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Jill Biden shuts down claims that president is mentally unfit: 'Ridiculous'
First lady Jill Biden is not willing to entertain certain criticisms of her husband.
Dr. Biden told CBS News' Rita Braver that she thinks it's "ridiculous" when critics suggest President Biden's mental fitness is questionable. Per The Hill, she shook her head when Braver mentioned that polling shows "quite a few Americans have some questions about the president's current mental fitness."
"I think that's ridiculous," said Biden. The polls Braver mentioned include a Politico/Morning Consult poll that found 46 percent said the president is mentally fit, and 48 percent said he isn't. The numbers on that question have drastically sunk in the last year.
While the first lady may not approve of questions about Biden's mental acuity, more general polls also don't look great for the president. A Thursday survey from NPR/Marist found that Biden's approval ratings have dropped to 42 percent, tied for the lowest he's ever polled.
"What's more, the intensity of disapproval is high — 38% said they strongly disapprove of Biden," writes NPR. "That's close to the territory that President Donald Trump resided in during his term." According to NPR's analysis, voters not giving Biden credit for his administration's policies might be partly to blame. A majority of those surveyed were in favor of the president's tentpole projects, like the infrastructure bill that recently took effect.
NPR/Marist surveyed 1,172 adults via phone from Nov. 30 through Dec. 6. The margin of error is 3.8 percentage points. Read more at NPR.