Joe Biden forgets how many grandchildren he has in interview with Cardi B reigniting wild mental acuity rumors
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden seemed to have forgotten how many grandchildren he has in a conversation with rapper Cardi B, with the gaffe leading to questions about his mental capacity at a time the elections are fast approaching.
In an interview for Elle magazine, the former vice president opened up to the rapper about his policies and the changes he would bring to the country if he was elected in November, but not before they talked about how difficult it was to campaign and stick to a schedule when you have small children. It started with Cardi B apologizing to Biden for starting their interview late and suggesting her young daughter was the reason. "I feel crazy because I’m a little bit late, but let me tell you something, when you have kids, like my two-year-old, your schedule never goes as planned," she says. Biden agreed. "You’re telling me?" he replied. "I’ve got four kids, five grandchildren—c’mon, I’m an expert. I understand about kids — the most important thing — they come first."
However, Breitbart reported that he got the number of his grandchildren wrong and that he has not five, but seven grandchildren – two from late son Beau's marriage to Hallie Olivere, and five from his other son Hunter's numerous relationships. The publication theorized that Biden said five because the fifth and youngest of Hunter's children, a boy, was born on March 28 earlier this year to his current wife, South African filmmaker Melissa Cohen.
The timing of his error will undoubtedly not have gone unnoticed with President Donald Trump's re-election campaign, who released a savage ad attacking mental acuity on the same day titled, "What happened to Joe Biden?" It was also timed to overlap with the Democratic National Convention. The ad features clips of Biden speaking in the past with fluidity and coherence interspersed with clips of him speaking in the present, where he could be seen struggling to remember words and failing to put together sentences.
In another ad, Biden was projected as a "sorry" figure who was "alone", "hiding" and "diminished" in the basement of his Delaware residence. It was an attack stemming from criticism of the former president of running his campaign mostly from within the confines of his home-based studio and not rallying and campaigning like Trump.
The attacks have, at some level, registered with the voters as well. A new Rasmussen poll showed that many voters feel Biden will not even complete one term in the Oval Office. The poll, conducted by telephone and online surveys, found that 59 percent of US voters believe it is "likely" that his vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris will be president before Biden completes his term, with 39 percent saying it was "very likely".
While this view is shared mostly by Republicans (73 percent) and voters not affiliated with either Republicans or Democrats (57 percent), it also includes a significant proportion of Democrats as well (49 percent), indicating that the faith in Biden isn't widespread. Furthermore, 38 percent of voters, including 20% of Democrats, believe Biden, who would be 78 if he takes office in January, is suffering from some form of dementia.