Hillary Clinton confessed that President Biden's age is a "legitimate issue" as the White House struggles to contain growing panic over his election prospects.
“I talked to people in the White House all the time, and you know, they know it’s an issue, but as I like to say, ‘look, it’s a legitimate issue,’” Clinton told MSNBC's Alex Wagner.
Democrats are alarmed and outraged by a Special Counsel report released last week that described Biden as an "elderly man with a poor memory."
Special Counsel Robert Hur cited Biden's mental condition as a reason not to bring charges for mishandling classified information - and concluded that Biden could not recall his son's death "within several years."
Democrats seem to realize they can't go on forever ignoring the elephant in the room - with Clinton urging Biden to get out in public more.
“I’m for Joe Biden for reelection on the merits because I think he’s done a really good job as president,” Clinton said. “So, I think he should continue to get out and campaign. He’s been campaigning pretty vigorously across the country."
She also said Biden should not be afraid to share his "wisdom" with the country.
"I think Biden also should lean into the fact that he’s experienced and that experience is not just in the political arena,” she said. “It’s like, the stuff of, you know, human experience, character, wisdom."
Biden has often attempted to defuse concerns over his age with humor, but there was nothing funny about the train wreck press conference last week where he angrily defended his mental capacity - and confused the presidents of Egypt and Mexico.
Some of Biden's defenders have compared Hur's report to James Comey's resolution of Clinton's email scandal, in which Comey announced he would bring no charges against Clinton over her "extremely careless" use of a private e-mail server.
Clinton has long blamed Comey as factor in her defeat to Donald Trump in the 2016 election.
The White House doubled down in defense of Biden's mental capacity on Monday and said he would not take a cognitive test.
Whtie House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre described Biden as vigorous and alert.
"When we have meetings with him and his staff he is constantly pushing us, trying to get more information, and so that has been my experience with this president," she said.
