Former President Joe Biden has set the record straight on his wife, Dr. Jill Biden’s, religious affiliation.
Appearing on Thursday’s episode of The View, which marked their first joint interview since leaving the white house, the pair fielded questions from the hosts about the legacy of Biden’s administration, the downfall of his 2024 presidential campaign, and concern about his alleged cognitive decline.
At one point, while speaking about Pope Francis’s recent funeral that the couple attended, host Whoopi Goldberg accidentally referred to them both as “devout Catholics.”
Joe then stepped in to correct Goldberg, saying that “by the way, Jill’s a Presbyterian,” before it was quickly noted that “the pope is the pope for all people.”
Jill has previously spoken about the common misconception, telling Baptist News Global in 2022: “People think I’m Catholic like Joe, but I grew up Presbyterian.”
Though she identifies as Presbyterian — a branch of Reformed Christianity — Jill regularly attends mass with Joe.
Elsewhere during their appearance, Joe addressed reports that have questioned the “dramatic decline in [his] cognitive abilities” during the final year of his presidency, insisting: “They are wrong.”
“The people who wrote those books were not in the White House with us. And they didn’t see how hard Joe worked every single day,” Jill added. “If you look at things today, give me Joe Biden any time.”
Jill also responded to accusations that she built a “cocoon” around Joe, limiting his interactions with the media and others.
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“Do you think you could’ve been too close to the situation to objectively gauge whether he could handle a full four more years?” host Sara Haines wondered.
“I was with Joe day and night. I saw him more than any other person. I woke up with him, I went to bed at night with him, so I saw him all throughout the day,” Jill said. “And I did not create a cocoon around him. I mean, you saw him in the Oval Office, you saw him making speeches. He wasn’t hiding somewhere, I didn’t have him sequestered in some place. I mean that’s ridiculous!”
“I wish she had,” Joe interjected, causing the hosts and audience to laugh.
Host Ana Navarro went on to ask Jill about the earlier comparisons made about her and Lady Macbeth that the conservative media ran wild with before the election, to which the former First Lady said that those descriptions were indeed “hurtful.”
“It was very hurtful, especially from some of our so-called friends,” she said.
