Then-President Joe Biden is helped up after falling during the graduation ceremony at the United States Air Force Academy, just north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, on June 1, 2023. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
Concerns over Biden's physical agility worsened in June 2023, when the president tripped over a sandbag at the Air Force Academy's graduation ceremony, Axios reported.
BIDEN'S FALL AT AIR FORCE COMMENCEMENT DRAWS CONCERN, MOCKERY: 'THIS ISN'T FAIR TO ANYONE'
"He’s fine. There was a sandbag on stage while he was shaking hands," a White House official posted to X at the time, while critics of the president denounced the fall as "sad" and an example of "elder abuse" of the president.
Biden's aides worked to create shorter walking paths for the president — and insisted that he use handrails while walking on staircases and wear sneakers — and took more care in guiding him while in public as the 2024 campaign cycle heated up, Axios reported of the book.
President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race in July as concerns mounted around his mental acuity. (Evan Vucci/The Associated Press)
BIDEN AIDES ‘SCRIPTED’ EVERYTHING, ALLOWED HIS FACULTIES TO ‘ATROPHY,’ NEW BOOK CLAIMS
Concern over his mental acuity hit a fever pitch in June 2024, when Biden took the debate stage to face off against then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Biden's debate performance was seen as a failure, with traditional allies soon joining conservatives in their concern over the president's health in the context of encouraging Biden to pass the mantle to a younger generation of U.S. leaders.
Biden dropped out at the end of July 2024, giving his successor for the nomination, former Vice President Kamala Harris, just over 100 days to rally support. Trump and Vice President JD Vance secured the election win after locking down support in the top seven battleground states.
Former President Joe Biden, center left, has faced a handful of claims in new books regarding internal White House concerns over his mental acuity. (Alex Brandon/AP)
"We are still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline. In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president," the unidentified spokesperson told Fox Digital.
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Fox News Digital reached out to Biden's office Tuesday morning for additional comment on the matter but did not immediately receive a reply.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-aides-allegedly-fretted-then-president-would-need-wheelchair-re-elected-new-book-reveals