{"id":3736,"date":"2026-05-27T22:40:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T22:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/05\/27\/jill-biden-says-she-thought-joe-biden-was-having-a-stroke-during-2024-debate\/"},"modified":"2026-05-27T22:40:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T22:40:15","slug":"jill-biden-says-she-thought-joe-biden-was-having-a-stroke-during-2024-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=3736","title":{"rendered":"Jill Biden says she thought Joe Biden was having a stroke during 2024 debate"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"63b4bca7-19cb-459d-aa59-a33128b3b804\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden hold hands on a debate stage\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/2f5293ff14a1db2023ca98d029d29ad73625af7a\/0_0_3031_2027\/master\/3031.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310.971626525899\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Jill Biden (right) with Joe Biden at the conclusion of his debate with Donald Trump, in Atlanta on 27 June 2024.<\/span> Photograph: Gerald Herbert\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"63b4bca7-19cb-459d-aa59-a33128b3b804\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Jill Biden (right) with Joe Biden at the conclusion of his debate with Donald Trump, in Atlanta on 27 June 2024.<\/span> Photograph: Gerald Herbert\/AP<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">Jill Biden says she thought Joe Biden was having a stroke during 2024 debate<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>In CBS interview set to air Sunday, former first lady says she was \u2018frightened\u2019 during husband\u2019s debate with Trump<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-kn9unn\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/jill-biden\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Jill Biden<\/a> said she had been \u201cfrightened\u201d as she watched <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/joebiden\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Joe Biden<\/a>\u2019s faltering performance during his 2024 presidential debate, and thought her husband might have suffered a stroke.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cI was frightened, because I had never, ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never,\u201d the former first lady <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/jill-biden-interview-joe-biden-debate-frightened-stroke\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">said<\/a> in an interview with CBS set to air on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cAs I watched it, I thought: \u2018Oh, my God, he\u2019s having a stroke,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cAnd it scared me to death.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Biden\u2019s poor debate performance against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Donald Trump<\/a> in June 2024 sparked widespread alarm among Democrats, prompting calls for his withdrawal from the race.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Under immense pressure, Biden ended his re-election bid and endorsed his vice-president, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/kamala-harris\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Kamala Harris<\/a>, leaving her just 107 days to campaign before the November 2024 general election against Trump.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Throughout the 90-minute showdown in Atlanta, a raspy Biden, then 81 years old, repeatedly stumbled over his words, took long pauses and mumbled inaudibly and occasionally incoherently.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">At one point, his rambling response prompted Trump to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/article\/2024\/jun\/28\/biden-withdraw-democrat-presidential-debate\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">quip<\/a>: \u201cI really don\u2019t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don\u2019t think he knows what he said either.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Biden memorably <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/article\/2024\/jun\/27\/trump-biden-cnn-presidential-debate-reaction-highlights\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">tried<\/a> to land a blow on Trump\u2019s policies on tax cuts and the national debt, but tangled the line and instead declared: \u201cWe finally beat Medicare.\u201d His team later clarified that he had meant to say his administration had \u201cbeat big pharma\u201d, but the misspeak crystalized longstanding concerns about the mental acuity and physical condition of the US\u2019s oldest president.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Biden also veered away from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/article\/2024\/jun\/28\/biden-debate-abortion\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">question on reproductive rights<\/a>, shifting instead to references about women killed by immigrants \u2013 a pivot into one of his weaker areas and a point frequently emphasized in Republican talking points.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Jill Biden has remained a stalwart supporter of her husband throughout his decades-long political career. In a rally shortly after the June 2024 debate, Jill Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/clip\/public-affairs-event\/user-clip-jill-biden-celebrates-that-joe-biden-answered-every-question-before-after-party-speech\/5122188\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">praised<\/a> her husband\u2019s performance, saying: \u201cJoe, you did such a great job. You answered every question. You knew all the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The former first lady will soon publish a memoir, titled View from the East Wing, about her experience in the White House. In it, she is expected to share her account of her husband\u2019s fraught re-election campaign and his monumental \u2013 and historic \u2013decision to withdraw.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/jill-biden\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Jill Biden<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/joebiden\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Joe Biden<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/democrats\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Democrats<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Jill%20Biden%20says%20she%20thought%20Joe%20Biden%20was%20having%20a%20stroke%20during%202024%20debate&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/27\/jill-biden-joe-biden-stroke-trump-debate?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fmay%2F27%2Fjill-biden-joe-biden-stroke-trump-debate&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/may\/27\/jill-biden-joe-biden-stroke-trump-debate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1h2hraq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jill Biden (right) with Joe Biden at the conclusion of his debate with Donald Trump, in Atlanta on<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3738,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3736","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3736"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3736\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}