Harris briefly takes over as Biden undergoes anesthesia for colonoscopy day before 79th birthday
President Biden temporarily transferred power to Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday morning so he could undergo a colonoscopy.
The White House said that Biden was out of commission from 10:10 a.m. to 11:35 a.m. while he was with his doctors at Walter Reed Medical Center outside Washington — making Harris the first woman to officially hold presidential prerogative in American history.
Biden confirmed in letters to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate President pro tempore Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) that he would “undergo a routine medical procedure requiring sedation” and would “transfer temporarily the powers and duties of the office of President of the United States to the Vice President during the brief period of the procedure and recovery.”
In subsequent letters to Pelosi and Leahy, Biden confirmed that he was once again “able to discharge the powers and duties of the Office of President of the United States” and was “resuming those powers and duties.”
The appointment was not originally listed on Biden’s public schedule. White House press secretary Jen Psaki initially announced early Friday that the president would travel to Walter Reed for a “routine physical.”
After Biden arrived at the hospital shortly before 9 a.m., Psaki announced that the president would also undergo a colonoscopy and transfer his powers to Harris.
It was not immediately clear whether the exam included a cognitive test, which some Republican lawmakers have insisted the president undergo.
Psaki was pressed last week about when Biden — who turns 79 on Saturday — would undergo the exam, since he has been in office for nearly 10 months and is the oldest person to hold the office of president.
“He will be doing his physical soon,” she said at the time. “As I’ve noted before, as soon as he does that, we will provide that information transparently to all of you.”
In recent weeks, the White House has attempted to shrug off questions about Biden’s health, with Psaki blaming a persistent presidential cough on allergies at one point last month.
The last detailed medical report on Biden was released in December 2019, when a doctor described him as a “healthy, vigorous, 77-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency,” per multiple reports.
A recent poll found that approximately half of all registered voters have concerns about the president’s health.
The Politico/Morning Consult survey published Wednesday found that 50 percent of registered voters disagreed with the statement “Joe Biden is in good health,” while only 40 percent agreed and 10 percent did not know or had no opinion.
The poll also found that 48 percent of voters disagreed with the statement “Joe Biden is mentally fit,” while 46 percent agreed and 6 percent did not know or had no opinion.
Americans’ confidence in Biden’s well-being is also split along political lines. Around 87 percent of voters who supported former President Donald Trump in last year’s election disagree that Biden is in good health while 71 percent of Biden supporters believe he is.
Among independent voters, the survey found 54 percent do not believe Biden is in good health and only 31 percent agree that he is. Independent voters had slightly more confidence in the president’s mental fitness, with 47 percent disagreeing he is capable and 42 percent agreeing.
The concern over Biden’s health and age is nothing new.
Last month, a Harvard-Harris poll found that 53 percent of voters have doubts about the president’s fitness while 47 percent do not. In addition, 58 percent of respondents said Biden was too old to be president, while 42 percent felt he was fit enough for the job.
