U.S. President Donald Trump has made a number of unsympathetic statements about former president Joe Biden since Biden’s cancer diagnosis was revealed in May.
In September, Biden underwent surgery to remove skin cancer lesions after his office disclosed in May that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.
While Trump initially wished Biden a “fast and successful recovery” on Truth Social, he has since reverted to criticizing his predecessor.
Newsweek contacted the White House by email outside of normal business hours to comment on this story.
Why It Matters
Trump’s comportment raises questions about the divisiveness of American politics and standards in public life.
His statements also feed into ongoing discourse about the extent to which Biden was suffering from ill-health during his presidency and whether this was hidden from the public.
Biden’s office has consistently denied these allegations.
What To Know
Since the diagnosis, Trump has made a number of disparaging comments about Biden.
Days following Biden’s team announcing his diagnosis, Trump shared a post which called Biden a “decrepit corpse.” The post also accused Democrats of stealing the 2020 election, pardoning “their friends,” and of using “an autopen to start wars”—the latter a reference to the accusation that Biden did not physically sign official documents, including pardons, and that the White House instead used an automated signature.
In May, he also said to reporters that while the diagnosis was “very sad” he questioned the timeline of the diagnosis. “I’m surprised that the public wasn’t notified a long time ago,” he said.
In May, he also called Biden a “somewhat vicious person”, adding: “If you feel sorry for him, don’t feel so sorry, because he’s vicious. What he did with his political opponent and all of the people that he hurt, he hurt a lot of people, Biden, so I really don’t feel sorry for him.”
In September, at the American Cornerstone Institute Founder’s Dinner in Mount Vernon, Virginia he called Biden “angry” and “mean.”
“You know Biden was always a mean guy but never a smart guy. You go back thirty years ago, 40 years ago, he was a stupid guy. But he was always a mean son of a b***h you know?”
He added: “How’s it working? Not working too well for him right now. So, when you start feeling sorry for him, remember he’s a bad guy.”
Trump has also repeatedly claimed Biden has “stage 9” cancer, despite there only being four stages of cancer.
What People Are Saying
William F. Hall, Adjunct Professor of Political Science and Business at Webster University and Adjunct Political Science Instructor at Maryville University and Washington University in St. Louis, told Newsweek: “I believe many of the recent ongoing disparaging comments and statements that have allegedly been made by President Donald Trump about the increasingly deteriorating health-related challenges and illnesses being experienced by former President Biden, are both extremely insensitive and highly inappropriate as well as in my view, beneath the dignity and stature of one occupying the Office of the President of The United States of America.”
What Happens Next
Biden’s cancer treatment is ongoing.