Axios reporter shoots down excuses for Biden's debate performance: 'I'm not sure if there's a good one'

'No cold or COVID could really explain his inability to answer simple questions' the Axios reporter argued

President Biden and his allies have released several reasons for his poor performance in the presidential debate, but one reporter on Wednesday argued their explanations don’t make sense.

Biden's showing in last week’s presidential debate has sent the Democratic Party into a panic about his chances in November against former President Trump. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in the following days maintained that the president’s poor debate performance was due to his having "a cold" and echoed his own explanation from Tuesday night — that he was still recovering from "jet lag" following his trip to Europe for the G-7 summit. 

"It was not his best night. He had a cold. He was jetlagged," she said. "You heard directly from the president about this. And when he gets knocked down, he gets right back up."

But when asked about the "evolving messaging from the White House" on CNN, Axios national political reporter Alex Thompson argued that the excuses don’t hold up.

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Axios reporter Alex Thompson argued against multiple explanations for Biden's poor performance in the debate.

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"I mean, we really don‘t have enough time in the segment to go through the shifting explanations, because it is — listen, they didn‘t even say that he had a cold until an hour into the debate," he said. "Then, earlier this week — you know, Joe Biden has actually really never even referenced that he had a cold. Then Karine Jean-Pierre said that he actually had no cold medication when he said he had a cold."

Thompson continued, "Then he said, ‘Oh, it’s really about the travel.’ But then you also have to remember that he was already in the Eastern Time Zone for about 10 days before the debate. Yes, he traveled a lot in early June, but they arranged this to have a lot of downtime."

WASHINGTON, DC May 14, 2024: US President Joe Biden looks up at the rain during his remarks during an event to promote American investments and jobs in the Rose Garden of the White House on Tuesday May 14, 2024. (Photo by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

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"The White House has still not been able to try to hone in on an explanation for why Joe Biden at the debate could not even string simple sentences together," he added.

Thompson said if the president was sick, it couldn't explain his "inability to answer simple questions." 

"I think the thing is the White House is trying to find an explanation, and honestly I'm not sure if there's a good one," he said. 

Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Alexander Hall is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..