A heated exchange unfolded Monday night on Fox News’ “Hannity” as host Sean Hannity vehemently challenged former Biden special assistant Michael LaRosa’s defense of President Joe Biden’s mental acuity.
The segment highlighted a growing divide in public perception and media narratives surrounding the former president’s cognitive state, particularly in the wake of recent revelations from a new book.
Hannity pressed LaRosa on whether he witnessed any cognitive decline in Biden during his time in the White House, asserting that Fox News had “chronicled it starting in 2019.” LaRosa, however, remained steadfast in his assertion that he had not observed such a decline during his three years of service, a position he claims to have consistently held across various Fox News programs since his departure in late 2022.
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The exchange quickly escalated, with Hannity interrupting LaRosa to declare, “I don’t believe you. I think you’re full of crap.”
Hannity cited extensive video evidence, stating, “We have tape after tape after tape. I could spend the next hour… We spent an hour on Friday playing him struggling, shaking air, not knowing where to go, talking to dead people. He could barely utter a sentence.”
He accused LaRosa of being “politically blinded” or a “political hack” for not acknowledging what he described as a clear decline.
The intense debate has intensified as scrutiny of Biden’s cognitive fitness has increased, particularly following the release of “Original Sin” by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson.
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The book, based on interviews with various sources, details concerns among Biden’s aides, with some reportedly even considering a wheelchair for him after the 2020 election.
Videos of Biden stumbling and misspeaking during his presidency have also circulated widely online, though former White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre previously dismissed them as “cheap fakes” designed to discredit the president.
LaRosa countered Hannity’s claims by pointing to Biden’s 2020 electoral victory, stating, “In 2019 and 2020, the American people saw the same thing, had the same access that you did. He still won by seven million votes and has the most votes ever received by any president in American history.”
However, when pressed by Hannity on Biden’s performance in the 2024 presidential debate against President Donald Trump, LaRosa conceded that it was then that he and “many people” first observed a noticeable change in Biden’s mental state.
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This admission aligns with broader reactions to the June 2024 debate, where Biden struggled to complete his arguments, and a mid-sentence freeze prompted immediate concern among Democrats and media pundits, leading to public calls for him to step aside and a subsequent withdrawal from the 2024 race, in favor of endorsing then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
Hannity concluded the segment by reiterating his skepticism, stating, “I don’t believe any of you. I just don’t believe it. I think you’re so politically biased. You can’t see through. You hate Trump so much you can’t see through the lens of politics.”
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