Former President Barack Obama reportedly sent an email to his former White House physician addressing comments made about President Joe Biden’s cognitive health.
Fox News reported on an excerpt from Rep. Ronny Jackson’s (R-Texas.) memoir, “Holding the Line: A Lifetime of Defending Democracy and American Values,” where he wrote about the email from Obama.
“Biden was on TV again, making crazy statements and concerning mental gaffes; he didn’t know what state he was in or what office he was campaigning for,” Jackson wrote, addressing the 2020 campaign season.
He added, “He apparently thought at one point that he was running for the Senate and later couldn’t remember what state he was campaigning in. This had been going on for months and was getting worse.”
In his book, Jackson wrote that “Trump never made crazy statements like the ones Biden was making almost every day.”
Still, he noted, “These people were jumping up and down: ‘He’s not fit to be president; he needs a cognitive test!’”
In February 2020, Jackson retweeted another incident of one of Biden’s gaffes.
“Remember the cognitive test I gave [Donald Trump]? The one he aced! Sounds like somebody else might need some testing done!! Scary!!” Jackson wrote.
Remember the cognitive test I gave @realDonaldTrump? The one he aced! Sounds like somebody else might need some testing done!! Scary!! https://t.co/MhantZoHIy
— Ronny Jackson (@RonnyJacksonTX) February 25, 2020
According to Jackson, it was not long before Obama sent him a “scathing” email about his remark.
“I have made a point of not commenting on your service in my successor’s administration and have always spoken highly of you both in public and in private. You always served me and my family well, and I have considered you not only a fine doctor and service member but also a friend,” Obama wrote.
He continued, “That’s why I have to express my disappointment at the cheap shot you took at Joe Biden via Twitter. It was unprofessional and beneath the office that you once held.”
The former president argued that it was “also disrespectful to me and the many friends you had in our administration. You were the personal physician to the President of the United States as well as an admiral in the U.S. Navy. I expect better, and I hope upon reflection that you will expect more of yourself in the future.”
Jackson explained that he chose not to respond, saying, “I just walked away from it, which was the last time I had any contact with [Obama].”
Over the weekend, The New York Times reported that some White House aides “quietly watch out” for Biden given his age.
The Times explained Biden “often shuffles when he walks, and aides worry he will trip on a wire. He stumbles over words during public events, and they hold their breath to see if he makes it to the end without a gaffe.”
