Biden Team Responds to George Clooney’s Scathing Op-Ed

Who predicted a “media feud between Joe Biden and George Clooney” for July 2024?

Surprisingly, that’s the latest scenario unfolding.

President Biden’s team reportedly responded to the legendary actor on Wednesday following Clooney’s cutting guest essay in the New York Times. Clooney urged Biden to withdraw from his reelection campaign due to serious concerns about his mental fitness.

Annie Karni, a Times congressional correspondent, mentioned on X that “Biden is fighting back on Clooney” and cited a “source familiar with event planning” who criticized Clooney’s short participation at a June 15 fundraiser mentioned in his op-ed.

“The President stayed for over three hours, while Clooney took a photo quickly and left,” the source commented.

Times columnist Nicholas Kristof reacted with disbelief on X: “Biden is really trying to claim that he’s more vigorous than George Clooney? I’ve traveled with Clooney for days over rough roads in sub-Saharan Africa, and it’s just sad to see Biden pretend he can outlast Clooney at anything. I admire Biden. So does Clooney. But at least Clooney put his name on his essay; this is anonymous White House backstabbing, and incompetent to boot.”

The president’s campaign highlighted that Biden attended the fundraiser after flying in from Italy, where he had been at the G7 summit.

This exchange follows Clooney’s widely praised essay, which presents a well-argued and respectful call for Biden to step down. Clooney, a longtime Biden supporter, claims that Biden’s performance at the fundraiser echoed his concerning appearance at the June 27 debate against Donald Trump in Atlanta.

“I love Joe Biden,” Clooney wrote. “As a senator. As a vice president and as president. I consider him a friend, and I believe in him. Believe in his character. Believe in his morals. In the last four years, he’s won many battles. But the one battle he cannot win is the fight against time. None of us can. It’s devastating to say, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal’ Biden of 2010 or even 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.”

Clooney continued: “Our party leaders need to stop telling us that 51 million people didn’t see what we just saw. We’re all so terrified by the prospect of a second Trump term that we’ve opted to ignore every warning sign … We are not going to win in November with this president. On top of that, we won’t win the House, and we’re going to lose the Senate. This isn’t only my opinion; this is the opinion of every senator, Congress member, and governor I’ve spoken with in private. Every single one, irrespective of what they are saying publicly.”

Clooney added, “[If Biden stepped aside] we could go into the Democratic convention next month and figure it out. Would it be messy? Yes. Democracy is messy. But would it enliven our party and wake up voters who, long before the June debate, had already checked out? It sure would.”

Earlier on Wednesday, longtime Biden supporter Michael Douglas told The View that he felt Clooney’s essay was “a valid point.”

“I’m deeply, deeply concerned,” Douglas said. “Especially, it’s difficult because the Democrats have a big bench, they’ve got a lot of heavy hitters, a lot of talent.”