The sentence was terrible. It robbed Joe Biden of any sense of relief upon reading the report by Special Prosecutor Robert Hur, published on Thursday, February 8. The judge investigated classified documents held without authorization by the Democrat prior to his election. Hur concluded that he did not have enough evidence for an indictment, even if these files had been wrongly retained. In his lengthy report, the prosecutor wrote the following, in support of his decision: "We have also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."

More a matter of speculative comment than legal assessment, Hur's sentence resembles a discharged grenade. "If you're too senile to stand trial, then you're too senile to be president," was the immediate reaction of Alex Pfeiffer, one of Donald Trump's advisors. The numerous references in the report to Joe Biden's failing memory – heard by the prosecutor in October 2023 – give unprecedented force to questions about his physical and mental capacity to stand again.

Deeply angered by the media coverage of the report, Biden appeared before reporters for an unscheduled appearance at around 8 pm. He dismissed any reference to his failing health – "my memory is fine" – and was about to leave the room after 10 minutes, when he turned back to mention the ongoing hostage negotiations in Gaza. He then mentioned "President Sisi of Mexico." Sisi is the president of Egypt.

Was it a simple blunder? The worrying episodes are increasing. On February 6, at the White House, it was almost painful to watch Biden search for words as he squinted his eyes. The American president had just read an impassioned speech, in which he criticized Republican tactics in Congress on the issue of securing the border with Mexico. Then he allowed himself a brief interaction with journalists. One of them asked him about the ongoing hostage negotiations in Gaza. "There's some movement, and I don't want to... I don't want to... well, let me... choose my words. There is some movement. There's been a response from... there's been a response from the opposition, but..." Someone in the audience came to his rescue. "Hamas?" Biden continued. "Yes, I'm sorry, from Hamas. But it seems to be going a little over the top."

Interactions with the press are few and far between. No press conference was scheduled with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday, during his official visit to Washington. Not to mention the absence of a televised interview on Sunday, on the occasion of the Super Bowl, the final of the American football championship. For the second year running, Biden has shied away from this exercise, which nonetheless benefits from an exceptional audience. In 2023, he had the excuse of a hostile broadcaster, Fox News; this time, it's the big CBS network. "We hope viewers enjoy watching what they tuned in for – the game," explained White House communications director Ben LaBolt. The official argument is that public opinion is already overly saturated with politics, nine months before the presidential election.

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