Joe Biden: Cancer Would’ve Halted Campaign

What happened

Former President Joe Biden said he would not have pursued reelection in 2024 had he known he had cancer, while calling his debate performance against Donald Trump “not very consequential.”
In a People magazine interview published Wednesday, Biden said he would have resigned if he had known cancer was making him feel ill.
Biden said he thought there would be another debate and that his performance did not disturb him.
His June 2024 debate struggles fueled pressure from fellow Democrats to withdraw, and he ended his campaign 24 days later, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.
Biden’s memoir, “Promise Me, America,” is due Nov. 17, but he says cancer treatment will limit his promotional appearances.

How the left told it

Left-leaning outlets emphasized Biden’s reassessment of his campaign and the debate that helped end it. CNN and the Boston Globe paired his cancer counterfactual with his debate remarks; The New York Times said Biden’s assessment that it was “not very consequential” ran counter to widely held views of the debate and its aftermath.

How the right told it

Right-leaning outlets mostly challenged Biden’s dismissal of a debate followed shortly by his withdrawal. Fox News highlighted backlash, quoting a conservative commentator calling him “TOTALLY delusional”; Hot Air called his account “Gaslighting America.” The New York Post paired his cancer remarks with the Democratic revolt after the debate.

Joe Biden: Cancer Would’ve Halted Campaign

What happened

How the left told it

How the right told it

Biden Memoir Fallout

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