President Joe Biden sounded hoarse and had a bad cough during a press conference on Friday.
It was so noticeable that Fox News senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy questioned the president’s health in the middle of the event.
According to the White House, Biden is suffering from a minor cold.
Biden said he’s tested every day and he believes the cold came from his grandchildren. Biden said the illness is not related to the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed the lives of over 700,000 Americans — mostly seniors.
At 79 years of age, Biden is considered very vulnerable to COVID-19 infection.
“First of all, Mr. President, your voice sounds different. Are you okay?” Doocy asked
“I’m okay. I have a test every day to — COVID test,” Biden explained.
“What I have is a 1-and-a-half-year-old grandson who had a cold who likes to kiss his pop and he has been kissing me anyway,” the president said. “But it is just a cold.”
The White House has sought to dispel rumors that Biden was in ill health earlier this week. Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who has been Biden’s primary care physician since 2009, released a note Monday affirming that Biden is “experiencing some increased nasal congestion this week.”
“This can be heard in his voice and he is feeling the colloquially well-known ’frog in one’s throat,” O’Connor wrote.
He wrote that Biden was tested for 19 “common respiratory pathogens,” including the flu, strep throat, and COVID-19–and all came back negative. The president is taking over-the-counter medications to treat his symptoms.
Biden made headlines after he was put under sedation at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center during a physical examination. While under anesthesia, he temporarily signed over presidential powers to Vice President Kamala Harris.
His physician later released a report declaring him a “healthy, vigorous, 78-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency.”
O’Connor investigated Biden for increased instances of “throat clearing” during public remarks and a stiffening of his gait. O’Connor reported that Biden’s coughing was the result of gastrointestinal reflux and that the stiffened gait was the result of a new diagnosis of “mild peripheral neuropathy,” spinal arthritis, and compensation for a broken foot sustained a year ago.
Video of the president’s illness quickly went viral.
https://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1466800671970238467
Joe Biden is asked why he sounds so sick:
"I have a 1 & 1/2-year-old grandson who has a cold who likes to kiss his pop. He'd be kissing my, anyway…But it’s just a cold." pic.twitter.com/rZPbYNBBAc
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) December 3, 2021
The Horn editorial team and the Associated Press contributed to this article.