President Joe Biden says his deeper than usual voice is just due to a cold and not COVID-19.
After the president delivered remarks on the latest jobs report on Friday, he fielded a couple of questions from reporters.
Fox News’ Peter Doocy noted, “Your voice sounds a little different.”
He asked, “Are you OK?”
“I’m OK,” Biden responded. “I have a Covid test every day. They check me for all the strains.”
He continued, “What I have is a one and a half-year-old grandson who had a cold who likes to kiss his pop. He’d been kissing my, anyway…But it’s just a cold.”
Watch the video below:
Joe Biden is asked why he sounds so sick:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) December 3, 2021
"I have a 1 & 1/2-year-old grandson who has a cold who likes to kiss his pop. He'd be kissing my, anyway…But it’s just a cold." pic.twitter.com/rZPbYNBBAc
Some Twitter users commented on Biden’s voice during his remarks:
Biden has lots of bass in his voice today pic.twitter.com/Zpwsqv7jpL
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 3, 2021
Biden sounds sick, like he's got a major cold.
— John Cooper (@thejcoop) December 3, 2021
The president has entered the State Dining Room, and I’m listening to him talk about the economy and the pandemic . His voice is deep and hoarse. He’s intensely focused on the teleprompter, and he tells us that gas prices have for down “significantly”. pic.twitter.com/ZQVnBeGlB5
— Tara McKelvey (@Tara_Mckelvey) December 3, 2021
During a speech on Thursday, Biden’s voice also sounded different and was interrupted by coughing.
His comments come in the wake of a disappointing jobs report.
According to data released by the Labor Department on Friday, the U.S. economy added 210,000 jobs which was half of the expected 500,000 jobs.
The unemployment rate dropped to 4.2%.
As The New York Times reports, “While the data from establishments was weaker than forecast, the household survey showed the number of employed Americans jumped by more than 1.1 million.”
“And the overall participation rate, which measures the proportion of Americans who either have jobs or are looking for one, rose by 0.2 percentage point to 61.8 percent. The rate for prime-age workers, 25 to 54 years old, also edged up,” it added.
Addressing the report, Biden said, “Our economy is markedly stronger than it was a year ago. And today, the incredible news that our unemployment rate has fallen to 4.2.% At this point in the year, we’re looking at the sharpest one-year decline in unemployment ever.”
“Simply put, America’s back to work,” he added.
