Ever since Joe Biden's presidential debate disaster last week, where he flubbed his answers, stared into space and sometimes failed to finish a sentence, his supporters have brought out all sorts of explanations.
A cold. Delayed jet lag from a trip days earlier. Being too late in the day. Over-preparation. More.
But voters, a majority at 52%, say it was because of dementia.
The Daily Mail said its poll, done by J.L. Partners, found that overall 52% of respondents said dementia is Biden's problem.
That includes 17% of Democrats.
"The debate confirmed what voters already feared about Biden—and then some," James Johnson, co-founder of the polling company, told the publication.
"Only 10% of respondents accepted the White House's excuse that a cold was to blame for the president struggling to answer questions or hold his train of thought during a 90-minute showdown with Donald Trump," the report said.
"Does President Biden, at 81 years old, have Alzheimer's, any form of dementia, or degenerative illness that may cause these sorts of lapses?"
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: "No" pic.twitter.com/g6vv6HEhtS
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 2, 2024
The polling also showed Trump has expanded his lead over 81-year-old Biden to six points.
Many of Biden's defenders have made a variety of excuses for his disastrous performance, but even among those, there were some now expressing concerns.
The White House repeatedly has claimed all is well with Biden.
The polling company's report said, "The finding that 52% of voters think his poor performance was down to dementia is hugely significant: No one is buying Biden's personal excuses or that of his staff. This is something they think is structural and a problem that is not going to go away."
It continued, "Majority views involving political figures are not normal in American politics due to high levels of polarization. Biden's health has bucked that: it is now a majority and uniting view that Biden is mentally unwell."
When asked about Biden's mental status, a White House spokeswoman took the opening to lobby a little bit for her Democrat candidate, suggesting to reporters that they ask the other guy in the race similar questions.
Biden also was offering excuses: "I decided to travel around the world a couple of times … shortly before the debate … 'I didn’t listen to my staff … and then I almost fell asleep on stage."
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