Former Obama speechwriter and “Pod Save America” co-host Jon Lovett acknowledged during a recent podcast appearance that he deliberately held back public criticism of President Joe Biden’s physical and mental fitness during the 2024 election campaign—admitting that political strategy played a key role in his silence.
Appearing on Jon Stewart’s The Weekly Show, Lovett revealed he had reservations about Biden’s cognitive and physical state but chose not to speak out, fearing his comments could be used against the Democratic candidate. Speaking with Stewart and fellow co-host Jon Favreau, Lovett said he wanted Biden to win and didn’t want to fuel narratives that could harm his reelection bid.
“I remember thinking, ‘I want to talk about this as a huge liability,’” Lovett said. “But I’m not going to go so far as to say, ‘Joe Biden must drop out. He’s too old to be president,’ because I didn’t fully know what was happening behind the scenes—and if he’s the nominee, I want him to f—— win.”
Lovett openly admitted that he feared his words would be taken out of context and weaponized by Biden’s political opponents. “You worry about the right taking anything a liberal says and turning it into a hammer against the president,” he said. “So it became about walking that line—being honest about concerns, while doing what I believed was necessary to help him win.”
The conversation comes amid a broader media spotlight on Biden’s health, especially following the release of Original Sin, a new book co-authored by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios reporter Alex Thompson. The book examines Biden’s physical decline and alleges that top aides engaged in a coordinated effort to conceal the severity of his condition during the campaign.
Lovett is mentioned in Original Sin as part of an April 2024 meeting at the White House with co-hosts Favreau and Dan Pfeiffer. According to the book, the group left “deeply disturbed” by Biden’s performance in the meeting, describing the president as incoherent and rambling.
As the 2024 race played out, Lovett and his podcast team remained publicly supportive of Biden’s candidacy, even as questions swirled around his stamina and capacity. His recent remarks underscore the tension among Democratic insiders who supported Biden’s reelection bid, even as private doubts mounted about his fitness for a second term.
The revelations come as the public, media, and political class continue to debate Biden’s future and the Democratic Party’s direction heading into the next election cycle.
