Pelosi eventually asked CNN's Anderson Cooper, 'Why are we even having this conversation?'
Nancy Pelosi on Biden age concerns: 'He's younger than I am, so what do I have to say about his age?'
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked to respond to concerns about President Biden's age and largely defended him on Monday during an appearance on CNN.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi deemed President Biden's age an "objective fact," and conceded that he's younger than her, adding, "so what do I have to say about his age?"
CNN's Anderson Cooper asked Pelosi if Biden should be poking fun at his age and noted some Democrats were concerned about the president. "What do you say to people about their concerns?" he asked.
"Well, I think that people do make mistakes. I think his age is one thing that‘s an objective fact. His making mistakes from time to time. We all do that," she said. "When the former, ex-president, defeated President Trump made a mistake about one thing or another, he would make the same mistake seven times. It wasn’t a slip of the tongue, it was a complete going down a path of something that wasn’t even true, intentionally or otherwise."
"So I think that, again, age is an objective fact. As I say, it’s all relative. He’s younger than I am, so what do I have to say about his age? But he is, again, knowledgeable, wise," Pelosi continued.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi joins CNN's Anderson Cooper on Monday, Feb. 12, 2024. (Screenshot/CNN)
The former House Speaker also compared the president to the Kansas City Chiefs, who won the Super Bowl on Sunday, and said she saw "experience prevail" at the end of the game.
"But you saw experience prevail at the end. Experience is so important. So Joe Biden has vision, he has knowledge… a strategic thinker. This is a very sharp president. In terms of his public presentation, if he makes a slip of the tongue here or there, what’s the deal? He has what he needs mentally and what he has in his heart empathetically, for the American people," she said during the media appearance.
Cooper said the president was very engaged and "fully cognizant" when he sat down to interview him for his podcast and asked Pelosi if his public presentation was "very different" from what she sees in meetings with Biden.
"Yeah, but I think his public presentation is okay. I think in meetings you see firsthand that he’s on top of the situation. He knows what’s going on, and why are we even having this conversation? We’re talking about Joe Biden, the President of the United States, compared to, but it isn‘t just the comparison. It’s about what he brings to the table, years of experience, depth of knowledge that is, again, very deep, breadth of experience that serves us well, beauty of his, his judgment and his vision for our country," Pelosi said.
President Joe Biden delivers remarks to the National Association of Counties Legislative Conference, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
BIDEN SKIPPING THE SUPER BOWL INTERVIEW PERPLEXES CNN'S TAPPER: ‘WHAT’S HE AFRAID OF?’
Pelosi has defended Biden against attacks on his age and told MSNBC that Biden was like a "kid" to her because she is older than the president.
During an interview with MSNBC's "Morning Joe" hosts in July 2023, Pelosi was asked about Biden facing mounting criticism over his age.
"I think the president should embrace his age, his experience, the knowledge he brings to the job. Actually, the leader on the other side is not much younger. I don’t like to use his name, but you know who I mean. He’s not that much younger. So I don’t think – age is a relative thing. It is – and I think this president, our country is very well served by his leadership, again, his experience, his knowledge, and it counts for a lot," she said.
President Joe Biden delivers remarks to the National Association of Counties Legislative Conference, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
She repeated that age was "relative" and added, "he's a kid to me."
Hanna Panreck is an associate editor at Fox News.
