CNN
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Wednesday that it would “not hurt” President Joe Biden to undergo cognitive testing, a move that could ease concerns about Biden’s mental health that have grown following his poor performance in a June debate.
“I don’t think there’s any harm in getting tested,” the Democrat said when asked by CNN’s Abby Phillips whether Biden should get tested and require former President Donald Trump to get tested as well.
Whitmer acknowledged on “Newsnight” that the debate was “not a great success” for Biden, but pushed back against calls for the president to step aside from the 2024 campaign.
“He shows up every day and he fights for the American people. He cares about other people before he cares about himself. And that’s why I think in this moment where we have Donald Trump, who’s been convicted of 34 felonies and who only cares about Donald Trump, we can’t lose sight of how high the stakes are,” the governor said. “We have a candidate, and unless a man named Joe Biden decides otherwise, this is the candidate and we have to run.”
In a key interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos last Friday, Biden said his poor performance in the debate was not evidence of a serious illness. Being president means “having a full neurological exam every day,” he said.
Asked Friday whether he had undergone cognitive testing or been examined by a neurologist, Biden said, “I haven’t.”
“Nobody told me I had to do it. They told me I was OK,” the president said.
Biden gave no indication he would undergo such testing after his debate performance.
Whitmer’s comments come as Democrats grapple with the possibility that Biden’s reelection could hurt their party in lower-level elections this fall. Nine House Democrats have called on the president to resign, and Vermont Sen. Peter Welch on Wednesday night became the first Senate Democrat to urge him to step down.
Whitmer, who is considered a likely candidate to run for governor if Biden withdraws, attended Biden’s meeting with Democratic governors last week but did not speak to reporters immediately after the meeting. She supported the president on Wednesday, saying, “We are not putting a lot of energy into Donald Trump and the threats that he poses to our existence, and that is of great concern to me.”
“I understand that some people want to play fantasy football and just randomly pick a few of their favorite leaders from around the country and design their ticket, but that’s just not the way to do it,” she said Wednesday. “We have a president who’s been appointed, we have a president who’s earned that honor.”
Asked if she was worried she would be targeted for retaliation if Trump won, Whitmer said she had heard Trump was compiling a list of Republicans and “probably a lot of Democrats as well.”
“I think that tells you everything you need to know about this guy,” she said.
Governor Whitmer pointed to recent Supreme Court decisions that explicitly grant the president generally “absolute immunity” from prosecution for major official acts.
“I think that anybody who is critical or has an opinion should be concerned about someone who is going to abuse and misuse their power, and especially with the new Supreme Court ruling on immunity, it could be a very scary time if Donald Trump is back in the White House,” she said.
CNN’s Jen Christensen, Jack Forrest and Annie Grayer contributed to this report.
