As published in the Washington Examiner.

After President Biden confirmed he was pushed out by party elites like Nancy Pelosi, Kamala Harris was coronated as nominee of her party, despite never winning a single presidential primary contest. 

It appears the far-left is willing to do anything to preserve power, even if it means disenfranchising millions of voters. Or worse, orchestrating the most egregious presidential medical coverup in modern history.  The progressives, which have a vice grip on the Democrat party, know their policies aren’t palatable to the broader public.  They also know the President’s weak leadership and cognitive decline made him vulnerable in a rematch against President Trump.  After years of public denial, misdirection and coverup, they threw Joe Biden to the wolves, betting Kamala Harris could pull in jaded Biden voters to further their radical agenda. 

As evidence began to mount and President Biden’s gaffes became undeniable, Harris—and White House officials closest to him—deliberately hid his deteriorating mental acuity in public. 

Harris told the New York Times, “Age is more than a chronological fact” and insisted Biden is “absolutely authoritative” in meetings to assuage concerns that he was unable to discharge his duties.  After President Biden’s 2023 State of the Union, Harris described Biden on Good Morning America as a "very bold and vibrant" President and dismissed worries of his obvious decline as “theatrics.” Then, when Special Counsel Robert Hur stated President Biden’s mental acuity and poor memory would prevent a fair trial in his classified documents investigation, Harris declared Hur’s conclusion was false and politically motivated.  

Biden spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre also perpetuated the coverup by rejecting the need for cognitive tests. She said, “the president proves every day how he operates.” In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, she claimed it was “hard” for staff to “keep up” with Joe Biden, desperate to convince Americans the President was fit for duty.

To no one’s surprise, the liberal lapdogs in mainstream media pushed the Harris and Biden Team deception, refusing to challenge the ailing President and joining the chorus of misdirection.  Talking heads dismissed out of hand claims about his mental decline as Republican lies. Yet Americans witnessed it every time President Biden was caught on camera aimlessly wandering or spouting incoherent gibberish.  Those who questioned the narrative Harris and others in the White House were spinning were discredited as hacks, guilty of pushing “cheap fakes.” 

Harris’s ardent defense of the President cannot be explained away as simply “standing by one’s boss,” or striving to be a “team player.”  It’s an act of malicious dishonesty and a calculated coverup that threatens our national security and the health of our republic.  Harris was with President Biden often, involved at the highest level of the Administration and was witness to the President’s mental decline. Americans looked to her for reassurance.  It’s interesting that Democrats claim another Trump Administration would be an existential threat to our Republic, while promoting a presidential candidate who willingly deceived Americans and accepted her nomination by fiat.

Our commander-in-chief has a duty to protect and serve our nation. Voters deserve fidelity to that responsibility. Kamala Harris has repeatedly proven she’s incapable of meeting that standard. Her complicity in the coverup demonstrates who she really is - someone willing to turn her back on her oath and lie to the American people. Can Americans truly trust her as President of the United States?

Congressman C. Scott Franklin is a retired Naval Aviator and former business owner, representing Florida’s 18th Congressional District, including Lakeland, Lake Okeechobee and portions of the Everglades. A member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, Franklin also on the Agriculture Subcommittee. He also serves on the House Veterans Affairs and the House Science, Space and Technology Committees.