Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy faced ridicule over his latest attack against President Joe Biden.
Biden is facing scrutiny over his performance during the CNN presidential debate against former President Donald Trump last week. His voice sounded hoarse, and he appeared to mumble through several questions, doing little to quell concerns about his age. However, medical experts have argued his performance is not necessarily a sign of diminished cognitive ability, and Biden's campaign has said he had a cold during the debate.
McCarthy, who left Congress after being ousted as speaker last year, weighed in on the Biden presidency during a Wednesday interview with Fox News, attempting to draw a contrast between Biden's Oval Office and that of past presidents.
He said the office is "always usually humming" but that Biden's office is "the quietest place."
"No one's around. The only thing there are cookies. He offers you cookies every time you're in there. And he goes and gets them. It is a depressing moment," he said.
His comments drew a wave of scrutiny on social media. On X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, a video of his comments received more than 2.1 million views by Thursday morning.
Newsweek reached out to McCarthy via Facebook message and the Biden campaign via email for comment.
Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger responded, "McCarthy is the best Biden surrogate. 'He goes and gets you cookies.' Trump eats em all."
"Hey, Kevin, remember that time Trump revealed highly classified information to the Russian foreign minister and Russian ambassador in the Oval Office? I prefer President Biden's Oval Office and the cookies," wrote X user Polly Sigh.
"Yeah that sounds terrible. People hate cookies," quipped writer Thor Benson.
X user @_EthanGrey wrote, "'The last guy offered us white supremacy and now we have to settle for Joe Biden offering us cookies. It's depressing.' This is how you explain McCarthy's disdain here."
"Really? I would love for Joe Biden to bring me a cookie right now," wrote Will Bunch, a columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
NPR reported in December 2023 that Biden does keep homemade chocolate chip cookies in the Oval Office, "all individually wrapped with a presidential seal."
It remains unclear how much damage Biden's debate performance has caused. While Democrats have panicked about Biden's performance, polls have been mixed. Some show Trump gaining ground against Biden, but others show minimal changes.
As Biden seeks to squash concerns about his age from his own party, the White House on Tuesday said Biden would speak with congressional leaders this week, give an interview to ABC's George Stephanopoulos, and hold a press conference in the coming days.
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Andrew Stanton is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in Maine. His role is reporting on U.S. politics and social issues. ... Read more
