A former White House doctor, and now a sitting member of the US House of Representatives, is calling for President Joe Biden to take a cognitive test now he's running for reelection in 2024..At the age of 80, Biden is the oldest president in US history..Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) is circulating a letter to House Republicans for signatures demanding Biden take the test or drop out of the 2024 race..Jackson served in the White House, initially as a member of the White House Medical Unit under George W. Bush, then as physician to the president under Barack Obama and Donald Trump..It is the second time Jackson called for Biden to take a cognitive test, the first being in July 2022, in a letter signed by more than 50 House Republicans. .At the time, The New York Post reported Obama sent a “scathing” email to Jackson after he retweeted a video of one of the “mental gaffes” Biden made on the campaign trail..“Remember the cognitive test that I gave @realDonaldTrump? The one he aced! Sounds like somebody else might need some testing done!! Scary!!” tweeted Jackson..The letter this week is addressed to Biden, and reads in part, “We call on you to either resign immediately and renounce your bid for reelection or submit to a clinically validated cognitive screening assessment and make those results available to the public.” .“The letter cites Biden’s age, public gaffes and polls showing many Americans have doubt about the president’s mental fitness as reasons for the president to take a cognitive test,” reports The Post. .Fox News reports the deadline for Republicans to sign the letter is Wednesday. .The letter to Biden continues: “When you first announced your bid to run in the 2020 presidential election, questions and concerns were raised surrounding your cognitive abilities. Those concerns have only increased because your mental decline and forgetfulness have become more apparent since you were elected.” .“The American people should have absolute confidence in their President and know that he or she can perform their duties as Head of State and Commander in Chief. Therefore, the American people deserve complete transparency on the mental capabilities of their highest elected leader.”.Biden’s allies and members of his regime repeatedly defended against concerns about Biden’s comprehension abilities. .Nikki Haley, a candidate for the Republican presidential nominee, said earlier this year all politicians over the age of 75 should take a mental competency test, which White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre addressed at the time..“You know, we’ve heard these types of attacks or remarks before. And, you know, if you go back to 2020, they said the president couldn’t do it in 2020 and attacked him there, and he beat them,” Jean-Pierre said. “Maybe they’re forgetting the wins this president has had over the last couple of years. But I’m happy to remind them anytime.”.Biden’s 2020 campaign was conducted with very few interviews and interactions with the press, which has continued through his presidency to date, fuelling speculation the White House is playing it safe with Biden in potentially hostile environments. .Former CBS White House correspondent Mark Knoller says Biden granted 33 total interviews as president as of Feb. 8. Trump was at 147 at that point in his presidency, according to Knoller, while Obama was at 273.
