Joe Biden's wife Jill thought he was 'having a stroke' during 2024 presidential debate

Lead

Former First Lady Jill Biden has disclosed that she feared her husband, then-President Joe Biden, was suffering a stroke during his faltering performance in the first 2024 presidential debate. In an interview with CBS News' "Sunday Morning," scheduled to air this Sunday, Jill Biden described watching the debate with alarm, telling host Rita Braver: "I was frightened, because I had never, ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never." She added, "As I watched it, I thought, 'Oh, my God, he's having a stroke.' And it scared me to death."

Coverage Comparison

The revelation, widely reported across international media, has been framed as a turning point in the 2024 election cycle. Al Jazeera, the BBC, The Guardian, the Jerusalem Post, and the South China Morning Post all emphasized the debate's role in ultimately leading to Biden's withdrawal from the race. While most outlets focused on Jill Biden's reaction and the debate's impact, the Jerusalem Post also included a separate item on President Trump's health, and The Guardian ran a follow-up piece on Hillary Clinton's sharp criticism of Biden's decision to seek a second term.

Key Claims

Jill Biden's comments, carried by all six sources surveyed, describe a moment of personal and political crisis. She told CBS that she had "never ever seen Joe like that before or since," and that the experience "scared me to death." These quotes are uniformly reported and have not been disputed.

Multiple sources detail the debate's aftermath: Biden's poor performance, characterized by a raspy voice, stumbling over words, and losing his train of thought, sparked widespread alarm among Democrats. The BBC reported that the performance "sparked widespread alarm among Democrats, prompting calls for his withdrawal from the race." Biden ultimately dropped out of the race on July 21, 2024, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who later lost the general election to Donald Trump.

Biden's age—81 at the time—and concerns about his health and mental acuity were central themes. Al Jazeera noted that Biden was later diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer, a detail not mentioned in other coverage. The Jerusalem Post alone cited a CBS poll showing that 72% of registered voters believed Biden should not be running for president.

In a separate development, the Jerusalem Post reported that Trump's physician said the president is in "excellent health," a claim that has not been independently verified beyond that single report.

Perspectives

Jill Biden's Account: In her interview, Jill Biden expressed not only her initial fear but also her devastation at the public criticism her husband faced from fellow Democrats. At a book event in New York, she told a crowd that the public outcry "really hurtful" and that she and Joe were "devastated." She also defended her husband's decision to pardon their son Hunter, a matter not raised in other coverage.

Democratic Criticism: Hillary Clinton, speaking at the same 92nd Street Y venue, called Biden's decision to seek a second term "a terrible mistake" that cost Democrats the presidency and damaged his legacy. Clinton argued that a genuine primary would have produced a stronger nominee, though her claim that "whoever emerged from that contest... would have beaten Donald Trump" has been met with scrutiny. A 2025 report from the progressive group Way to Win identified broader structural problems within the party, and a belated internal review described a party losing ground at every level of government.

Republican Perspective: Trump's campaign had long questioned Biden's fitness, and during the debate, Trump quipped, "I really don't know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he said either." The Jerusalem Post's inclusion of Trump's health report suggests a counterpoint to concerns about Biden's health, though no outlet directly compared the two.

Context: Biden's debate performance was not the sole cause of his withdrawal, but it catalyzed a crisis of confidence within the Democratic Party. His team initially insisted he would not step down, but the pressure proved insurmountable. Harris's truncated campaign, lasting just 107 days, ended in defeat. The episode has since become a case study in political miscalculation, with Clinton's remarks adding a layer of intra-party recrimination.

The full interview with Jill Biden airs on CBS "Sunday Morning" this Sunday. Her memoir, "View from the East Wing," is set for release on Tuesday.