FIRST ON FOX: House Republicans are appealing directly to President Biden demanding that he take a cognitive test to prove his mental fitness for office.
Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, the former White House physician who served as chief medical adviser to former President Trump, led a letter to the president co-signed by 83 House Republicans, including House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik and Chief Deputy Whip Guy Reschenthaler, arguing that the president's many public "gaffes" are a "national security concern."
"Following the recent report from Special Counsel Robert Hur, we write to express our grave concerns with your current cognitive state and ability to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency, including as Chief Executive, Head of State, and Commander in Chief," the lawmakers wrote. "The President of the United States must demonstrate sound mental abilities, regardless of gender, age, or political party, which you have not."
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It comes as Biden’s critics continue to seize on a recent report by special counsel Robert Hur regarding the president’s handling of classified documents before he took office. Hur’s 388-page report cleared President Biden of wrongdoing despite having "willfully retained and disclosed classified materials."
Hur said Biden came off "as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory" and that "it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him-by then a former president well into his eighties-of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness."
Biden and his allies have aggressively pushed back on Hur's assessment and denied his age being an issue.
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The GOP lawmakers wrote to him, "If you are too mentally impaired to stand trial, as your own Department of Justice claims, then we are concerned that your mental state is not at a competent level to serve as the leader of the free world. Therefore, we call on you to submit to a clinically validated cognitive screening assessment and make those results available to the public."
This is the fifth such request by Jackson. He said his previous four inquiries went unanswered.
"This is the fifth time we’ve sent a letter to the White House demanding Biden take a cognitive exam, however while the administration has chosen to ignore each of these requests, it is becoming clearer each day that the President is not cognitively fit," Jackson told Fox News Digital in a statement. "I am proud to be joined by Conference Chairwoman Stefanik, Chief Deputy Whip Guy Reschenthaler and dozens of my House colleagues in this effort."
The GOP lawmakers' letter continued, "Over the past three years, your mental decline and forgetfulness has become even more apparent. It is a common occurrence to see you shuffling your feet, stumbling while walking, slurring your words, forgetting names, losing your train of thought, and appearing confused or asleep when making public appearances here at home and on the world stage."
They pointed out that Biden recently confused French President Emmanuel Macron with a predecessor who died decades prior, and that he also mixed up German leaders’ names and mistakenly referred to the president of Egypt as the president of Mexico.
"While the prevalence of your ‘gaffes’ continues to increase and creates a serious national security concern, President Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party continue to modernize their military at an alarming rate while showing a clear indication of an intent to invade Taiwan in the near future," the letter said.
"Unfortunately, we fear that your perceived cognitive deterioration is inviting Beijing to take this military action, as there is significant doubt surrounding your ability to execute the duties required of the President of the United States and prevent further global conflicts from arising or escalating."
When asked for comment on Jackson’s public demand on Wednesday that Biden take a cognitive test, the White House sent Fox News Digital an image of Dr. Nick Riviera, a character from "The Simpsons" known for poor medical practices and maiming patients.
The White House sent another image of "Dr. Nick" when reached by Fox News Digital on Friday morning.
Earlier this week, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden would not be taking a cognitive test as part of his regular physical exam.
