White House Disputes Report That Biden Froze at Los Angeles Fundraiser Until Obama Helped

Mr. Obama can be seen holding Mr. Biden’s hand and giving him a reassuring pat on the back as they depart.

AP/Alex Brandon
President Biden speaks during a campaign event with President Obama at the Peacock Theater, Saturday. AP/Alex Brandon

The White House has rejected claims that President Biden experienced a moment of confusion on stage during a fundraiser at Los Angeles, necessitating President Obama’s assistance to leave the stage.

An article by the New York Post highlighted a video of the incident, with the headline, “Biden appears to freeze up, has to be led off stage by Obama at mega-bucks LA fundraiser.”

Mr. Biden was in California on Saturday for a fundraising event that reportedly raised more than $30 million. The gathering was hosted by late-night television personality Jimmy Kimmel.

At the event’s conclusion, both Messrs. Biden and Obama were seen exiting the stage while waving goodbye to the audience. In the video, Mr. Obama can be seen holding Mr. Biden’s hand and giving him a reassuring pat on the back as they depart.

The Hill reached out to the Biden-Harris campaign for clarification. The Senior Deputy Press Secretary, Andrew Bates, dismissed the Post’s portrayal of the incident, asserting that the characterization was inaccurate.

“Fresh off being fact checked by at least 6 mainstream news organizations for lying about President Biden with cheap fakes, Rupert Murdoch’s sad little super pac, the New York Post, is back to disrespecting it’s readers and itself once again by pretending the President taking in an applauding crowd for a few seconds is somehow wrong,” Mr. Bates wrote. “Their ethical standards could deal with a little unfreezing.”

Team Obama also weighed in on the incident. Mr. Obama’s senior adviser, Eric Schultz, reposted the Post’s article on the social media platform X, adding, “this did not happen.”


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