Biden Struggles To Climb Air Force One Stairs After Testing Positive For COVID

President Biden appeared to be struggling with the Air Force One staircase after his team abruptly cancelled a campaign event in Nevada, citing a COVID-19 diagnosis.

Biden was scheduled to speak at the UnidosUS conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday night, though his appearance was cancelled at the last minute. Janet Murguía, the president and CEO of UnidosUS, revealed that President Biden had tested positive for COVID-19.

Less than an hour after the event was cancelled, members of the White House press pool captured footage of the president boarding Air Force One. The president moved slowly as he ascended the short staircase and appeared to briefly pause about three-quarters of the way up.

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The abrupt cancellation has reignited speculation that the president will be dropping out of the race following his disastrous debate performance.

A number of Democrats have called on President Biden to step aside in recent weeks, while others have hinted at the possibility without explicitly calling for it. Biden has resisted calls to step down in a number of post-debate interviews, while Vice President Harris has also stood by his candidacy.

A recent interview has ignited speculation in the wake of Biden’s latest cancellation, however. When asked if there were anything that could get him to change his mind and step aside, the president stated that a serious illness would make him consider the possibility.

“If I had some medical condition that emerged,” Biden said. “If doctors came to me and said ‘you got this problem or that problem.'”

In the event that Biden did step aside, Vice President Harris would almost certainly be the Democratic nominee. If the party opted to go in another direction with an open convention, the new nominee would be unable to access the Biden Campaign’s war chest.

Wednesday’s diagnosis is not the first time President Biden — who received numerous vaccine booster shots — has tested positive for COVID-19. He was first diagnosed with the virus in July 2022, though he continued to work from the White House.

Shortly after testing negative and resuming his public schedule, Biden tested positive again in a phenomenon known as “COVID-19 rebound,” commonly associated with Paxlovid treatment. This rebound case was detected on July 30, 2022. His symptoms were once again described as mild.

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