Jul 10, 2024 12:19 AM IST
While Biden decided to catch his z’s, he sent Secretary of State Antony Blinken to meet with the German leader.
Joe Biden skipped meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the G7 summit in 2022 to “go to bed,” according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. German officials had scheduled the meeting early in the evening to accommodate the President’s sleep schedule. Scholz was left “surprised” when Biden still didn’t show up.
Biden skipped meeting German Chancellor at G7 summit to sleep early
While Biden decided to catch his z’s, he sent Secretary of State Antony Blinken to meet with the German leader. Blinken reportedly told attendees that the 81-year-old couldn’t attend the meeting, which was arranged as a secret meeting about Ukraine, because he “had to go to bed.” However, a spokesperson for the State Department refuted those claims, saying, “Blinken never said that or anything like it.”
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Meanwhile, a government official told WSJ that the White House had already made it clear that Blinken would be meeting with Scholz instead of Biden. The official added that the POTUS was busy “managing domestic affairs,” adding that he was travelling extensively and spent an entire evening working.
The report added that the attendees said that Biden did not appear to show signs of cognitive decline while he was still at the event. However, they admitted that he was showing signs of having been “physically worn out.” Meanwhile, his supporters pitted it on a lack of air conditioning. The State Department once again refuted those claims.
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The report comes amid turbulent times for Biden as Democrats admit to having lost faith in his candidacy. The President sent the members of the Democratic party into panic mode after his shaky performance in the first debate of the 2024 race. Several suggested he drop out of the race or the party should replace him with someone more efficient.