Biden loses track of event, yells 'Who's next?' at press conference with India PM

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Biden loses track of event, yells 'Who's next?' at press conference with India PM

Biden hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delaware

By Anders Hagstrom Fox News
Published September 22, 2024 8:40am EDT


President Biden became confused and lost track of events during a press conference alongside India's prime minister on Saturday.

The incident came when Biden was supposed to introduce Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Wilmington, Delaware. He instead became confused and appeared to think he was waiting for a question from reporters. An announcer then introduces Modi following an uncomfortable pause.

"I want to thank you all for being here," Biden said. "Now, who am I introducing next?"

"Who's next?" he shouts, leading to several seconds of silence.

An announcer then cuts in to introduce Modi, who approaches Biden and shakes his hand.

The interaction came just one day after Biden received heavy criticism for allowing First Lady Jill Biden to run a cabinet meeting on Friday.

Biden convened his Cabinet on Friday for the first time since Oct. 2, 2023, and the first lady joined him to speak about the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research.

The president explained Jill Biden’s presence there, saying, "Here and across previous administrations, first ladies have attended these meetings for specific reasons. This is the first time Jill has joined us, and it goes to show how important the issue is, which she is about to speak to."

He concluded by handing off to his wife, saying, "It’s all yours, kid."

First lady Jill Biden speaks while attending her first Cabinet meeting during her husband's administration on Sept. 20, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Jill Biden spoke about progress made by the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The New York Post reported that Jill Biden, seated at the head of the Cabinet Room’s board table, "read from a binder about maternal health initiatives for four-and-a-half minutes after her husband spoke for just two minutes off the top of the meeting."

The president traditionally sits at the center of the table with Cabinet members seated in order of the founding of their departments. The last sitting first lady to attend her husband's Cabinet meeting appears to be Hillary Clinton.

The amount of influence the first lady has over Joe Biden, and therefore his administration, has been a frequent source of controversy, and numerous commentators took to social media to criticize her presence at the meeting.

The last time President Biden held a Cabinet meeting was in October 2023. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

The New York Post said that Jill Biden is "considered by insiders to be the most influential first lady since Edith Wilson, who tightly controlled access to her husband, President Woodrow Wilson, after he suffered a debilitating stroke in October 1919."