(Photo : Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
White House Press Secretary Psaki Holds Daily White House Press Briefing
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 29: White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki listens to a question at a press briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on September 29, 2021 in Washington, DC. Psaki provided updates on President Joe Biden’s continued meetings with members of Congress on passing legislation, including bills on infrastructure, the White House's Build Back Better Act and the debt limit. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
President Joe Biden's chronic cough is the result of allergies, not a more serious medical issue, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
Biden, who turns 79 next month, coughed and cleared his throat many times during public remarks on Friday, including during an event with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on the White House lawn.
In the past, Biden and his doctor have blamed his frequent hacking in public on a cold or the symptoms of gastric reflux. Biden has failed to fulfill the presidential custom of disclosing the findings of his annual medical examination, as per the NY Post.
Biden's chronic cough sparks concerns
The commander in chief's cough has caused health concerns on several occasions. Psaki was asked about it by NBC News reporter Kelly O'Donnell just last month.
Psaki was questioned further by O'Donnell, who was chosen president of the White House Correspondents' Association this year, with tenure beginning in 2023.
Biden's coughing has been explained in a number of different ways throughout the years. Dr. Kevin C. O'Connor, his physician, blamed gastro-esophageal reflux in a 2019 report.
Per Daily Mail, after a reporter questioned her about the president coughing and wiping his nose during Friday's addresses, White House press secretary Jen Psaki claimed that he is "doing great."
During a speech on the September employment report on Friday, Biden cleared his throat a few times and brought out a tissue to wipe his nose.
On Friday, after restoring protections for Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante, and Northeast Canyons and Seamounts National Monuments, the president coughed many times during his remarks.
Biden has a chronic cough; and when his frequent hacking raised eyebrows a few weeks ago, the press secretary dismissed worries about the president's health.
Biden is completely protected against COVID-19, having had his booster injection on September 27. Since the previous update in December 2019, the president has not released a medical report, despite the White House promising in May that one would be released later this year.
White House blames unvaccinated Americans for Biden's poor approval rates
Psaki was also questioned about President Biden's poor polling numbers on Friday. Americans "who have opted not to be vaccinated," bear at least some of the burden, according to Psaki.
Biden responded to the news on Friday, defending his economic record as "progress" while his support rating hovers around 38%, as per Fox News.
While Biden's approval rating is at a low 43 percent, down from 51 percent in early August, Psaki defended the president, claiming that as the pandemic has advanced, it has had a rippling impact on the economy, labor market, and supply chains, which has disillusioned many Americans.
In a national poll issued Wednesday by Quinnipiac University, 38 percent of respondents approved of Biden's performance, while 53 percent disapproved, a new low for his administration. According to the survey, 60 percent of independents disapproved of Biden's performance.
Real Clear Politics showed Biden's average popularity rating across numerous surveys has plummeted to 44.6 percent.
Psaki's statement seemed to disregard the administration's recent missteps, which include a bungled departure from Afghanistan, an unprecedented border crisis, increasing inflation, and mounting debt default concerns.
Biden earned low marks in the Quinnipiac poll on important policy topics such as pandemic response, the economy, control of the military as commander-in-chief, budgetary concerns, foreign policy, immigration, and the border crisis.
Respondents were similarly skeptical about the president, with only 49% believing he cares about average Americans. Fifty percent say Biden is dishonest, while 44% believe the opposite.
Furthermore, 56% do not trust the president's leadership abilities, and 55% do not feel the Biden administration is capable of running the country.
Related Article: Jen Psaki Dodges on Questions About Joe Biden's Honesty in Afghan Pullout; Claims President Has No Medical Issue Over Persistent Cough
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