President Joe Biden admitted during a private fundraiser this week that he was so exhausted during his debate with former President Donald Trump that he nearly fell asleep on stage.

The remarks from Biden, who was only able to speak for six minutes at the event, come as his administration has sought to portray him as energetic as he faces calls to step down as the party’s nominee.

“I decided to travel around the world a couple of times … shortly before the debate … I didn’t listen to my staff … and then I almost fell asleep on stage,” said Biden, according to the White House press pool.

Despite his claim, Biden had been back in the U.S. for weeks prior to the debate, including a full week at Camp David where he took daily naps, maintained a light schedule, and never started work before 11 a.m., according to The New York Times.

He reportedly apologized for his disastrous performance, but maintained that it was “critical” for him to win the election, adding that his excuse for his poor performance was “not an excuse but an explanation.”

News: Biden tries to explain debate performance at a private fundraiser in VA.
“I decided to travel around the world a couple of times … shortly before the debate …I didn’t listen to my staff … and then I almost fell asleep on stage.”
He spoke for about 6 minutes. pic.twitter.com/i3W5JY0fv3

— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) July 2, 2024

The New York Times reported that those closest to Biden have noticed that he “increasingly appeared confused or listless, or would lose the thread of conversations” and that these incidents are “growing more frequent, more pronounced and more worrisome.”

The report highlighted numerous incidents that happened while he was in Europe that turned into viral videos on social media, including embarrassing moments at the D-Day anniversary ceremony in France and his subsequent trip to Italy for the G7 Summit.

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The White House is refusing to let Kevin C. O’Connor, the White House physician, answer questions from the media about Biden’s condition and said that O’Connor does not believe that Biden needs to be re-evaluated for Parkinson’s disease — even though the condition that most speculate Biden has is some form of dementia. The administration went even further and denied that Biden had ever taken “Levodopa or other drugs for that condition.”

As Biden appears to be circling the drain, his inner circle is tightening its grip and shielding him even more from public view in an effort to protect him from making further mistakes.

NBC News reported on Tuesday that Biden’s son, convicted felon and drug addict Hunter Biden, was now attending official White House meetings with the president to the shock of most in the administration.