House Republicans are demanding interviews with Biden Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and other top Biden White House staffers about the former president’s cognitive decline.
On Friday the House Oversight Committee sent a series of letters to Jean-Pierre, Ian Sams (special assistant to the president), Andrew Bates (senior deputy press secretary), and Jeff Zients (White House chief of staff) asking that they appear for transcribed interviews later this summer. According to Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., the requests are part of the body’s “aggressive investigation into the cover-up of [Biden’s] cognitive decline and potentially unauthorized executive actions” while serving as commander-in-chief.
“President Biden’s inner circle repeatedly told the American people that he was ‘sharp as ever,’ dismissing any commentary about his obvious mental decline as ‘gratuitous.’ They fed these false talking points to progressive allies and the media, who helped perpetuate that President Biden was fit to serve,” the Kentucky Republican said in a statement.
In their letter to Jean-Pierre, Oversight Republicans highlighted several examples of the former press secretary downplaying or dismissing times in which Biden showed signs of mental decline. In a press briefing following the Delaware Democrat’s disastrous June 2024 debate performance against Donald Trump, for example, Jean-Pierre claimed Biden was “as sharp as ever.”
“If White House staff carried out a strategy lasting months or even years to hide the chief executive’s condition — or to perform his duties — Congress may need to consider a legislative response,” the letter reads.
[READ: KJP Should Be Compelled To Give Her Tell-All About Biden’s Decline Under Oath]
The committee has requested that the recipients of Friday’s communiques appear for transcribed interviews on the following days: Sams on Aug. 11; Jean-Pierre on Aug. 18; Bates on Aug. 27; and Zients on Sept. 3. All former Biden officials are asked to notify the committee by July 4 whether they will voluntarily appear for interviews on their respective designated dates or if they will require a subpoena to “compel” their attendance.
The committee additionally requested that, by July 4, Jean-Pierre and Co. provide an alternative date that falls within a week of their original interview date should said date not work for them.
The issuance of Friday’s letters came a day after the Oversight Committee subpoenaed Anthony Bernal, a former aide to President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden.
As The Federalist reported, Bernal was originally slated to sit for a transcribed interview before the Oversight Committee on Thursday to discuss what he knew about efforts to conceal Biden’s declining health from the American public. However, after the Trump administration waived executive privilege for several Biden aides (including Bernal), the former Biden official’s legal counsel informed the committee on Wednesday that he would not appear for testimony on the originally agreed-upon date.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood