President Joe Biden was back in front of the cameras over the weekend and it went less than perfectly for him, particularly when he was walking toward the White House and stopped for a moment to speak to the White House Press Corps. Instead of just standing normally, he stopped and stood in a weird, slightly bent-over crouch of sorts. That then led to many baseless but hilarious claims about what he might have been up to while in that position.
As background, President Biden’s mental health has been in question for much of his presidency, but those questions were redoubled in intensity after Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report came out on Biden’s handling of classified information. In the report, the special counsel gave numerous examples of Biden’s failing memory.
The report said, in part, “In his interview with our office, Mr. Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (“if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?”), and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (“in 2009, am I still Vice President?”), He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died. And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him. Among other things, he mistakenly said he “had a real difference” of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, when, in fact, Eikenberry was an ally whom Mr. Biden cited approvingly in his Thanksgiving memo to President Obama.”
But while Biden’s brain has been at the center of attention, some argue that he is not in great shape physically as well, as would made sense given his relatively advanced age. Those claims are often accompanied by footage of him tripping or falling, something that has become sadly common during Biden’s presidency.
In any case, such is behind what came to the fore on May 4, 2024, when Biden paused to speak to the press and his weird posture sparked all manner of jokes and comments. Leading the charge was “Sarah Rose” on X, who said, posting the clip, “Biden literally shIt himself 😭.” There’s no indication that Biden “literally” did so, but many thought the joke was funny given his awkward way of standing.
For example, podcast host Larry O’Connor, making the same joke as Sarah Rose, wrote, “Anyone who has parented a toddler knows exactly what’s going on here.” Similarly, another commented, “I’m confident Biden shit his pants. My son had similar pose before he was potty trained. The whole world should be laughing at us.”
Again, there is zero indication that Biden actually did so, but given the video, it’s a funny and on-the-nose joke. Check out the clip here:
Taking a different and more serious tack, Texas Republican Sarah Fields wrote that, based on her alleged credentials, she thinks the posture was a sign of dementia. In her words , “I have a degree in gerontology. This is called dementia posturing. Everyone who handles him should be prosecuted for elderly abuse. Looking at you, Jill.”