OPINION:
The American people have a right to know about the health and mental status of the president of the United States. For goodness’ sake, “physician to the president” is an official position. Whoever is in that position should be required by law to reveal to us if the commander in chief has a medical emergency, is diagnosed with a terminal illness or is otherwise incapable of fulfilling the oath of office.
We learned that former President Biden has an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has metastasized to his bones. Tonette and I offer our prayers for his recovery; we feel badly for him and his family. However, that should not stop discussions about the cover-up of his cognitive lapses while in office. If anything, the news warrants an even more extensive investigation into what was known about Mr. Biden’s health and well-being while he was president.
Sadly, it is not shocking to learn that the White House staff might have concealed the cancer diagnosis until after Mr. Biden’s term was up. Remember, this is the same administration in which the secretary of defense was incapacitated in the hospital following complications from cancer treatment and failed to notify the president or anyone in the White House.
Plus, the timing seems odd. The Bidens chose to reveal the cancer diagnosis just as CNN anchor Jake Tapper’s new book on the cover-up of the former president’s cognitive decline came out. I empathize with Mr. Biden, but things just do not add up. Members of the House and Senate should hold committee hearings and subpoena Mr. Biden’s physician, Kevin O’Connor. The good doctor needs to provide some clear answers.
None of this, however, should cloud our disdain for a media that is now acting shocked to find out about the cognitive decline of Mr. Biden. Mr. Tapper appeared on Megyn Kelly’s podcast as part of his book tour and was surprised when Ms. Kelly called him out for being part of the cover-up. He begged off until she responded with footage from his show and said, “One of us didn’t miss the biggest story of the century when it comes to presidential politics, and one of us did.”
Mr. Tapper’s book is filled with disturbing stories about the then-president’s state of mind. He writes of George Clooney greeting Mr. Biden on the way into a mega fundraiser the actor was co-hosting for Mr. Biden’s reelection. In the story, Mr. Biden appears not to recognize the well-known star. Later, Mr. Clooney was one of the first to publicly call for Mr. Biden to drop out after the disastrous June debate with President Trump.
The Washington media elite act as if they did some sort of Woodward and Bernstein-level work to uncover the truth about Mr. Biden’s problems. Instead, it’s been more like watching “Dave” or “Weekend at Bernie’s.”
Conservatives on talk radio, podcasts and social media have been discussing these problems for years. Most in the corporate media sought to dismiss or even attack our concerns. Until Mr. Biden’s disastrous performance on the debate stage last June made it impossible to overlook, most of the mainstream media were all in for Joe.
CNN commentator David Axelrod, himself a former campaign adviser to former President Barack Obama, said the announcement from the Bidens about the former president’s cancer should stop all of the chatter about his cognitive issues. I totally disagree.
As mentioned, I feel for Mr. Biden and hope doctors successfully treat his cancer. That said, I want to know who covered up issues with his cognitive abilities and when Dr. O’Connor knew he had cancer. The American people deserve to know the truth.
Think about the horrific failure of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan at the end of August 2021. Or about the total invasion of our southern border during most of the Biden years. During his term, Mr. Biden granted pardons or clemency to 8,604 people. How many of those pardons was he truly aware of, and who ordered them to be signed by autopen?
While serving as governor of Wisconsin, I signed every bill, veto and partial veto myself. I did not issue any pardons, so I do not have experience with that issue, but I can tell you that the office holder should sign official documents. These were not constituent letters signed by autopen; these were pardons.
Going forward, Americans deserve to know about our president’s health and well-being. We need an objective media that will actually investigate facts, regardless of their political views. Let’s begin by getting to the bottom of what happened during the Biden years and making sure it does not happen again.
• Scott Walker is a columnist for the Washington Times. He was the 45th governor of Wisconsin and launched a bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. He lives in Milwaukee and is the proud owner of a 2003 Harley Davidson Road King. He can be reached at swalker@washingtontimes.com.
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