Former Vice President Kamala Harris has responded after former President Joe Biden announced that he has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones.
“Doug and I are saddened to learn of President Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis. We are keeping him, Dr. Biden, and their entire family in our hearts and prayers during this time,” Harris wrote in a post on the social platform X.
“Joe is a fighter — and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership. We are hopeful for a full and speedy recovery,” she continued.
Biden and his family “are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”
“Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms. On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone. While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management,” Biden announced in a statement.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers, including his political rival President Trump, showered Biden with well-wishes on Sunday afternoon.
“Melania and I are saddened to hear about Joe Biden’s recent medical diagnosis,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family, and we wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.”
The new health diagnosis comes amid the publishing of new books and reports that faulted aides to the former president for hiding his deteriorating mental capacities during his presidency.
Media outlets and veteran political reporters are finally coming clean about Biden’s true condition.
A former Biden White House official has claimed that his colleagues deliberately “gaslit” the public and journalists who raised concerns about former President Biden’s age and cognitive abilities.
Speaking at a seminar hosted by Puck reporter Tara Palmeri at the Sine Institute of Policy and Politics at American University, Michael LaRosa, a longtime press secretary for former First Lady Jill Biden, revealed efforts within the administration to shield Biden from media scrutiny.
Throughout the 2024 presidential race, many media pundits and commentators rushed to Biden’s defense amid speculation about his mental acuity.
The comments included reactions to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report describing Biden as well-meaning but forgetful, viral videos of him appearing confused, and a Wall Street Journal report detailing concerns about his behind-the-scenes demeanor.
While LaRosa was reluctant to label these efforts as a “cover-up,” he acknowledged that the White House had been aware from “day one” that former President Biden’s age was a concern.
He also disclosed that his colleagues actively downplayed and dismissed data indicating that Biden’s poll numbers had stagnated leading up to the 2024 election.
Despite polls showing that the majority of Americans believed Biden was too old to serve a second term, many journalists dismissed concerns about his health as a right-wing conspiracy.
Biden’s shaky debate performance in June escalated these worries, leading to mounting pressure for him to withdraw from the race.
“There are some things that are true. I mean, like the gaslighting, there was a lot of denial of the polling. And I will use the term gaslight because that’s what they were doing the campaign, former colleagues,” LaRosa told Palmeri.
“The message to everybody was to make sure that you tell people it’s too early. It’s too early. These polls don’t mean well; it became too early, and these polls don’t mean anything,” he continued.
According to LaRosa, the White House eagerly touted favorable polling data when Biden was ahead but suddenly dismissed its significance once his lead began to slip.
He also criticized the administration’s aggressive stance toward left-leaning outlets like The New York Times, which came under fire after it began covering Biden’s polling struggles and age concerns in mid-2024, Fox noted.
Reports have also finally admitted that some of Biden’s closest advisers had expressed concerns about his health since the early days of his administration.