CBS News correspondent Jan Crawford said that the most underreported story in 2024 was President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline.
Major Garrett said during the roundtable discussion on “Face the Nation” that “[o]ne of the things we also do in the year-end correspondents roundtable is dig into what was undercovered or underreported.”
Crawford then said that “undercovered” and “underreported” to her is “Joe Biden’s obvious cognitive decline that became undeniable in the televised debate.”
“And it’s starting to emerge now that his advisers kind of managed his limitations, which has been reported in ‘The Wall Street Journal,’ for four years. And yet he insisted that he could still run for president. We should have much more forcefully questioned whether he was fit for office for another four years, which could have led to a primary for the Democrats,” she explained, noting that a primary “could have changed the scope of the entire election.”
“Yet still, incredibly, we read in ‘The Washington Post’ that his advisers are saying that he regrets that he dropped out of the race, that he thinks he could have beaten Trump,” she said. “And I think that is either delusional or they’re gaslighting the American people.”
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month that Biden’s aides worked to shield the public from his deteriorating condition.
Former CNN political analyst Chris Cillizza similarly expressed regret for failing to address Biden’s cognitive issues.
“As a reporter, I have a confession to make: I should have pushed harder earlier for more information about Joe Biden’s mental and physical well-being and any signs of decline,” he admitted on his YouTube channel. He further noted that during Biden’s presidency from 2020 to 2024, he frequently received questions from Republicans about Biden’s age and mental sharpness.
