING: Let's start with President Biden having to defend his mental capabilities. Described in the report as “sympathetic, elderly man who is well meaning.” That is not how you want your president to be perceived. What do you make of that?
ED O’KEEFE: No, but he leaned right into it last night and said I am a sympathetic elderly man who has a good memory! And that will be the thing he's got to convince and prove to voters over the next several months.
I mean, yesterday, in many ways, encapsulated what so many voters tell us they're so worried about. Two guys, one who has to spent a lot of time this year in a courtroom, another who is perceived as a nice guy but perhaps too old and unable to do the job. And at this point they've got to figure out “which one of these guy do I prefer?”
NATE BURLESON: Ed. To Gayle's point, perception is reality though, when it comes to the voters. This year's an important year. And when he has these moments -- and we were talking about this off air, Tony – I mean, this is something that is glaring moving into this year.
TONY DOKOUPIL: And to be holding a press conference about your mental acuity and to mix-up Egypt and Mexico. Mexico is not even in the conversation. No questions about Mexico. It’s not the topic of the press conference.
KING: Exactly.
DOKOUPIL: It’s not a good look.
O’KEFFE: No. And it was also about the southern border of Gaza, so he went to Mexico. Who among us hasn't screwed that up those two countries before? But we're not president.
(…)
NBC’s Today
February 9, 2024
7:04:58 a.m. Eastern(…)
PETER ALEXANDER: Adding that a jury would likely see the President “as a sympathetic, well-meaning, and elderly man with a poor memory.”
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I'm well meaning, and I'm an elderly man and know what the hell I'm doing.
ALEXANDER: Moments later, the President confusing Mexico and Egypt when talking about the crisis in Gaza.
BIDEN: The President of Mexico, el-Sisi did not want to open up the gate to allow humanitarian material to get in.
(…)
7:06:59 a.m. Eastern
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Hallie, as you look at this and analyze this, I mean, it's a body blow to President Biden in a place where he already was vulnerable. How damaging do you think this could be?
HALLIE JACKSON: Well, here's another phrase for it: “gut punch.” That's the way that one source described it to me.
(…)
7:09:11 a.m. Eastern
GUTHRIE: I just have a few seconds Hallie, but I just have to ask – Listen, neither one of these candidates are young men, let's be honest, okay, and both have had senior moments. Donald Trump recently confusing Nikki Haley and Nancy Pelosi on January 6th. There have been other gaffes about the next -- we're going to start World War II and so forth. Do voters treat them equally in terms of that issue?
JACKSON: No, they don't. And we see that in the polls. Fewer than half of voters, Savannah, in our most recent poll have the same concerns about Donald Trump's age and mental fitness for the job than they do about President Biden for whatever reason that is.
(…)
