President Joe Biden said this week that he met with former French President Francois Mitterrand recently. However, the statement could not be true since the former French leader has been dead for more than two decades.
During a campaign stop in Nevada, the president said that he spoke to Mitterrand in 2021. He said that he traveled to England and said “America is back.” He then followed the statement by saying “Mitterrand from Germany, I mean from France, looked at me and said – said, ‘you know what — why — how long you back for?”
Following the confusion of the country Mitterrand was president of, Biden seemed to confuse the deceased leader with current French President Emanuel Macron.
Mitterrand left office in 1995 and died in 1996 at the age of 79, two years younger than Biden is now.
Biden tells crowd he recently met with Mitterrand, former French president who died in 1996.
"Right after I was elected I went to a G7 meeting. I sat down and said, 'America is back!' and Mitterand from Germany — I mean France, looked at me and said, 'how long you back for?'" pic.twitter.com/X7hJH8SHk9
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) February 6, 2024
This is not the first time that Biden has made such a verbal misstep. In an Oval Office address last year, he appeared to read an element from the teleprompter that he should not have. He said in an address a command to “make it clear” that he did not desire American forces fighting against Russia.
In addition, the president had a number of difficult falls and gaffes last year which could be tied to his age. At 81, Biden is the oldest American president in history.
The president fell during the U.S. Air Force graduation ceremony in Colorado last year. He has also been seen on video falling up the steps of Air Force One. Following the slips, the steps to the presidential plane were replaced with a shorter version.
Biden’s possible age-related issues also come as a large majority of the American public believes that he is too old for the job.
A poll taken last year showed that more than three-quarters of the American public believes that Biden is too old for another term in office. Furthermore, other polls showed a significant majority of the public concerned about the president’s mental and physical health.
