The Real Clear Politics Average might have Joe Biden ahead of Donald Trump by a margin of 9.2 points, 49.5-40.3, but two other polls show Biden ahead of the president in another not-so-encouraging category.
Between 40 and 55 percent of voters polled this month think the former vice president has dementia. Even worse for Biden, at least 20 percent of those voters are Democrats.
Already, Biden is the subject of YouTube videos that feature the gaffes he has uttered during this campaign. If Biden’s cognitive decline has reached a state of diagnosable dementia, he will likely show it when he debates Trump and as the campaign progresses.
Rasmussen
Almost 40 percent of 1,000 voters whom Rasmussen polled June 25-28 think Biden needs a check up from the neck up, and upwards of 50 percent think the time has come for him to say something about it.
“38% of Likely U.S. Voters think Biden is suffering from some form of dementia,” the pollsters at Rasmussen reported yesterday. “Based on what they have seen and read, 48% disagree, but 14% are not sure.
Worse still, 20 percent of the Democrats polled think Biden is non compos mentis, along with 66 percent of Republicans and 30 percent of those not affiliated with either party.
Men are more likely than women to believe Biden’s trolley has jumped the tracks.
“Seniors are the most likely to believe Biden has dementia,” Rasmussen reported:
The older the voter, the more likely they are to believe that it is Very Important for the White House hopeful to speak about the issue publicly. Among voters who think Biden is suffering from dementia, 93% feel it is important for him to address the issue publicly, with 78% who say it is Very Important.
Besides asking voters whether they thought Biden had dementia, Rasmussen this question:
Critics contend that Joe Biden’s frequent gaffes and confusing statements suggest that he is suffering from dementia. How important is it for Biden to address the dementia issue publicly — very important, somewhat important, not very important or not at all important?
Sixty-one percent said it is important for Biden to discuss it publicly, while 41 percent said it was very important. Thirty-six percent said it is not important.
But again, worse for Biden is the figure among Democrats: 51 percent of Democrats and unaffiliated voters believe it is important for him to discuss it publicly. Unsurprisingly, 81 percent of Republicans think so.
Zogby
The Zogby survey released on June 17 was no better for Biden.
Fifty-five percent of 1,007 likely voters, Zogby reported, “thought it was more likely (much more and somewhat more likely combined) that Vice President Biden is in the early stages of dementia, while 45% thought it was less likely (much less and somewhat less likely combined).”
Again, unsurprisingly, Trump supporters were the most likely to believe Biden is rowing his boat with one oar: 77 percent of Republicans and 56 percent of Independents thought it was “more likely” that he has dementia against 32 percent of Democrats. Sixty-eight percent of Democrats think it is less likely.
As with the Rasmussen poll, a solid majority of men, 60 percent, think it’s more likely Biden is demented, while just 50 percent of women think so.
Then again, Zogby’s polling found seniors less likely to believe Biden is demented.
“As the age of voters increased,” Zogby reported, “the likelihood of voters believing Biden was exhibiting early-onset dementia decreased. While 60 percent of voters aged 18-24 believe he is more likely to have dementia, only 50 percent of voters 65 years and older believed likewise.
Concluded Zogby, “the issue of both candidates’ physical fitness will be one of importance in the upcoming presidential election.”
Trump is 74 and is already taking heat about his health due to some unflattering images of him walking slowly. Questions surrounding Biden’s health and physical fitness will be front and center because the president will use this against the vice president. Truth be told, Biden has not looked that great in his few video appearances, and has yet to really hit the trail with a winning message due to Covid-19. At some point the former vice president will need to be his best if he is going to win over voters, and appeal to important swing voters in order to defeat President Trump. Right now voters have questions concerning Biden’s mental health and stamina, but will it cost him votes in November is undiagnosable at the moment
Born four days after the Allied Victory in Operation Torch in North Africa, Biden will be 78 when and if he is inaugurated on January 20.
Image: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons
R. Cort Kirkwood is a long-time contributor to The New American and a former newspaper editor.
